I noticed that ice cream was starting to melt in the freezer of my
1979 GE side by side Ref/Freez combo. I removed the frozen goods
and put them outside. I new there was a reason for this cold weather.

I had this problem once before and the drain in the freezer was frozen
and plugged. That is not the case now.

What I have noticed is the fan that is positioned to blow on the
compressor comes on from time to time but shuts down after only
running for about five seconds. I believe this symptom is related to
the problem I am having.

The refrigerator seems to be fine but I haven't put a thermometer
in it yet to confirm this. The unit seems to be fairly clean from dust
in the coils and the drip pan is dry.

Help. Any pointers to what the problem may be?

wrote:

I noticed that ice cream was starting to melt in the freezer of my
1979 GE side by side Ref/Freez combo. I removed the frozen goods
and put them outside. I new there was a reason for this cold weather.

I had this problem once before and the drain in the freezer was frozen
and plugged. That is not the case now.

What I have noticed is the fan that is positioned to blow on the
compressor comes on from time to time but shuts down after only
running for about five seconds. I believe this symptom is related to
the problem I am having.

The refrigerator seems to be fine but I haven't put a thermometer
in it yet to confirm this. The unit seems to be fairly clean from dust
in the coils and the drip pan is dry.

Help. Any pointers to what the problem may be?


Hmmm 30 years. I believe GE used their "uni-bearing" cond motor.
The single bearing has probably gone oval-shape.

Dig out the model number, but this shows some common parts:
http://www.appliancepartspros.com/ac...s.aspx?cat=173

You could put a meter across the motor just to verify that
it is getting power when it stops spinning.

Hmmm 30 years. I believe GE used their "uni-bearing" cond motor.
The single bearing has probably gone oval-shape.

Dig out the model number, but this shows some common parts:
http://www.appliancepartspros.com/ac...s.aspx?cat=173

You could put a meter across the motor just to verify that
it is getting power when it stops spinning.

I have checked the temperature of the refrigerator now. It is to warm
also. I believe the separate cooling fan for the compressor shuts down
because the compressor is froze up and over current. Not having to
delve into a refrigerators working before this can only be a guess.

Maybe some one on this group can confirm whether the cooling fan runs
during the same time periods as the compressor. If so I may be off to
Lowe's to get another thirty year refrigerator.

On Fri, 02 Feb 2007 22:38:13 -0500, wrote:


Hmmm 30 years. I believe GE used their "uni-bearing" cond motor.
The single bearing has probably gone oval-shape.

Dig out the model number, but this shows some common parts:
http://www.appliancepartspros.com/ac...s.aspx?cat=173

You could put a meter across the motor just to verify that
it is getting power when it stops spinning.

I have checked the temperature of the refrigerator now. It is to warm
also. I believe the separate cooling fan for the compressor shuts down
because the compressor is froze up and over current. Not having to
delve into a refrigerators working before this can only be a guess.

Maybe some one on this group can confirm whether the cooling fan runs
during the same time periods as the compressor. If so I may be off to
Lowe's to get another thirty year refrigerator.

More bad news if I am understanding the circuit. A bi-metal over
current device clicks off when the fan shuts down. This thimble sized
device is in series with the compressor and fan. If I unhook one leg
of the compressor the over current device will not trip and the fan
continues to run.

wrote:

On Fri, 02 Feb 2007 22:38:13 -0500, wrote:


Hmmm 30 years. I believe GE used their "uni-bearing" cond motor.
The single bearing has probably gone oval-shape.

Dig out the model number, but this shows some common parts:
http://www.appliancepartspros.com/ac...s.aspx?cat=173

You could put a meter across the motor just to verify that
it is getting power when it stops spinning.

I have checked the temperature of the refrigerator now. It is to warm
also. I believe the separate cooling fan for the compressor shuts down
because the compressor is froze up and over current. Not having to
delve into a refrigerators working before this can only be a guess.

Maybe some one on this group can confirm whether the cooling fan runs
during the same time periods as the compressor. If so I may be off to
Lowe's to get another thirty year refrigerator.


More bad news if I am understanding the circuit. A bi-metal over
current device clicks off when the fan shuts down. This thimble sized
device is in series with the compressor and fan. If I unhook one leg
of the compressor the over current device will not trip and the fan
continues to run.


Ah. You are probably right then that it's a compressor failure.
That's the starting relay for the compressor.

Too bad.

Jim

On Fri, 02 Feb 2007 22:10:30 -0500, wrote:

I noticed that ice cream was starting to melt in the freezer of my
1979 GE side by side Ref/Freez combo. I removed the frozen goods
and put them outside. I new there was a reason for this cold weather.

I had this problem once before and the drain in the freezer was frozen
and plugged. That is not the case now.

What I have noticed is the fan that is positioned to blow on the
compressor comes on from time to time but shuts down after only
running for about five seconds. I believe this symptom is related to
the problem I am having.

The refrigerator seems to be fine but I haven't put a thermometer
in it yet to confirm this. The unit seems to be fairly clean from dust
in the coils and the drip pan is dry.

Help. Any pointers to what the problem may be?

Replace the fridge. The new ones are energy efficient and will pay
for itself in a couple of years.

On Feb 2, 10:10 pm, wrote:
I noticed that ice cream was starting to melt in the freezer of my
1979 GE side by side Ref/Freez combo. I removed the frozen goods
and put them outside. I new there was a reason for this cold weather.

I had this problem once before and the drain in the freezer was frozen
and plugged. That is not the case now.

What I have noticed is the fan that is positioned to blow on the
compressor comes on from time to time but shuts down after only
running for about five seconds. I believe this symptom is related to
the problem I am having.

The refrigerator seems to be fine but I haven't put a thermometer
in it yet to confirm this. The unit seems to be fairly clean from dust
in the coils and the drip pan is dry.

Help. Any pointers to what the problem may be?


Honestly replace it.

Here are some facts I read in Consumer Reports:

Refrigerators made after 1985 use half the energy of those made
before.

Refrigerators made after 1995 use 25% less energy than those made
between 1985 and 1995.

You will almost certainly see a difference in your electric bill.

The fan next to the compressor, and the compressor come on at the
same time. If the fan is defective, the compressor will overheat.

Immediately unplug the refrig. Because an over heated compressor
may come back to life, or it may be burned out forever. On the
small chance that the compressor will come back to life, don't
hurt it any more.

Replace the fan, see if that helps.

--

Christopher A. Young
You can't shout down a troll.
You have to starve them.
..

wrote in message
...

Hmmm 30 years. I believe GE used their "uni-bearing"
cond motor.
The single bearing has probably gone oval-shape.

Dig out the model number, but this shows some common parts:
http://www.appliancepartspros.com/ac...s.aspx?cat=173

You could put a meter across the motor just to verify that
it is getting power when it stops spinning.

I have checked the temperature of the refrigerator now. It is
to warm
also. I believe the separate cooling fan for the compressor
shuts down
because the compressor is froze up and over current. Not having
to
delve into a refrigerators working before this can only be a
guess.

Maybe some one on this group can confirm whether the cooling
fan runs
during the same time periods as the compressor. If so I may be
off to
Lowe's to get another thirty year refrigerator.

wrote in message
...

Honestly replace it.

It died. It almost lasted as long as my parents Crosley refrigerator.
The Crosley lasted about 35 years.


I'm sorry to hear that. A 35 year old refrigerator uses much more power than
a new one. As an example, I had a second refrigerator in the basement, an
old 12 cubic foot model. I replaced it with a new 18 cubic foot with self
defrosting. My electric bill went down $10 a month and I have much more
space and better freezer.

Based on just that example, 35 years, at $120 a year, cost your parents
$4200 extra to keep the old Crosley compared to a recent model. Why would
anyone want to keep spending extra money to keep an old appliance running?