Key Takeaways
A icebox is one of the few contraption in your plate that lam continuously , day or nighttime , hold on your food stale . If you debate how hard a refrigerator has to work , it is really quite amazing that they break down so infrequently . On the uncommon occasion your icebox does turn back work , you may face a high-pitched fixture bank note and the expense of replacing all your turn a loss food . Have no fear ! This article is here to tell you everything you need to cognise about revivify your refrigerator and deep-freeze yourself . You might be surprised to study that repairs are in reality quite easy , requiring only a little cognition about the gismo and a little forbearance . rent ’s get pop out with some canonical info .
refrigerator and freezers consist of two basic component : a condenser curlicue and an evaporator coil . A liquid coolant is circulate through these curlicue by a compressor and a motor . The refrigerant liquid state is cooled in the condenser ; it then flow to the evaporator . At the evaporator , the air in the unit is cool by contact with the liquid - fill up coil . The capacitor of a refrigerator or deep-freeze is the ringlet on the outside of the unit ; the evaporator is the coil on the interior . The coolant is circulated through the system by a compressor .
Most refrigerators and freezer are Robert Frost - free . In this type of unit , a heater is mechanically turned on by a timekeeper in rules of order to disappear the frost inside the unit . Frost is melted by the heater at several unlike spotlight in the unit , starting with the coldest and most frosted areas . When the icing is completely unthaw , the thermoregulator automatically switches to a cool cycle in rescript to maintain the standard freezing temperature . Because this mental process is automatic , icing does not build up inside the loge .
The unit ’s compressor organization , which forces the coolant through the coil organization , is tug by a capacitor - eccentric motor . Other basic region of the cooling / defrost system include switches , thermostats , heaters , condensers , and fans . A do - it - yourselfer can test and supplant many of these refrigerator components . However , there are exceptions , as explained later , that are well leave to a professional repair someone .
carefulness : Before doing any body of work on a refrigerator or freezer , make certain it ’s unplugged . After unplugging the building block , check to see if the motor / compressor has a capacitor ; this component is settle in a housing on the top of the motor . Capacitors store electrical energy , even when the power to the unit is change state off . Before you do any study on a electrical condenser - eccentric icebox or freezer , you must discharge the electrical condenser , or you could find a severe shock .
Discharing a Capacitor
To discharge the electrical condenser :
Step 1 : disconnect the refrigerator or Deepfreeze .
Step 2 : To pull ahead admission to the capacitance , remove the armed service panel over the back rearward portion of the unit or the service panel on the front of the unit below the door , as detailed later for dismantlement . The capacitance is located in a caparison on the top of the motor / compressor unit ; it look like a large dry cellular phone battery .
gradation 3 : To discharge the capacitance , use a 20,000 - ohm , 2 - watt resistance – an inexpensive wire unit available at most electrical supplying memory . tighten the probe of the resistor to the terminals of the capacitor ; this assoil the capacitor . If the capacitance has three terminal berth , unite the resistor to one outer terminal and the center terminal , then to the other outdoor terminus and the marrow terminus . After discharging the capacitor , you’re able to go on with the repairs .
Disassembling the Refrigerator
The control components of a refrigerator are usually located in the top or upper part of the unit . The motor , compressor , condenser spiral , and condenser fan are located in the bottom section .
To gain access to the component in the upper section of the unit , remove the retaining screws or pry bar out the clips that have plastic or metal dialog box over the parts . These fasteners may be hidden by trim or molding ; in this case , pry off the trim or molding with a stiff - bladed putty knife . Protruding ascendency may also serve as retainers for the various panel sections . In most refrigerators , the shelves can be removed to let accession to some of the panels .
To gain access to the humiliated subdivision of the refrigerator , remove a overhaul panel held by retaining screws at the back of the social unit below the condenser coil . The unit may also have a front access gore below the door . This gore may be hold by retaining prison guard , or it may err up and off two side brackets . On some model , you could tip the refrigerator over and mental testing and service parts from the bottom . In this case , the icebox must be defrosted , unplugged , and empty before any servicing can be done .
The capacitance and evaporator coils and the compressor are sealed units on most refrigerators . If a malfunction occur within these character , call a professional service person . Other parts can usually be unscrewed or pried loose from mount bracket .
Testing the Power Cord
If the cord of the unit looks frayed , or if you see burn mark on the prongs of the plug or at the terminal screws – on the terminal block , under the rear entree panel of the unit – the electric cord may be faulty . essay the cord with a VOM set to the RX1 scale leaf ( instructions for using the VOM can be foundhere ) .
An enormous number of icebox problems can stem from the unsubdivided possible action and closing of the doorway . From unconventional temperature to an abundance of frost , threshold sustainment could solve all your problems . To learn how to serve your icebox door , move on to the next section .
Servicing a Refrigerator Door
If you find that your refrigerator ’s compressor is constantly running – knock off energy and cut down the biography of your widget – it could be due to problems with the door . Ideally , the climate inside a icebox would never be broken , and the unit could maintain a steady temperature all the prison term . Of course , we have to open up our refrigerators many times a day . Here are some tips to keep your doors working decent and to keep the warm air out from your food .
Servicing the Door Gasket
When a icebox gasket ( usually a rubber seal around the threshold ) becomes hard or cracked , its sealskin is broken , and the unit ’s efficiency drops sharply . Test the room access gasket for wetting by place a dollar bill between the gasket and the door jamb and shut the door . extract the bank note out . If it offers some resistance , chances are the gasket fits right . If the bill comes right out , or falls out , the gasket is faulty and should be replaced . prove the gasket at several locations around the door . Before you replace the gasket , check the doorway hinges for leakage .
To supersede a gasket :
footstep 1 : corrupt a gasket made specifically for the model refrigerator you own . So - called fit - all gaskets may fit after a fashion , but tailoring them to the doorway ’s conformation can be a tough task . If you are n’t sure about the role model number of your icebox , reduce out a small section of the gasket and take the sample to an appliance monger for matching . If the gasket has to be regulate , you may glue the section back into the disruption with gumshoe cement for a make - do fix until the new gasket follow in .
stride 2 : allow the fresh gasket sit about 24 hours in the room with the refrigerator to wreak it to the correct temperature and humidity , or soak the gasket in lovesome urine to make it tensile .
footfall 3 : Begin take the previous gasket . threshold gaskets are held by screws , cartridge clip , or adhesives , and the gasket may have a retaining strip , which helps shape it and allow a fasten tab or channelise . On some units , the gasket may be held in place by the edge of the doorway panel ; the control panel is fastened with natural spring - steel pressure clips , thunderbolt , or screws . To remove the gasket , remove the fastener that hold it and get rid of any hold back strips ; or remove the fasteners that hold the door panel .
Step 4 : Finish removing the fasteners on one side of the room access at a meter . Do not remove the entire door gore . If the gasket is contain by spring clips , be measured not to pry too severely on the clips ; they ’re under tenseness and could spring out of their mountings . If the gasket is held by adhesive material , pry it off with a putty tongue .
Step 5 : When the old gasket is off , make clean the mount arena thoroughly with mild household detergent and H2O . Remove obstinate adhesive material with mineral booze and fine steel fleece , followed by a detergent / water rinse .
footfall 6 : Start the switch at one side of the top of the threshold . Work down the side to put back the entire gasket . Smooth the gasket equally into billet , easing it around corners . utilize gasket cementum to assure it if the manufacturer specifies this step . Make certain the gasket lie categorical , with no lumps or curl edges .
gradation 7 : Replace the holdfast , retaining strips , or dialog box that view as the sometime gasket . After the gasket is in place , fasten or loosen the mounting bolts necessary to correct the gasket to the doorway jamb . If the gasket is paste in place , there is n’t much you may do but wait for the gasket to conform to the threshold jamb .
Test the gasket on a freezer room access with the same dollar - bank bill procedure ; if the gasket is faulty , replace it with a new gasket made especially for the freezer . Do not remove the freezer door to replace the gasket . Freezer doors are often tensioned with spring devices , which can be very troublesome to replace after the door has been removed , and on some models wiring has to be disassembled as well .
Servicing Door Hinges
A haggard or rugged door gasket may not be the causal agent of door leaks . Misaligned and loose door hinges can induce the doorway to rock or sag slimly , make even a well - fitted gasket ineffective .
Step 1 : If the door wo n’t exclude tightly , tip the icebox slimly rearward by propping up the front of the social unit or unscrew the front leveling legs two complete go . Experiment with this adaptation until the threshold stay closed in , but do n’t tip the social unit very far out of front - to - back level .
Step 2 : If leveling does n’t work , tighten the hinge screws . You may have to unfold the door ( especially the deep freezer room access ) to turn these screw . On some units , you may have to dispatch a hinge cap or trim to get in touch with the screws ; pry off the jacket crown or reduce with a screwdriver . Sagging and looseness can be correct by shimming the door hinges . Loosen the flexible joint and place a hinge - determine cardboard shim between the hinge and the door . Then tighten the hinge again . Sagging may also be cause by a incorrectly placed shim . In this fount , you could discipline the trouble by removing the shim . experimentation with the shims ; you may be able to eliminate the sagging .
whole tone 3 : If the door is warped , tighten the nooky that curb the inside door cuticle to the stunned doorway carapace . You may have to shift or adjust the door gasket after making this adjustment .
Step 4 : checker the catch . new units have a magnetic snap on the threshold . If the door does n’t latch properly , remove the magnetic strike from the inner threshold shell and shim it more or less with a piece of fragile composition board . You may have to adjust the gasket to conform with the novel shim .
Servicing the Door Switch
On the refrigerator doorway jamb , settle a little thrust - button replacement . This component operate the light inside the icebox . If the substitution is malfunctioning , the light in the unit may detain on , and the heating from the electric light can get cool off hassle in the box .
Step 1 : Check the electric-light bulb to see if it is burned out . If not , get down the push button on the room access alternate .
Step 2 : If the light stay on , clean the substitution with a cloth . Then get rid of the switch from the jamb . Remove retaining screws hidden by a plastic trim firearm , pry the switch out of the jamb with a screwdriver , or crowbar off the jamb trim to endanger the switch . Then examine the switch with a VOM put to the RX1 scale ( instructions for using the VOM are give on Sir Frederick Handley Page 19 ) .
stone’s throw 3 : Clip one probe of the VOM to each terminal of the switch and press the push push button . The meter should record zero . If the needle on the scale movement above zero , supersede the electrical switch with a new one of the same case .
tone 4 : join the young electric switch the same fashion the sometime one was connected .
Now that we have exhaustively exhausted door fix , there ’s nothing left to do except move inside and con about the internal components of a refrigerator . In the next section , you will learn everything from how to resort a passing water to how to service your ice Creator .
Servicing Internal Components
The interior - workings of a icebox can be a mixed bag . Some element are evenhandedly loose to service or repair , while others should only be deal by professionals .
Servicing the Limit Switch
The limit switch is institute only on hoarfrost - free icebox and freezers . Its social occasion is to keep the defrost heating system element from exceeding sure put temperatures . If a icebox has passel of frost in the Deepfreeze compartment , the problem may be the bound switch . However , other constituent – the evaporator fan , the defrost timer , and the defrost heater – can cause the same job . Check these for malfunctions , as detailed below . If these parts are in working condition , the problem is most likely in the terminus ad quem switch . Do n’t seek to desexualise the limit switch yourself ; call a professional service person for replacement .
service the Thermostat Control
The thermoregulator control is usually mounted inside the icebox . Its seeable control knob is turned to regulate the refrigerator / freezer temperature . The workability of this control can be tested in various ways , depend on the trouble . To test the thermoregulator control :
Step 1 : If the compressor run all the time , turn the control pommel to the OFF location . If the compressor still range , unplug the unit , then pull off the control knob and dispatch the screws hold the thermostat in place . pull in out the thermoregulator and slay either the Marxist or the blue wire from its terminal . Plug in the unit of measurement . If the compressor does n’t run , the thermostat is faulty . Replace it with a new thermostat .
footmark 2 : If the compressor black market after the telegram is move out from its pole , there is probably a light circuit somewhere in the social unit ’s wiring . In this case , do n’t seek to deposit the trouble yourself ; call a professional service mortal .
Step 3 : If the icebox or deep-freeze runs but the boxful does n’t cool , unplug the unit and remove the thermoregulator with a screwdriver . Disconnect both wire from the thermoregulator . Tape the ends of the wires together with electrical tape measure , and plug in the appliance . If the refrigerator begin and run normally , the thermoregulator is incorrect . Replace it with a new one of the same type . Connect the new thermostat the same fashion the old one was connected .
Step 4 : If the freezer compartment is normal but the refrigerator box does n’t cool down , set the dials that check both compartment to mid - range . Remove these knob ( they ’re normally friction - primed ) . Then unscrew the temperature control caparison ; you ’ll see an strain duct near the command . exchange the knob on the freezer thermostat and turn the control to the OFF office . open up the refrigerator door and search closely at the air duct . If this duct does n’t open wider in about ten minutes , the control is wrong . exchange the control with a raw one of the same type . Connect the new control the same way the old one was connected .
Servicing the Evaporator Fan
In some fount , a faulty thermostat may not be the cause of a quick refrigerator or freezer . A warm boxful may also be because of a defective buff , a block sports fan , or broken or bent devotee blade . If the steel are jammed , judge to justify them . If they ’re bent , straighten them with pliers . If this does n’t solve the trouble , call a professional service individual .
On some icebox , the threshold shift operates the evaporator fan . If the fan seems to be malfunction , the doorway electrical switch could be faulty . Test the switch as detailed in the last pageboy , and replace it if necessary .
Servicing the Defrost Timer
If the compressor does n’t move , it is potential that the defrost timer is misfunction . This part is located near the compressor . To test the defrost timekeeper :
Step 1 : Unplug the refrigerator .
Step 2 : Disconnect the wires from the timer and timer motor . Remove the timer from its square bracket by backing out two continue gaoler .
footfall 3 : Test the defrost timekeeper with a VOM set to the RX1 ordered series . trot one probe of the VOM to each defrost timekeeper – not motor – wire , and bend the timekeeper mastery screw jibe until it clack . If the defrost timekeeper is serve , the meter will read zero . If the acerate leaf jump , the defrost timer is defective . Replace it with a fresh one of the same eccentric .
Step 4 : Connect the Modern defrost timer the same manner the honest-to-goodness one was tie in .
To chink the defrost timer motor , clip one investigation of the VOM to each motor wire , determine the scale to RX100 . If the time read between about 500 and 3,000 Georg Simon Ohm , the motor is serve properly . If the metre reads gamy than 3,000 ohms , the timer motor is faulty . supercede it with a unexampled one of the same case . Connect the new motor the same way of life the old one was connect .
Servicing the Defrost Heater
This component is a heating element place on the evaporator coil . When the refrigerator or freezer switches to the defrost cycles/second , the defrost hummer is turned on to disappear the hoar in the compartment . Failure of the defrost heater causes failure to defrost .
Test the element with a VOM set to the RX1 shell . To gain memory access to the heat element , remove the compartment ’s wall panels . Clip one probe of the VOM to each constituent terminal . The metre should read between 5 and 20 Ohm . If it does n’t , the heating element is faulty and should be replace . Replace the heater with a new one of the same type and electrical valuation . unite the new heater the same way the sometime one was connected .
Servicing the Condenser Fan
The condenser devotee is located under the unit . If the devotee is malfunctioning , the icebox or deep freezer wo n’t cool down by rights , or it will pass unceasingly or not at all .
try the fan with a VOM place to the RX1 scale . Disconnect the electrical wires to the fan motor and clip one investigation of the VOM to each fan motor pole . If the meter read from 50 to 200 ohms , the motor is functioning decently . If the meter reads high than 200 ohm , the fan motor is faulty and you should supplant it .
While you ’re working on the fan motor , check that the devotee steel are clean and unobstructed . If the leaf blade are bent , carefully straighten them with pliers .
Clearing the Drain Ports
The drain ports are located along the bottom of both the Deepfreeze and the icebox section of the unit . These kettle of fish can become clog with debris or water ice , cause a drainage job when the unit is deice . To make the larboard , use a short surgical incision of wire that will fit the holes . Do not use a toothpick , because the wood may break off in the embrasure and become stuck . On some refrigerator , the drainage ports are located near the defrost warmer at the evaporator gyre . A lot of disassembly is take to clean this type of unit . If the refrigerator or freezer is this type , you may be better off calling a professional service person to remove the ports .
On some freezer compartments , the drain is locate under the freezer compartment and influence like a shoehorn . This type of drain can usually be unscrewed so that the drainage area can be cleaned .
Servicing the Drain Hose and Pan
The condenser devotee is located under the bottom of the refrigerator . During the defrosting cycle , water may run through a small hose into the drainage pan and is by nature evaporated . On some icebox , the drainage hose is golosh instead of metal . This character of hosiery can become cracked , causing outflow . Examine the hose . If it ’s damage , substitute it with a new one of the same character . If you blemish water on the floor , the drain pan may be tipped on its brackets , or the pan may be break through or rusted . To eliminate the escape , realine or supervene upon the pan .
Servicing Ice Makers
Freezers with machinelike ice manufacturing business sometimes malfunction because the water inlet valve strainer that eat water to the water ice maker becomes clotted . To chasten this problem , unplug the appliance and disconnect the water supply . polish off the water line where it enters the valve – unremarkably at the bottom border of the unit . Locate the telegram strainer and take away it . Clean the strainer with a stiff brush , using mild house detergent . Reassemble the element in reverse fashion .
Servicing a Refrigerant Leak
Coolant leaks are identifiable by their acrid smell . There is nothing you’re able to do to repair a coolant leak except call a professional serve person to take with the trouble .
Servicing the Motor/Compressor
The compressor and motor of a icebox or freezer are contained in a certain unit . If you hound problems to either of these element , do not endeavor to restore the unit yourself . Call a professional service of process person .
As you ’ve get a line , some vulgar icebox problems ( like faulty gaskets ) can well be resort at home plate , while others ( like a motor or compressor ) are beyond the scope of the average jack of all trades . Now you know how to make the low repairs , as well as when you ’ve meet your match .
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