Frigidaire about ten years old. Compressor sounds fine once it is
running but increasingly it fails to start and has to timeout and
retry. Is there any chance it could it be the starter capacitor or
something fixable? I have now put it on a timer -- one hour on -- one
hour off -- to reduce the number of times it tries to start. Thanks.

"Davej" wrote in message
...
Frigidaire about ten years old. Compressor sounds fine once it is
running but increasingly it fails to start and has to timeout and
retry. Is there any chance it could it be the starter capacitor or
something fixable? I have now put it on a timer -- one hour on -- one
hour off -- to reduce the number of times it tries to start. Thanks.


My PERSONAL experience with two refrigerators trying to extend their lives
was throwing money down a gopher hole. YMMV. Perhaps it could be something
simple. Bad thing is, if you don't know someone in the industry that will
look at it cheap and give you a straight answer, you have to pay premium
prices, and don't get much of a guarantee. Once they leave, you're standing
naked in the dark. My experiences with different repair services over the
year were 75% negative, and 100% sleazy with regard to the negative ones.

It may be a simple fix, or it may be terminal. Identifying the problem
inexpensively is one thing. Fixing it is another. Some fixes are a timer
or switch, or some other simple inexpensive component. Once you get into
anything that has to do with freon, it's another matter.

You can pick up good units on craigslist for what you might throw away on
this one.

Good Luck.

Steve

I love the Fridgidaire brand. Love the quality. Much less expensive parts
than GE, for example. Anyhow, yes, the start relays are famous for failing.
Make some calls, an appliance repair tech near you should stock compressor
hard start kits, and be able to put one on. I stock several of them in my
work van, use several a year.

--

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

"Davej" wrote in message
...
Frigidaire about ten years old. Compressor sounds fine once it is
running but increasingly it fails to start and has to timeout and
retry. Is there any chance it could it be the starter capacitor or
something fixable? I have now put it on a timer -- one hour on -- one
hour off -- to reduce the number of times it tries to start. Thanks.

This is the sort of thing I was hopeful I might hear. Do the symptoms
really match? This is the contraption that is mounted on the side of
the compressor? I'm sure I could replace that myself if I can buy one.
Thanks.


On Dec 21, 1:50*pm, "Stormin Mormon"
wrote:
I love the Fridgidaire brand. Love the quality. Much less expensive parts
than GE, for example. Anyhow, yes, the start relays are famous for failing.
Make some calls, an appliance repair tech near you should stock compressor
hard start kits, and be able to put one on. I stock several of them in my
work van, use several a year.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
*www.lds.org
.

"Davej" wrote in message

....
Frigidaire about ten years old. Compressor sounds fine once it is
running but increasingly it fails to start and has to timeout and
retry. Is there any chance it could it be the starter capacitor or
something fixable? I have now put it on a timer -- one hour on -- one
hour off -- to reduce the number of times it tries to start. Thanks.

Davej wrote:
Frigidaire about ten years old. Compressor sounds fine once it is
running but increasingly it fails to start and has to timeout and
retry. Is there any chance it could it be the starter capacitor or
something fixable? I have now put it on a timer -- one hour on -- one
hour off -- to reduce the number of times it tries to start. Thanks.

How's the cooling?
Try to check current.

Greg

Davej wrote in :

Frigidaire about ten years old. Compressor sounds fine once it is
running but increasingly it fails to start and has to timeout and
retry. Is there any chance it could it be the starter capacitor or
something fixable? I have now put it on a timer -- one hour on -- one
hour off -- to reduce the number of times it tries to start. Thanks.

Had a side-by-side with similar issues. Relay eventually burnt up.
Replaced this part which is attached to the compressor. Easy to replace.
Fixed it fine. Hope yours works out.

This is the part I needed but it turned out the local appliance parts
store had it just as well.

http://www.repairclinic.com/PartDeta...4387835/586449

Go to web site to lookup part for your unit.

On Wed, 21 Dec 2011 09:56:18 -0800 (PST), Davej
wrote:

Frigidaire about ten years old. Compressor sounds fine once it is
running but increasingly it fails to start and has to timeout and
retry. Is there any chance it could it be the starter capacitor or
something fixable? I have now put it on a timer -- one hour on -- one
hour off -- to reduce the number of times it tries to start. Thanks.

It "could" be the starter / capacitor. I don't know

My Frigidaire upright freezer was trying to start. It lives in the
garage, one morning I smelled burning like plastic, rubber. You could
here the freezer trying to start and could hear the sound of
"sizzling".

It cost me $50 to fix it, but finding the problem was obvious to me.

Look for burnt parts that have a weak connection....

Oren wrote in news:4nv4f7hdjk5a2eo6jh08c6lfsb2taogljq@
4ax.com:

On Wed, 21 Dec 2011 09:56:18 -0800 (PST), Davej
wrote:

Frigidaire about ten years old. Compressor sounds fine once it is
running but increasingly it fails to start and has to timeout and
retry. Is there any chance it could it be the starter capacitor or
something fixable? I have now put it on a timer -- one hour on -- one
hour off -- to reduce the number of times it tries to start. Thanks.

It "could" be the starter / capacitor. I don't know

My Frigidaire upright freezer was trying to start. It lives in the
garage, one morning I smelled burning like plastic, rubber. You could
here the freezer trying to start and could hear the sound of
"sizzling".

EXACTLY my case only it was in the kitchen. Did it just as I was going to
bed. Gave an eyes up and "Thank you" for that one.


It cost me $50 to fix it, but finding the problem was obvious to me.

Look for burnt parts that have a weak connection....

The OP may or may not have the skills to install such a kit. In any case,
the kit you showed appears to be specific to certain models only. Sixty
bucks or so with shipping, I'd dare to guess. Cheaper than a service
guy..... if you're totally sure you can do the part change out. It's not
really something you can learn by doing. Need to watch others first.

--

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

"Red Green" wrote in message
...

Had a side-by-side with similar issues. Relay eventually burnt up.
Replaced this part which is attached to the compressor. Easy to replace.
Fixed it fine. Hope yours works out.

This is the part I needed but it turned out the local appliance parts
store had it just as well.

http://www.repairclinic.com/PartDeta...4387835/586449

Go to web site to lookup part for your unit.

Yes, Yes, Yes, please contact the appliance web site, and see if they have
one that matches your fridge. Remember your electric safety, please. Unplug
the fridge while working. While under there, take a snow brush (or condensor
brush) and shop vac, and clean it all out.

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

"Davej" wrote in message
...
This is the sort of thing I was hopeful I might hear. Do the symptoms
really match? This is the contraption that is mounted on the side of
the compressor? I'm sure I could replace that myself if I can buy one.
Thanks.


On Dec 21, 1:50 pm, "Stormin Mormon"
wrote:
I love the Fridgidaire brand. Love the quality. Much less expensive parts
than GE, for example. Anyhow, yes, the start relays are famous for
failing.
Make some calls, an appliance repair tech near you should stock compressor
hard start kits, and be able to put one on. I stock several of them in my
work van, use several a year.

You should try real prayers, they do wonders. I can introduce you to some
nice young men who can show you how.

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

"Red Green" wrote in message
...


My Frigidaire upright freezer was trying to start. It lives in the
garage, one morning I smelled burning like plastic, rubber. You could
here the freezer trying to start and could hear the sound of
"sizzling".

EXACTLY my case only it was in the kitchen. Did it just as I was going to
bed. Gave an eyes up and "Thank you" for that one.

"Stormin Mormon" wrote in
:

The OP may or may not have the skills to install such a kit. In any
case, the kit you showed appears to be specific to certain models
only. Sixty bucks or so with shipping, I'd dare to guess. Cheaper
than a service guy..... if you're totally sure you can do the part
change out. It's not really something you can learn by doing. Need to
watch others first.


I'm no frig fixer. I never saw anybody do it.

- Noise and burning smell coming from under frig. Some evidence of some kind should be visable.
- Known: All that stuff is located under cardbaord panel at back bottom of frig.
- Ahhh! Melted thingy on side of compressor. Has mounting screws. Has terminal connectors. Must be meant to be replaced.
- How much for part vs another frig. Lookup part. $40 vs hundreds. Worth a shot? To me, yes.
- Went for it.
- Sometimes things just work out.

Please let us know how it works out. Us repair techs prefer home owners to
call a repair tech. But, with the Obama economy, I can't blame you for
needing to save a buck. After all, I did put my own tail pipe under the van
last week, and that was $55 labor that didn't move around. Oh, well.

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

"Davej" wrote in message
...
This is the sort of thing I was hopeful I might hear. Do the symptoms
really match? This is the contraption that is mounted on the side of
the compressor? I'm sure I could replace that myself if I can buy one.
Thanks.

"Stormin Mormon" wrote in
news
You should try real prayers, they do wonders. I can introduce you to
some nice young men who can show you how.

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
.

"Red Green" wrote in message
...


My Frigidaire upright freezer was trying to start. It lives in the
garage, one morning I smelled burning like plastic, rubber. You
could here the freezer trying to start and could hear the sound of
"sizzling".

EXACTLY my case only it was in the kitchen. Did it just as I was going
to bed. Gave an eyes up and "Thank you" for that one.





You should try real prayers

You don't think [insert whatever here] might just appreciate plain old
recognition and sincere thank you? You know, vs the everyday groveling
from bull****ters.


I can introduce you to some nice young men

I ain't into that crap.

Possibly the starter burnt out in the first place because of dirty
coils.

On my Sears the coils are in a double V configuration with almost no
way to reach the back set.

We have a 20 year old Whirlpool refrigerator, 18.1 cubic feet, white,
freezer on top. (you know the one) It still works fine. The
compressor had to be replaced once a long time ago, but was still under
warranty.

SWSRN has decided that a 20 year old refrigerator Just Will Not Do.
(Trust me, don't ask "will not do what?") So I've been looking at new
ones; might pick up a good end-of-year deal. 22 to 27 cubic feet
Whirlpools and Frigidaires are the contenders, the ones with French
doors and the freezer on the bottom. The appliance store manager told
me that the big appliance companies only warranty the compressors for 1
year now, and if I heard her right, that does not include labor. LG has
a 10 year warranty, and Fisher Paykel has a long warranty but I wasn't
listening, and that's all. WTF? Do they *plan* on them failing in less
than 5 years now?

I have a Montgomery Wards freezer that's at least 30 years old and it
still runs just fine. Maybe that's why MW went out of business...

-Bob

On Dec 30, 8:55*pm, TimR wrote:
Possibly the starter burnt out in the first place because of dirty
coils.

On my Sears the coils are in a double V configuration with almost no
way to reach the back set.

dirty coils might put more strain on the compressor when it is running
but I don't think dirty coils would have any effect on the compressor
starting..

Mark

The next time you see a "will work for food" guy with the cardboard sign.
That's the appliance repair guy you put out of a job. Be sure and give him a
buck or two.

Mostly kidding. Grin, here.

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

"Davej" wrote in message
...

Got the $31 "PTC Relay" and the $18 capacitor that plugs onto it. Had
to struggle to get the two wires to release but that was the only
struggle. Should have probably used a small drill bit to push on the
wire spade lug release. Made a new longer retainer wire to hold it all
in place. So far (two days) I have not heard the refrigerator fail to
start on the first try. Thanks again.

On 12/30/2011 10:19 PM, Mark wrote:
On Dec 30, 8:55 pm, wrote:
Possibly the starter burnt out in the first place because of dirty
coils.

On my Sears the coils are in a double V configuration with almost no
way to reach the back set.

dirty coils might put more strain on the compressor when it is running
but I don't think dirty coils would have any effect on the compressor
starting..

Mark

If it gets very hot, it can keep the head pressure high which can affect
the starting of the compressor. The overload Klixon can also become more
sensitive due to a higher than normal ambient temperature and trip when
the compressor tries to start.

TDD

On Fri, 30 Dec 2011 20:55:19 -0600, zxcvbob wrote:

We have a 20 year old Whirlpool refrigerator, 18.1 cubic feet, white,
freezer on top. (you know the one) It still works fine. The
compressor had to be replaced once a long time ago, but was still under
warranty.

SWSRN has decided that a 20 year old refrigerator Just Will Not Do.
(Trust me, don't ask "will not do what?")

:-) That's an ongoing battle in our house too... our Whirlpool's turning
35 this year, though.

New fridges seem extremely expensive though, and I don't have any faith
in them lasting more than a few years, unlike the Whirlpool.

cheers

Jules

wrote:
Please let us know how it works out. Us repair techs prefer home owners to
call a repair tech.
Christopher A. Young


I can see why you like to be called out.

You're one of those guys who charge $100 to come out and fix a $10 problem,
then give a warranty that expires when your tires leave contact with the
driveway?

My last experience was a guy who wanted $700 to replace motherboard and
"stuff" in my nearly new oven. I pulled unit, unplugged and replugged,
looked up error code in the tech packet inside the oven cavity, and fixed
the $22 self cleaning interlock myself. A couple of screws, a couple of
spade terminals. BTW, I got back my $100 service/diagnostic call when I
mentioned my nephew was a cameraman with the local unit that investigates
consumer fraud.

Motherboard was fine.

Steve
Learn more about cults
www.exmormon.org

"Steve B" wrote in
:


wrote:
Please let us know how it works out. Us repair techs prefer home
owners to call a repair tech.
Christopher A. Young


I can see why you like to be called out.

You're one of those guys who charge $100 to come out and fix a $10
problem, then give a warranty that expires when your tires leave
contact with the driveway?

That's terrible. Everyone knows the warranty is valid as long as you can
see the taillights.


My last experience was a guy who wanted $700 to replace motherboard
and "stuff" in my nearly new oven. I pulled unit, unplugged and
replugged, looked up error code in the tech packet inside the oven
cavity, and fixed the $22 self cleaning interlock myself. A couple of
screws, a couple of spade terminals. BTW, I got back my $100
service/diagnostic call when I mentioned my nephew was a cameraman
with the local unit that investigates consumer fraud.

Motherboard was fine.

Steve
Learn more about cults
www.exmormon.org

On 12/31/2011 12:32 PM, Steve B wrote:
wrote:
Please let us know how it works out. Us repair techs prefer home owners to
call a repair tech.
Christopher A. Young


I can see why you like to be called out.

You're one of those guys who charge $100 to come out and fix a $10 problem,
then give a warranty that expires when your tires leave contact with the
driveway?

My last experience was a guy who wanted $700 to replace motherboard and
"stuff" in my nearly new oven. I pulled unit, unplugged and replugged,
looked up error code in the tech packet inside the oven cavity, and fixed
the $22 self cleaning interlock myself. A couple of screws, a couple of
spade terminals. BTW, I got back my $100 service/diagnostic call when I
mentioned my nephew was a cameraman with the local unit that investigates
consumer fraud.

Motherboard was fine.

Steve

Steve, most repair techs are honest and are not going to rip people off
and when I talk to other guys at the supply house, we discuss who the
crooks are and it usually winds up being one or a few organizations
that have a corporate policy or culture of sticking it to customers. I
know more than one fellow who has gone to work for such nefarious
service companies and resigned after a short time because of the company
attitude toward customers. I don't blame you at all for being
suspicious of a high estimate to repair your appliance. Unfortunately
many people aren't as savvy as you are when it comes to dealing with
repair techs. That's how those companies afford shiny new trucks. :-(

TDD

On Dec 30 2011, "Stormin Mormon" wrote:
The next time you see a "will work for food" guy with the cardboard sign.
That's the appliance repair guy you put out of a job. Be sure and give him a
buck or two.

Mostly kidding. Grin, here.

Christopher A. Young

"Davej" wrote in message

...

Got the $31 "PTC Relay" and the $18 capacitor that plugs onto it. Had
to struggle to get the two wires to release but that was the only
struggle. Should have probably used a small drill bit to push on the
wire spade lug release. Made a new longer retainer wire to hold it all
in place. So far (two days) I have not heard the refrigerator fail to
start on the first try. Thanks again.


An update -- after several weeks the symptom of occasional failed
starts returned and they are slowly increasing in frequency of
occurrence. I think I could help preserve the thing if I simply added
something to force a good long timeout between starts. I really don't
see the need for tightly regulated temperature control for a carton of
eggs, milk and a few leftovers.

http://www.amazon.com/Delay-Break-Su...8312524&sr=1-1

On Feb 3, 6:44*pm, Davej wrote:
On Dec 30 2011, "Stormin Mormon" wrote:



The next time you see a "will work for food" guy with the cardboard sign.