Motherboard Repair: Fix or Replace? Real Costs and Common Failures

When your oven stops heating, your fridge won’t cool, or your dishwasher won’t start, the problem isn’t always the motor or the heating element. More often than not, it’s the motherboard, the main circuit board that controls how your appliance runs. Also known as control board, it’s the brain behind the buttons, timers, and sensors. If it fails, the whole appliance shuts down—even if every other part works fine.

Motherboard repair isn’t like fixing a broken belt or replacing a thermostat. It’s electronic, delicate, and often tied to the appliance’s age. A faulty control board, a specific type of motherboard found in ovens, dishwashers, and fridges can cause erratic behavior: lights flickering, error codes popping up, or the appliance just going dead. These boards wear out from heat, moisture, power surges, or just old age. In commercial kitchens, where appliances run 12 hours a day, they fail faster. Replacing one can cost between £150 and £400, depending on the model. But here’s the catch: if your appliance is over 8 years old, buying a new one might be smarter. A new oven or fridge doesn’t just fix the board—it comes with better energy ratings, warranties, and fewer future breakdowns.

Not all motherboard failures are created equal. Some are caused by simple issues like a power surge or a shorted component, which a skilled technician can fix by replacing a single capacitor or resistor. Others are due to widespread circuit degradation, where the whole board is crumbling. That’s when repair isn’t worth it. You’ll find posts below that break down real repair costs, common signs of failure, and when to walk away. We’ve seen businesses save thousands by replacing a faulty oven control board, the specific circuit board that manages temperature and timing in commercial ovens instead of buying a whole new unit. But we’ve also seen others waste money on repairs that failed again in six months. The difference? Knowing the signs, understanding the appliance’s age, and working with someone who actually tests the board—not just guesses.

What you’ll find below are real stories from commercial kitchens in Birmingham: a restaurant that fixed their oven board for £180 and kept running for another 3 years, a hotel that replaced a fridge motherboard and saved £1,200, and another business that ignored the warning signs and lost thousands in spoiled food. These aren’t theory pieces. They’re the kind of decisions you need to make when your business depends on your appliances working. No fluff. No guesswork. Just what works, what doesn’t, and when to call it quits.