That "Uh Oh" Moment...

[Gilligan]

Our big commercial upright freezer got shut off when an extension cord running from same plug to a nearby trailer (power for battery tenders) got too wet in a rainstorm and tripped the GFI. No power..no high-temp alarm. Freezer had about $1500 worth of angus beef and assorted other stuff in it. Caught it barely in time....everything had mostly thawed but was still cool. We're using all of that beef first...the other half of the beef is in the freezer closer to the house we normally use out of first. Near disaster.

And last week..our not-yet-year-old LG washing machine quit working. argh....

 

[Bonehead]

In my experience GFIs only last s long and get more prone to tripping over time.

 

[SandieGarry]

In my experience GFIs only last s long and get more prone to tripping over time.

Yep, we have a 2-year-old one at work that has gone bad.

 

[PrchJrkr]

Our big commercial upright freezer got shut off when an extension cord running from same plug to a nearby trailer (power for battery tenders) got too wet in a rainstorm and tripped the GFI. No power..no high-temp alarm. Freezer had about $1500 worth of angus beef and assorted other stuff in it. Caught it barely in time....everything had mostly thawed but was still cool. We're using all of that beef first...the other half of the beef is in the freezer closer to the house we normally use out of first. Near disaster.

And last week..our not-yet-year-old LG washing machine quit working. argh....

Gee, you much be rich.













Seriously, if I had that much invested in beef, I think I'd have a security light, visible at a glance and disguised as a porch light, wired into that circuit.

 

[Gilligan]

Gee, you much be rich.













Seriously, if I had that much invested in beef, I think I'd have a security light, visible at a glance and disguised as a porch light, wired into that circuit.

Figger average one of Earl's angus dresses at 900#....times $4/pound....yeah, its a pile of money.

I thought the audible alarm on the freezer would be all we needed...however, that takes electricity to operate. LOL. That freezer is out of sight on the ground level of the new house... But we check on it regularly now.

 

[SamSpade]

I decided to get a few KEYS for the freezer. Rule is it remains locked when not in use.

 

[Sneakers]

Took a look at the fridge this morning. Did the basic diagnostics, coils are clean, compressor running, fans running, thermal reset switch ok, capacitor in-spec, just doesn't cool. Everything points at a compressor failure. Once in a while I'll get a slight whiff of ammonia, but the label says R-134A, so not sure what that's about. I could buy a new compressor for around $250, but I do not have the tools or expertise to cut a new one in and charge it. Looked for a while online for a repair service, there is just nothing around here, unless anyone has a recommendation.

The compressor has a 10 year warranty, and I know I bought it sometime in 2015/2016, but can't find any purchase paperwork to show a purchase date.

Guess I'm going shopping.

 

[limblips]

Took a look at the fridge this morning. Did the basic diagnostics, coils are clean, compressor running, fans running, thermal reset switch ok, capacitor in-spec, just doesn't cool. Everything points at a compressor failure. Once in a while I'll get a slight whiff of ammonia, but the label says R-134A, so not sure what that's about. I could buy a new compressor for around $250, but I do not have the tools or expertise to cut a new one in and charge it. Looked for a while online for a repair service, there is just nothing around here, unless anyone has a recommendation.

The compressor has a 10 year warranty, and I know I bought it sometime in 2015/2016, but can't find any purchase paperwork to show a purchase date.

Guess I'm going shopping.

There should be a build date on the compressor itself. Maybe that will help.

 

[Sneakers]

There should be a build date on the compressor itself. Maybe that will help.

Nothing on the compressor, but the fridge label shows a build date of 5/2015.

 

[SandieGarry]

Did you contact the manufacturer? Worth a shot

 

[Kinnakeet]

Took a look at the fridge this morning. Did the basic diagnostics, coils are clean, compressor running, fans running, thermal reset switch ok, capacitor in-spec, just doesn't cool. Everything points at a compressor failure. Once in a while I'll get a slight whiff of ammonia, but the label says R-134A, so not sure what that's about. I could buy a new compressor for around $250, but I do not have the tools or expertise to cut a new one in and charge it. Looked for a while online for a repair service, there is just nothing around here, unless anyone has a recommendation.

The compressor has a 10 year warranty, and I know I bought it sometime in 2015/2016, but can't find any purchase paperwork to show a purchase date.

Guess I'm going shopping.

Is this in a RV?

 

[Sneakers]

Is this in a RV?

No.

After many failed attempts online to schedule a service thru both Sears and A&E, I finally made an appointment by phone for Monday with A&E. $99 for a diagnostic and detailed estimate. Worth it just to find out what is wrong.

 

[Sneakers]

Failed compressor.

Good News: cost of compressor covered under warranty.
Bad News: cost of labor
Good News: overall repair cost still WAY cheaper than a new fridge, if I could even find a model I liked.
Bad News: didn't have a compressor on the truck, goes thru this model like water, had to order one, won't return until Saturday to replace it.
Good News: original $99 diagnostic fee waived.

 

[DaSDGuy]

Failed compressor.

Good News: cost of compressor covered under warranty.
Bad News: cost of labor
Good News: overall repair cost still WAY cheaper than a new fridge, if I could even find a model I liked.
Bad News: didn't have a compressor on the truck, goes thru this model like water, had to order one, won't return until Saturday to replace it.
Good News: original $99 diagnostic fee waived.

Diagnostics sound ok. Let us know the actual results please.

 

[LightRoasted]

For your consideration ...

^that...Over the past 10 years, I have fixed my fridge, washer, dryer, oven, cars, lawn equipment, TVs, well issues and other things via youtube. Parts wise, I think I spent over $100 to fix something once, everything else has been $50 or less. It's not that I'm cheap, I look at these things as a challenge. I absolutely love YT for troubleshooting problems and it has saved me a ton over the years.

That's what's called being independent and self reliant. Or as it was said in the Army, "improvise, overcome, and adapt". Good for you.

 

[Sneakers]

Figured it was a good time to clean the fridge before it goes back into service. Pulled every door, drawer, panel, tray.... took hours but it's cleaner than new. And love that Clorox smell when you open the door now.

 

[itsbob]

Failed compressor.

Good News: cost of compressor covered under warranty.
Bad News: cost of labor
Good News: overall repair cost still WAY cheaper than a new fridge, if I could even find a model I liked.
Bad News: didn't have a compressor on the truck, goes thru this model like water, had to order one, won't return until Saturday to replace it.
Good News: original $99 diagnostic fee waived.

Does he have to use the same compressor?? I mean if the repairman says Geeze, we go through these compressors EVERY day.. Why would you put the same one in as a repair.. I would ask if the 10 year clock starts again for the compressor when he installs it.

 

[Sneakers]

Does he have to use the same compressor?? I mean if the repairman says Geeze, we go through these compressors EVERY day.. Why would you put the same one in as a repair.. I would ask if the 10 year clock starts again for the compressor when he installs it.

I imagine they could use a different make/model, but his repair docs say same in as out. A&E is the accredited repair company for Sears/Kenmore, so they do what Sears tells them they need to do. And in some cases you have to re-flash the firmware for different compressors. This one is a linear compressor, not a plain ol' compressor, so the board needs to know how to talk to it.

I did ask, and the new compressor is only warrantied for 90 days, which I thought was really pretty poor. If it fails again outside the 90 days, I'll now have the expertise to replace one myself, just have to borrow/rent the gauges and vacuum pump. Saw a few new units online for about $250.

For this go-around, I'll let a service guy replace it under warranty.

 

[Sneakers]

For anyone that has had a home appliance service call, specifically from A&E, did you give the tech a tip?

 

[Sneakers]

Tech just left, new compressor installed, already starting to chill. He did have to flash the firmware, so this was not something I had the tools to do.