Mr Pounder Esquire wrote:
Bob Minchin wrote:
Mr Pounder Esquire wrote:
Bob Minchin wrote:
Mr Pounder Esquire wrote:


If you can, take the cover off the evaporator plate and see if it
is all frozen up inside. If it is, the timer could be the fault.
Maybe. There should be/might be little white plastic plugs holding
the cover in place.


The evaporator seems to be just tubes and fins with air blown
through. I have a hunch that my hot air defrosting is just melting a
little ice which then drips down onto other ice and freezes again.

I called it a plate in error. Frost free do indeed have tubes and
fins with a fan blower motor. My experience with refrigeration ended
in 1999. So you did take the cover off then?


I'll try looking at the control board again. It has a couple of
triacs on it and I suspect they switch the fan and the heater.

If I can be certain which is the defrost heater, I might be able to
power that up manually, leave the freezer loaded but switched off
and accelerate the defrost process? Worth a go I reckon.

Bob



Yes the front cover is off exposing about 5 individual plugs, one of
which I'm pretty convinced is the defrost heater having looked at
pictures of replacement one.
One pair of connections measures 280 ohms or about 200 watts on 240v
which seems about right for the job.

Not all frozen up then?


Correct. As per my original post, the evaporator is gradually icing up
over a few weeks. I am becoming convinced that a good defrost will sort
it out but will try direct connection to the defrost heater with the
contents inside and a thermometer monitoring the contents temperature.