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Last Thursday I had 3 dead refrigerators in one day, all the same dumb problem
I do appliance repair around Boise and last Thursday was a rough one. Three separate fridge calls, three different homes, and every single one had a relay on the compressor that was fried. Two were Whirlpools and one was a Frigidaire, so it wasn't one brand acting up. I spent about $180 in parts and made $640 in labor in one day, which is way better than my normal Tuesday. The weird part is all three homeowners said the fridge was only 4 or 5 years old. Anyone else seeing a run of these short-lived compressor relays this year, or is it just my area?
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the_quinn4h ago
The "fried relay on the compressor" thing is super common on those newer fridges. They switched to these little plastic start relays with a run capacitor built in and they just cook themselves after a few years, especially if the fridge is in a hot garage or the coils are dirty. First thing I'd tell those homeowners is pull the fridge out and vacuum the condenser coils, because a hot compressor is what kills the relay every time. Also check the outlet voltage, if it's dropping below 110 under load that'll eat relays too. You can swap those relays in 20 minutes once you know the part number, so that $640 day makes sense.
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