Thread: After a refrigeration techs advice

Iv got a double door display fridge that i use as a chiller and its perfect for my needs. I have got a problem with it that i think is getting worse. When i turn it on the air circulating fans in the fridge turn on and after about 30 seconds the refridgeration unit tries to kick in but the whole unit 'trips' the lcd lights displaying the temp start flashing and its starts the process all over again. Some times the refrigeration unit will click on first go but more offen than not will take a number of goes. Thanks in advance for any or all advice, hopfully my description makes sense.

Non fridgey here.
Could be an electrical problem. I’d unplug it, open electrical connections box, check any fuses go in tight(if you have a multimeter you could check continuity of cabling through the fuses) check all connections buy giving them a light tug.
I’ve seen a similar situation twice, once a cable had been terminated on the the insulation and would sometimes work other times not and the other time the active terminal block had heated up and the spade quick connects had become loose , each time the package units compressor started the vibration would make the feed to the controller arc, resetting it and starting the loop over again.

It’s hard to know, but it may be the compressor start gear. There’s a start relay that disconnects the start capacitor when the compressor gets away.
Do you have a clamp meter? To measure start current?

I've got an upright F&P freezer that has had 4 defrost heater elements in it. When they go it ices up and stops freezing the upper half. Out of warranty but like new so don't want to throw away.

Originally Posted by keric

Iv got a double door display fridge that i use as a chiller and its perfect for my needs. I have got a problem with it that i think is getting worse. When i turn it on the air circulating fans in the fridge turn on and after about 30 seconds the refridgeration unit tries to kick in but the whole unit 'trips' the lcd lights displaying the temp start flashing and its starts the process all over again. Some times the refrigeration unit will click on first go but more offen than not will take a number of goes. Thanks in advance for any or all advice, hopfully my description makes sense.

Sounds like its not starting the compressor. Possibly a faulty capacitor or relay but someone will need to look at it further.
When it doesn't start, does it make a humming sound followed by a metallic"tink"? That's the thermal overload if it makes that sound.

Thats what it sounds like to me as soon as the compressor tries to come on it make a clicking noise which i guess is the starter relay. Then the lights start flashing and it starts from square 1 again, i just went and had a look its a older unit so the starter relay just has a coil that pulls the contacts together when powered so i pulled the contacts out of the relay and gave them a light sand to clean them up but still no cigar. Maybe the capacitor isnt holding any power so when its needed on the initial starting of the compressor its got nothing to give. (Im a mechanic and im just working off the way the points and condensers work in older cars which im picking is pretty close to it haha)

Do you have access to a capacitor tester? The fact it starts sometimes gives me hope, it’s just a little challenging to guess without testing it.

No sadly I don't but shouldnt be to hard to find someone to test it for me, it works most the time once clicks on the initial time, iv just had a animal in there for a week sweet as but sometimes when i checked on it the temp was up abit so the compressor obviously hadnt been coming in for a period of time, just want to sort it before it ruins an animal especially coming into summer.

What was the issue @keric ?

Still not resolved, had the capacitor tested it tested ok but not great, thought id get a new 1 for what it was worth but no luck, ill check and clean as many connections as possible maybe try a new start relay depending on price failing that get someone to have a look at it.