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kitchenaid ksc24c8eyy02 compressor continuity test good compressor is hot, but not too hot to touch. Doesn’t seem to be vibrating, if it is it’s very fine both lines to the compressor are room temp replaced the compressor relay, tested the capacitor - good both fans work, the evaporator is running, the condenser fan I removed and put it on power and it ran fine. it was not turning on in the freezer, even when I manually closed the door switch Coils are clean - tipped the fridge back and gave them an extra cleaning to make sure condensor coils inside the freezer not cool at all Is this possibly.. temp sensor control board or is it a sealed system failure. put enough time into it now I’d like to dog it out lol. Help.
Hi @bobwahn , You said that the compressor is hot but little or no vibrations can be felt and given that the evaporator unit inside the freezer compartment is not icy cold and that the evaporator fan is also not running it appears that no refrigerant is being pumped through the evaporator unit in the freezer for some reason What is the temperature in the refrigerator compartment? I realize that you said that the refrigerator is not cooling but is it both compartments or only the freezer compartment? If only the freezer compartment is not cooling then since the evaporator fan in the freezer is not running perhaps the reason may be due to a faulty sensor in the freezer or perhaps a faulty control board. Your model has two evaporator units, one in the freezer and one in the refrigerator and the refrigerant flow through each is controlled by the control board opening and closing a valve in the sealed system to direct the flow as required. It may be that the control board “thinks” that the freezer is cold enough and therefore has turned off the evap fan and closed the refrigerant valve to the freezer but the refrigerant is still being fed to the refrigerator compartment so that is why the compressor is still operating. This is just conjecture on my part. Here’s a link to the tech sheet that may help as it will have the diagnostics and the schematics for the refrigerator so that you can test each component/function individually to see if it works OK. (see 2nd post down in link). You have to sign up with the website to download it. The tech sheet part # is W10287673 but I can’t find a free copy of it anywhere online. If both compartments are not cooling then there may be a problem with the compressor or the sealed system. A way to know where the problem may be is to check the sealed system high and low side pressures and also the compressor’s current draw. Here’s a link that explains it better than I can. Depending on your location you may have to get a licensed refrigerator repairer to do this so as to comply with the environmental regulations regarding the handling of refrigerant gases. Where I am you can’t even buy refrigerant gas without a license if you wish to recharge a system in a refrigerator or household aircon unit If it is determined that the problem is with the sealed system or the compressor, how old is the refrigerator? According to the warranty in the user manual there is a 10 year warranty on the sealed system (compressor, evaporator, condenser, dryer and tubing) Years 1-5 parts and labour and years 6-10 parts only. Just a thought. Just to get the names and locations correct, the evaporator unit is inside the freezer compartment (and also inside the refrigerator compartment - your model has two evaporator units) and the condenser unit is outside, underneath the compartments near the compressor. Only saying this because I was confused when you said “both fans work, the evaporator is running, the condenser fan I removed and put it on power and it ran fine. it was not turning on in the freezer, even when I manually closed the door switch” and “condensor coils inside the freezer not cool at all” The condenser fan is located with the condenser underneath, outside the compartments. The condenser fan is usually thermostatically controlled and can run whether the doors are open or not or even if the compressor is running or not as its function is to cool the condenser coils (and the refrigerant) if they are getting too hot. The evaporator fan inside the freezer compartment is the one that will operate when the compressor is running but it will be stopped when the door is open and started again when the door is shut. Its function is to drag the air across the icy cold evaporator unit and blow the cold air throughout the compartment to cool it down to the correct temp. The compressor will keep running with a door open. Apologies for the long answer.
Sounds like one of 2 problems. 1: you have zero refrigerant left in the system. Which is possible. Or 2: there has been an internal failure in the compressor where the motor is running but the compressor is not. Its not as rare a problem as you think. Do an amp draw on the compressor. Check the data tag on compressor for what amp draw should be. If it’s failed internally you’ll likely see low amps. Like 50% of RLA. It is possible for the refrigerant to leak out. Alot of newer systems have a tube that is LITERALLY crimped, not brazed. These sometimes leak. Or there could be a leak elsewhere. Microcracks in the suction or liquid line, cap tube, etc. I can tell you with certainty this isn’t a temp sensor or control board issue. Unplug the machine for a while, at least an hour or two. Come back when compressor is cool to the touch. Do a resistance check across the compressor windings. Make sure it didn’t go out on high temp. I know you said it had good continuity but doesn’t hurt to check. Hi temp n will kill common winding while it cools, then will return continuity. Measure ohms of common to start, common to run, then run to start. Run to start should be somewhat close in ohms to C to S + C to R because it is measuring across both windings. If all that checks good, plug in with amp clamp in place. Check start-up amps, and RLA. If amps are low, there’s most likely an internal failure in the compressor. Unless you have the proper tools and training I recommend against going any further in this repair. If they’re good, try a hard-start kit. Hvac supply companies have them available (commonly used on refrigeration equipment, though you.might have a hard time finding one small enough for your compressor). You’ll have to figure out which one you’ll need, based off the compressor. If you have to tie into the refrigerant system, again unless you have the tools and know-how I recommend against this. Especially with a fridge. Because once you tie in, you’ll need to recover the refrigerant in the system. pressure test with dry nitrogen, to try and find the leak. Then you’ll have to pull a vacuum on the system. Then weigh the charge back according to the quantity of refrigerant listed on the data tag inside the fridge (most likely) and probably won’t be more than ~13oz. Since refrigerant is sold in 25lb jugs… I would recommend against doing this. Now, you said one of your evap fans didn’t run even when manually triggering the door switch, but if given power would run manually. Have you checked the door switch also, to see if power is flowing across when its triggered? Could be a faulty switch. If it stopped.letting the fan run then it won’t moving air across that coil, and it would end up sending liquid refrigerant back to the compressor. If the compressor IS failed, this could be why. But, I’m hoping that its just part of the start components and not the compressor failing. Just verify amps, that everything is receiving power that should be, and we can go from there. Please post results of tests so we can help figure this out. I could write novels about this kinda stuff.
