I feel a little guilty asking again about machine oil smell from appliances.. Well, here goes.

I rent an apartment which supplies a relatively new fridge (2009 maybe). But it has received knocks and shaking as it has been moved around quite a bit. I've recently noticed a faint machine oil smell that accompanies the vented air coming from the fridge. It's no big deal initially, but after some time, it seems to pervade the apartment, or at least I notice it everywhere. Then the scratchy throat sets in. Harumph.

The fridge is an Eletrolux P/N 241857201. I opened the back and there is a warm compressor, a fan, and coils. There isn't much label information except on the compressor: Embraco EM2Z 60HLT. There's lots of technical data online, much of which I can't interpret, and I'm not sure if it would help to troubleshoot the smell anyway (http://www.embraco.com/default.aspx?...at=9&idfam=18). From a simple visual inspection, there doesn't seem to oil leaking either out of the fan bearings or the compressor.

Is it unusual to have a faint machine oil smell coming from the output vent air of a fridge? If so, I should just get over it and get use to the harumphing. If not, would the cause typically be the fan or the compressor? I'm not sure if it would necessarily be a leak that causes this, but if there was a small or slow leak, where would the best place be to check?

I like to think I know a fair bit about fridges, but I don't know what you mean by "vent". Is this an air duct on the back wall of the fridge with a baffle of some sort on it? Or are you referring to something on the outside of the fridge.

No, if there was enough refrigerant leaking out of that fridge for you to smell it, then the fridge wouldn't be working properly. Or, it would be getting very much worse even as you read this.

Three things:

1. In ANY fridge, the way to check the condition of the fridge is to look at the frost formation on the evaporator coils.
If this is a frost free fridge; that is, one with a separate freezer compartment with it's own door, then there will normally be a removable panel in the freezer compartment, and the evaporator coil will be behind that removable panel.
If the fridge is in good health, then you should see frost forming uniformly over the entire surface of the evaporator coil. Frost forming only at one end of the evaporator coil indicates a low refrigerant level (suggesting the possibility of a leak), or a worn out compressor, or both. Sometimes, the refrigerant charge will be so low that a "snowball" forms at the inlet end of the evaporator coil, and the rest of the coil is frost free.
Seeing a uniform development of frost over the entire surface area of the evaporator coil is proof that the fridge is in good mechanical condition.

2. People spill food in fridges all the time. It doesn't smell because the cold temperatures inside the fridge keep bacterial growth to a minimum. So, what you could be smelling is some food that was spilled in the freezer or fresh food section that seeped into the cabinet of the fridge and to the outside of the insulation where the warm temperatures would result in faster bacterial growth and more smell.

3. A frost free fridge is nothing more than a manual defrost fridge that has a system of defrosting itself every 10 to 20 hours. Frost free fridges have an electric heater in them that is positioned in close proximity to the evaporator coils. Once every 10 to 20 hours, power from the fridge compressor will be diverted to that electric heater to melt all the frost off the evaporator coils. The melt water then travels down a tube running down the back of the fridge to a receiving pan positioned above or around the compressor. The heat from the warm compressor then helps re-evaporate that melt water into the ambient air.
It could be that someone spilled some food in the freezer compartment. It's highly unlikely, but it could be that food somehow got onto that defrost heater and is burning every time the fridge defrosts itself. However, if that were the case, you would notice the smell only when the heaters were operating, which is for about 10 to 20 minutes every 10 to 20 hours.

3 1/2:
If this "vent" you refer to is a duct running along the back wall of the fridge, it's purpose is to introduce cold air at the BOTTOM of the fresh food compartment so that the circulation pattern of that air through the fresh food compartment will keep the whole fresh food compartment at a uniformly cold temperature. Since that air comes from the area of the evaporator fan, it's possible that what you're smelling is a fan motor slowly overheating and burning the lacquer insulation on it's motor windings. If that's the case, the evaporator fan motor is near or at the end of it's life and would have to be replaced. If your fridge keeps cooling properly for the next coupla weeks, then it wasn't the evaporator fan burning itself up either.

Hope this helps.

Frank,

As you've noticed your apartment contains more than one electric motor.
So, if the smell of machine oil is bothering you and the sources of the
smell are electric motors you need to determine whether the smell is real.
Do guests or family complain about the smell? Can they locate the source?
Does this aroma occur in other places (work? local shops? auto? bus?)?
I'd consult with a physician about the scratchy throat and your perceived
sensitivity to oils. I'm not writing you off as a loony but I'm starting to
lean that way. How long have you had this problem?

Dave M.

On Tuesday, July 2, 2013 10:53:04 PM UTC-5, wrote:
I feel a little guilty asking again about machine oil smell from appliances. Well, here goes. I rent an apartment which supplies a relatively new fridge (2009 maybe). But it has received knocks and shaking as it has been moved around quite a bit. I've recently noticed a faint machine oil smell that accompanies the vented air coming from the fridge. It's no big deal initially, but after some time, it seems to pervade the apartment, or at least I notice it everywhere. Then the scratchy throat sets in. Harumph. The fridge is an Eletrolux P/N 241857201. I opened the back and there is a warm compressor, a fan, and coils. There isn't much label information except on the compressor: Embraco EM2Z 60HLT. There's lots of technical data online, much of which I can't interpret, and I'm not sure if it would help to troubleshoot the smell anyway (http://www.embraco.com/default.aspx?...at=9&idfam=18). From a simple visual inspection, there doesn't seem to oil leaking either out of the fan bearings or the compressor. Is it unusual to have a faint machine oil smell coming from the output vent air of a fridge? If so, I should just get over it and get use to the harumphing. If not, would the cause typically be the fan or the compressor? I'm not sure if it would necessarily be a leak that causes this, but if there was a small or slow leak, where would the best place be to check?

What about the smell, was it stronger, weaker, same????

If you still facing this problem than you should use best spray which is specially made for refrigerators, OR visit this site for getting every type of solutions relating to the refrigerator cleaning (How To Clean a Refrigerator, Cleaning Out a Refrigerator) Here is the place where you can get every type of cleaning tips.



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On Wednesday, July 17, 2013 11:12:42 PM UTC-4, Gammer0 wrote:
If you still facing this problem than you should use best spray
which is specially made for refrigerators, OR visit this site for
getting every type of solutions relating to the refrigerator
cleaning ('How To Clean a Refrigerator, Cleaning Out a Refrigerator'
(http://housekeeping.about.com/od/kit...rigerator.htm)) Here
is the place where you can get every type of cleaning tips.

Thanks, Gammer0. I've done the cleaning, and poked around. It's not food related, it's very much a machine/oil smell. However, I think I've gotten use to it. I noticed it upon returning after being away for a while. Not sure if it's a *good* think not to notice it, but...well, you know, trying to deal with foremost things on the to-do list. Appreciate it, though.

On Tue, 2 Jul 2013 20:53:04 -0700 (PDT),
wrote:

I feel a little guilty asking again about machine oil smell from appliances. Well, here goes.

You're the same idiot who complained about an oil smell from fans in
recent posts. I suggest you stop using all electrical appliances, move
to a natural cave, at least 100 miles from civilization, and concentrate
your sensitive nostrils on smelling fecal droppings from raccoons,
possums, rats, mice, birds, and other creatures.