Thor Appliance Repair in Philadelphia

Based in Southern California, Thor Kitchen sells pro-style ranges, hoods and coordinating appliances priced under the long-established professional-style names. Production happens overseas, and most sales go through retailers or online. Instead of relying on traditional luxury appliance dealers, Thor Kitchen grew by selling pro-style ranges directly and through retail partners. Pro-style ranges in 30-, 36- and 48-inch widths are the center of Thor Kitchen's catalog, with refrigerators, dishwashers, microwave drawers and hoods made to match. It appeals to buyers after a professional look for less than the established pro-style brands charge.

When one reaches our bench, we look first at stainless pro-style ranges with sealed high-output burners, high-output burners and infrared broilers on many ranges, matching column and French-door refrigeration, and panel-style dishwashers and microwave drawers. Thor puts heavy pro-style hardware together with fairly basic electronics, and it is usually the igniters and electronics that give out before the cavity or burners.

The problems that keep coming back across the Thor range are burner igniters and spark modules, oven thermostats and sensors, convection fan motors, refrigerator control boards, and door hinges on heavy oven doors.

Thor stoves are prone to igniters wet from spills, spark module, caps knocked out of place, and faulty valves. The common Thor microwave faults are drawer motor, magnetron, drawer position switches, and control panel. On Thor ovens, plan on oven igniter, thermostat or temperature sensor, convection fan motor, and door hinge.

Before a single panel comes off a Thor, the noise, heat and smell tell us a good deal, and we use them to narrow the fault quickly.

Thor pro ranges are a popular pick in new-construction rowhomes and renovated rowhouse kitchens on PGW gas, and spill-soaked igniters in a hot summer kitchen are behind many of the clicking-burner calls we get. Summer thunderstorms and winter nor'easters both knock out power in parts of the city, and the surge when PECO service comes back is hard on the control boards in a Thor.

In Center City towers and condo buildings, servicing a Thor often means a freight-elevator reservation and the building's contractor paperwork, so it is worth checking with management before the appointment. Our Thor visits run from Wynnefield to Olney and every neighborhood inside the city line.

Rather than coming from general distributors, Thor parts are usually supplied by the company's in-house parts department, and a wait of one to two weeks is typical. Thor owners usually paid for quieter, better-insulated machines, and that build quality tends to keep an older unit worth repairing.

Thor repairs are worthwhile for igniters, sensors and fans, but long parts lead times can tip the decision on a major board or sealed-system failure. Every job starts with a written estimate, and finished repairs carry a 90-day parts and 30-day labor warranty.

Dry the burner caps and igniters after spills and clean the hood filters often, since grease and moisture cause most Thor cooktop complaints. When a display or touchpad acts strangely after the power returns, a full reset at the breaker is worth trying before you book a visit. Ask management what paperwork a contractor needs before the appointment; it can save a wasted trip.

When you call, have the model and serial number, the symptom and when it began; a photo of any error code helps as well.