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Question about a weird fix for a fridge that won't stop running
Had a call for a 5-year-old fridge in a rental unit last month, the thing just would not shut off. Owner was ready to junk it over the power bill. Checked the usual stuff, condenser was clean, door seals were fine, thermistor tested okay. I was about to call it a bad board when I decided, on a hunch, to pull the whole thing out and check the back panel. Found a thick layer of dust and pet hair packed tight against the condenser fan blade, but not on the coils themselves. The fan was spinning, but so slow you could barely feel the air. Cleaned that out with a shop vac and a brush, and the thing cycled off in 20 minutes. I've seen dirty coils a thousand times, but this was the first time I saw a fan so choked it looked clean but acted dead. Anyone else run into a sneaky airflow problem like that where the usual checks didn't show it?
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eva_garcia562mo ago
Honestly that's a solid find, and it makes total sense. Tbh I've seen similar stuff where the fan motor itself gets weak but still spins, so it passes a quick visual check. You really have to feel for proper airflow coming off the condenser, not just watch the blade turn. A lot of newer units move so little air when they're clean that a small drop in speed kills the cooling. Ngl, I started carrying a little strip of plastic bag to hold near the fan outlet on every call, just to see if it actually blows.
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the_gavin2mo ago
That plastic bag trick from @eva_garcia56 is smart. Do you find that works better than just using your hand to feel for air? I feel like my hand can trick me sometimes if the air is warm.
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