Issue with Samsung Refrigerator

[BoomerD]

Time to replace the fridge. You can keep throwing money at it, but IMO, diagnosing a problem by replacing random parts gets expensive...and frustrating.

 

[purbeast0]

Time to replace the fridge. You can keep throwing money at it, but IMO, diagnosing a problem by replacing random parts gets expensive...and frustrating.

Yeah but I'm clearly making some progress.

I just unplugged the fridge and took the relay overload off again and shook it, then put it back on.

I plugged it back in and immediately the compressor turned on.

So now I'm going to let it run until it stops like it did before. Then I'm going to try unplugging it and plugging it right back in, without messing with the overload. If the compressor doesn't turn back on I'm going to order a new overload and assume that the moving part in it is getting stuck.

 

[mindless1]

I don't know the significance of manual mode but since it did turn on for 3 minutes previously, I would go ahead and order the breaker. It has a good cost:chance ratio of working. You could try to get a repair person out to look at it but that's usually $200 minimum cost.

If you're in a big hurry you might call local appliance repair stores, normally they cost double to triple what you can get parts for online but if you were willing to pay extra to next-day the part anyway, it could make sense to get locally.

 

[purbeast0]

I don't know the significance of manual mode but since it did turn on for 3 minutes previously, I would go ahead and order the breaker. It has a good cost:chance ratio of working. You could try to get a repair person out to look at it but that's usually $200 minimum cost.

If you're in a big hurry you might call local appliance repair stores, normally they cost double to triple what you can get parts for online but if you were willing to pay extra to next-day the part anyway, it could make sense to get locally.

Do you think it might be the temp sensors?

So I have had the compressor working twice and then I go downstairs to do work. Then I go upstairs and it's stopped.

First time it was like 58 degrees in freezer, 58 in the fridge.

Then I unplugged the fridge and plugged it right back in, and the compressor didn't turn on.

I waited a bit, took off the relay thing, shook it, then plugged it back in and the compressor turned on. THe temp was like 59 degrees in both fridge and freezer.

Then I went back downstairs and then up after a while and it was off again. The freezer was 58 degrees and fridge was 54 degrees. So the fridge got colder but not the freezer.

I then unplugged again, shook the relay thing around again, plugged it back in, and it did not turn on again.

So now I am waiting with it unplugged to let it get warm again and then I will plug it back in and see if the compressor comes back on.

Would the temp sensor being faulty possibly be telling the fridge to not turn the compressor on once it hits like 58 degrees in the freezer or something? Is that the job of the sensors?

 

[purbeast0]

I just plugged it back in and freezer is 64 and fridge is 63 and the compressor kicked on immediately.

 

[purbeast0]

More testing...

Compressor was on then cut off when freezer hit 57 degrees.

I unplugged and waited a bit and plugged back in and it read 61 degrees in the freezer and 59 in fridge and the compressor did not cut on.

I then plugged it back in like 5 minutes later and the compressor kicked on again. Freezer was at 59 now (I had the door open to get it to 61 then shut it and it dropped). I then let it run and again it cut off at 57 degrees. Fridge was at 54 degrees.

Could this just be something as simple as a bad temperature sensor? I would probably replace both my freezer and fridge ones if that is the case.

 

[Micrornd]

Could this just be something as simple as a bad temperature sensor?

Or a bad thermostat?

 

[purbeast0]

Or a bad thermostat?

I looked at the thermistor/thermostat on the parts website and the description that I saw didn't look like it was used for the compressor.

https://www.repairclinic.com/PartDetail/Thermistor/DA32-00006S/2030281 - says it's for the defrost system

https://www.repairclinic.com/PartDetail/Defrost-Thermostat/DA47-00243K/2025696 - also appears to be for defrost system

https://www.repairclinic.com/PartDetail/Damper-Control-Assembly/DA31-00071G/2313947 - talks about controlling air flow

Those are the only things that come up for my fridge when searching thermostate and thermistor.

 

[purbeast0]

So after the compressor went off when the freezer was 57 degrees I just left the fridge on.

Just now it kicked back on and the temperatures when I checked were 61 for freezer and 61 for fridge. It may have kicked on when it was 62 as I was in another room then came back in here and it's on now.

So does this point to anything specific that could be causing this problem that I could buy and replace? It sounds like the actual compressor and now that overload relay thing appear to be working just fine no?

EDIT:

And it turned off now with the freezer still at 61 and fridge at 60.

 

[purbeast0]

Last night I left it unplugged and I turned it on this morning. Freezer was at 69 degrees and fridge at 70.

I plugged it in and the compressor turned on and when I went upstairs it was off. The freezer was at 64 degrees so apparently the 57 degree number was just random I guess.

It's almost like it's running for a while and then it has to cool down before the compressor will turn back on. But it's gotten to the point where it is cool to the touch and it still won't turn on in manual mode or on it's own when I'd expect it to.

 

[mindless1]

Input trigger causes output control.

There has to be a thermal sensor to achieve the target temperature, but possibly it is not available or integrated into another component rather than sold separately.

You could reverse engineer how it is accomplishing the temp detection, or you could reverse engineer the control board to see if it is outputting for the compressor to run but it's just shutting off from that thermal breaker.

You could emulate the input trigger temp sensor value needed to turn on, or you'd be tracing power to see where it stops when the compressor should be running, which of course is not ideal with such a custom made device running on mains power. You'd probably need to make extension wires to get it out to an accessible area, or make a bench jig to test I/O response.

It is difficult to make more of a suggestion than that across the internet, except that you might seek some appliance repair forum elsewhere, where you might get lucky and someone already knows exactly what causes that symptom on your make/model.

It's almost like it's running for a while and then it has to cool down before the compressor will turn back on. But it's gotten to the point where it is cool to the touch and it still won't turn on in manual mode or on it's own when I'd expect it to.

You have to measure where in the circuit, the power to the compressor is being stopped. If it's at that thermal breaker, it'll be full voltage before it and low to none on the output to the compressor. If no voltage to the thermal breaker, it's upstream in the control circuit somewhere whether a relay (or transistor switching) or the input sensor, or the logic controlling it. A basic multimeter can check all this, but doing so safely working with live mains, or not doing it at all, is more important than the cost of a fridge.

 

[purbeast0]

Input trigger causes output control.

There has to be a thermal sensor to achieve the target temperature, but possibly it is not available or integrated into another component rather than sold separately.

You could reverse engineer how it is accomplishing the temp detection, or you could reverse engineer the control board to see if it is outputting for the compressor to run but it's just shutting off from that thermal breaker.

You could emulate the input trigger temp sensor value needed to turn on, or you'd be tracing power to see where it stops when the compressor should be running, which of course is not ideal with such a custom made device running on mains power. You'd probably need to make extension wires to get it out to an accessible area, or make a bench jig to test I/O response.

It is difficult to make more of a suggestion than that across the internet, except that you might seek some appliance repair forum elsewhere, where you might get lucky and someone already knows exactly what causes that symptom on your make/model.



You have to measure where in the circuit, the power to the compressor is being stopped. If it's at that thermal breaker, it'll be full voltage before it and low to none on the output to the compressor. If no voltage to the thermal breaker, it's upstream in the control circuit somewhere whether a relay (or transistor switching) or the input sensor, or the logic controlling it. A basic multimeter can check all this, but doing so safely working with live mains, or not doing it at all, is more important than the cost of a fridge.

The only thermal thing in this fridge is apparently the thermal fuse, which is used for the heating element, so it sounds like it's for the defroster.

I know how to check for voltages on circuit boards and stuff. I've done it with my arcade games before so somewhat familiar with it.

The service manual actually does say how to check power to the compressor, however the manual doesn't match what is on the back of my fridge so I never was able to check it.

It's on page 73 here:

http://pdfstream.manualsonline.com/7/79d812e0-fa28-4c60-8dab-3a788ff49cf8.pdf

But the pic there simply does not look the same. And I looked for the label IC02 and did not even see it anywhere.

I ended up ordering a new thermal breaker from repair clinic. They don't let you return stuff at all if you have installed it. So I also ordered the 3 sensors my fridge uses - 1 in the freezer, 1 in the fridge, and then one in the like cupboard area of the fridge which I highly doubt is the problem, but hey I can at least try it and I can return them all for free to Amazon.

From what I believe I read, the temperature in the freezer is what causes the compressor to kick on and off. So I am hoping that if it's not the breaker that maybe it is just the temperature sensor in the freezer that I ordered.

EDIT:

Unless that PCB in the diagram is NOT the one that is just right on the back of the fridge where there is an access panel. That is the one I was looking at.

 

[purbeast0]

Have a new relay o/l thing installed, new fridge temp sensor, and new freezer temp sensor, and this piece of shit still isn't working.

Going to do some more googling but I'm pretty much all out of ideas at this point. Fridge is from January 2012 so maybe just time to get a new one if I can't fix it. And it sure as shit will NOT be a Samsung.

 

[purbeast0]

I just ordered a new inverter board from Amazon.

I was doing more testing of the compressor from videos on youtube and it appears like all of the things to check on the compressor itself with a multimeter were okay.

I noticed on the inverter board that there is an led blinking red, and according to a video I saw:

It just means "starting failure"

So I'm hoping maybe it is just that. Again since it's from Amazon I can just return it if it doesn't solve anything.

If that doesn't fix it then chances are the compressor is messed up and that is something I can't do myself since it appears to need welding.

Any ideas how much replacing a compressor would cost someone to do? Refrigerators are impossible to find right now too.

EDIT:

Also in that video, he mentions something about measuring the DC volts from that one connector. Well my inverter PCB is a bit different but I found the only one that looked like that on it and found the red/black wires on it, and I was getting absolutely no readings from it. One of the other connectors was labeled "AC IN" so that obviously wasn't it and the other one looked different. The one I measured was 4 pins just like the one he measured.

I just went back and looked at the schematics and yes the two wires I was trying to check voltage on was VDD and VSS which woudl be power and ground, and I was getting no readings. That is apparently the line out to send power to the compressor. So perhaps the board is bad?

I also took the board out and I don't know if it's normal, but it like burned the plastic behind it on the fridge. You can clearly see a dark spot where the heatsink is located, behind it on the plastic. And on the back of the board it looked a bit dark too but I wasn't sure if it was more because the heatsink was on the other side or not.

 

[purbeast0]

Okay so fridge is shot. Got the new board and now it gives me the code basically saying the compressor is bad. After posting on some fridge forums I think the compressor being bad is what burnt up the inverter board by overworking it and it overheating.

So I'm going to return all of my parts to Amazon and start looking for a new fridge today. Leaning towards Whirlpool based on what I've been reading.

Never getting a Samsung again.

 

[Torn Mind]

Should have checked windings after relay.

Fridges are very much either/or appliance. If the key part is toast(compressor), nothing else needs to be checked besides the relay. It's a brick if the replacement relay doesn't fix the issue. Everything else is just a light duty switch circuit that never fails in a normal First World operating environment.

I tried to fix a Maytag that was killed by using an extension cord with insufficient gauge. Only tried the relay because it was a simpler machine with no electronic boards, but dead was dead and the compressor was toast.

Some locales utility offer rebate programs for working refrigerators. You missed that opportunity.

 

[jack46606]

Damn, this COVID crap has really screwed up the supply lines for everything. We decided that rather than continue to fight this Samsung POS fridge, we'd just replace it. MOST models are OOS everywhere...with estimated delivery dates of Thanksgiving...or later. Finally found a Kitchenaid that I think will work...it's gonna be a tight fit...(maybe a bit of KY or Vaseline?)
Not sure what I'm going to do with the Samsung. MIGHT just keep it and try again to fix the defrost problem and use it as a garage fridge.

 

[BoomerD]

Damn, this COVID crap has really screwed up the supply lines for everything. We decided that rather than continue to fight this Samsung POS fridge, we'd just replace it. MOST models are OOS everywhere...with estimated delivery dates of Thanksgiving...or later. Finally found a Kitchenaid that I think will work...it's gonna be a tight fit...(maybe a bit of KY or Vaseline?)
Not sure what I'm going to do with the Samsung. MIGHT just keep it and try again to fix the defrost problem and use it as a garage fridge.

That's the same thing we found in August and September. Delivery MAYBE by thanksgiving. Fortunately, we found a Kitchenaid sxs we could live with that was available.

 

[manly]

As discussed in this thread, the loud fan problem is well-known and you can address this:

I tried to talk myself into buying a Samsung fridge for Black Friday (good deals), but just can't seem to do it. The Wirecutter recommends Whirlpool, while Consumer Reports likes a lot of LG models. LG is arguably worse than Samsung, so that eliminates many of the best BF discounts.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

As discussed in this thread, the loud fan problem is well-known and you can address this:

I tried to talk myself into buying a Samsung fridge for Black Friday (good deals), but just can't seem to do it. The Wirecutter recommends Whirlpool, while Consumer Reports likes a lot of LG models. LG is arguably worse than Samsung, so that eliminates many of the best BF discounts.

lol but how does that video even address the problem?

The problem is the ice-buildup - the fan making noise is just a side effect of the problem.

 

[manly]

lol but how does that video even address the problem?

The problem is the ice-buildup - the fan making noise is just a side effect of the problem.

You're not so bright, are you? De-icing gets rid of the problem source until it recurs. I never implied it permanently fixes the problem. I believe people say they'll do this once or twice a year.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

You're not so bright, are you? De-icing gets rid of the problem source until it recurs. I never implied it permanently fixes the problem. I believe people say they'll do this once or twice a year.

Calm down squirt, I was asking a simple question - and based on your quote below - you literally said that this would address the problem. It doesn't address the problem. It relieves a side-effect of the problem.

Sheesh don't get your panties in a bunch.

the loud fan problem is well-known and you can address this:

 

[BoomerD]

You're not so bright, are you? De-icing gets rid of the problem source until it recurs. I never implied it permanently fixes the problem. I believe people say they'll do this once or twice a year.

Once a year? I should be so lucky. Mine iced up within 3 weeks or so.