Whirlpool 20rbd1l not cooling

[rickbu]

hello everyone , i found this site when looking for technical advice on a fridge problem, i have tried searching through posts but cant quite seem to find what im looking for . i have a whirlpool 20rbd1l that wont cool down at all

when i first plug it in after a few seconds the compressor starts running ( at least to me it sounds like its running) . and about 20 seconds after that the fan next to the compressor unit starts to run.. about another minute after that and the evaporator fan begins.

after leaving for one hour . no drop in temperature at all . compressor getting warm / almost hot . small painted tube ( i think vacuum tube ) getting warm. tube heading to evaporator slightly cool . filter drier slightly cool. inside the fridge i can hear what sounds like gas circulating through the evaporator but still no cooling , have had the covor off to confirm evaporator fan turning and evaporator coils not cool to the touch . . on a further note this fridge freezer has been on its back to transport but was stood upright for more than 24 hours before plugging back in

also not sure if its normal but if i shake the compressor a bit i can hear something knocking into the casing inside. i read something about broken springs but it doesnt make any noise when starting or stopping , as yet this is as far as my diagnostic work has taken me.

is this an advocate for re-gas? possible leak somewhere?

[rickbu]

just wanted to add this unit is only around 14 months old , (just out of the one year warranty) i found on the internet something about the sealed system being covered by a 5 year warranty but it seems this might only be in the US . when i called whirlpool service department in the uk they told me they had never heard of it and i would have to pay

[rickbu]

well because im stumped on this one i decided to take advantage of whirlpool service - 22 pounds per month for 12 month gets me a 1 year warranty , engineer will call to fix the fault , if he is unable to fix or uneconomical item is written off and no charge - if he is able to fix i get one years warranty all parts and labour free + if it breaks again and is uneconomical to repair upto 1000 pounds to purchase a new unit

lets see what the engineer finds

[mikeref]

Rickbu, sounds like fridge has been damaged in transit. Compressor is o.k but no gas circulation so gas leak is high on the list. Running the fridge is not a good idea. Wait till tech checks it over.

[rickbu]

Right engineer has just been , compressor diagnosed as ok , no leaks , he diagnosed system blockage or low gas charge from factory but cant clear the blockage and wont just try regas incase it doesnt work they dont get payed , are there any engineers in huddersfield area that fancy trying to clear the blockage and regas for me . cheers

[rickbu]

im just wondering about taking care of this problem myself , whats the legislation on extracting r134a and regassing yourself? . surely it cant be that tight because of the automobile systems that you can easily buy gas for

[rickbu]

after further investigation by myself i have found that evaporator has a pinprick hole in it so all the gas has leaked out but because it leaked out while the fridge was turned off there was no evidence of oil so now im going to call the whirlpool engineer again and see if replacing the evaporator and regassing is something they could do for me

[mikeref]

after further investigation by myself i have found that evaporator has a pinprick hole in it so all the gas has leaked out but because it leaked out while the fridge was turned off there was no evidence of oil so now im going to call the whirlpool engineer again and see if replacing the evaporator and regassing is something they could do for me
Rickbu, interested to know how you found this leak when the tech did not. Let us know how you get on.. Mike.

[rickbu]

he didnt find it because he didnt even take the cover off the evaporator section , he just plugged it in , felt the pipes going in and out the compressor and declared the fridge scrap due to blockage / low charge from factory , i told him i could hear gas moving through the evaporator but he said it could be just with a reduced flow , anyway i decided this evening to strip the cover off and have a good look and noticed that when i wobbled the evaporator about the noise of the gas changed so i knew it was a leak and not just sound of rushing gas , the leak is where the defrost heater has been resting against the evaporator and i presume rubbed through as it looks to be paper thin wall aluminium , im just wondering now which is the cheapest way to go , pay whirlpool 20 per month for 12 months = 260 or so or try to repair the leak using some epoxy kit i have seen and pay around 50 for someone to regas for me just i wont have the years warranty

[rickbu]

very frustrated now , i wrote a letter to complain to whirlpool but now i am having difficulty finding an email address for whirlpool customer services :


im writing this letter to make a complaint not only about whirpool build quality but also to complain about the company you are using for repairs and service .

it started when my american side by side fridge freezer rb20 d1l which is around 14 months old started to have problems cooling .

i contacted your service department to take out a 12 month service contract at 20 pounds per month and awaited an engineer to visit , which i must admit was when he said and he called ahead as he said he would

when he visited my house i told him what i knew , this was that the compressor was running but there was no cooling effect from the fridge , he felt the compressor and pipes to the rear of the fridge and declared that there was a blockage in the sealed system and that the fridge was unserviceable , i questioned him how it could be a blockage when i coud hear gas moving inside the evaporator in the fridge , he told me it could be a partial blockage and hence i could just hear slight movement , - well first of all this is a falacy as if there was partial blockage the pipe would be cooler just after the area of blockage due to the blockage acting as an evaporator plus the compressor would be running hot due to fighting the pressure , both of which are not happening to my unit

anyway , after he left i decided to investigate further and removed the cover from the evaporator in the rear of the fridge - something which the engineer didnt even bother to do , and after alowing pressure to build up in the system by running the compressor for a few minutes - standard refrigeration practice to test for leaks in sealed systems i heard a hissing which i traced to an area of the evaporator coil which was making contact with the defrost heater , which i might add is not secured in any way therefor allowing it to chafe against the evaporator coil which is paper thin - in other manufacturers units this is secured by blocks of foam rubber surrounding it to stop this very thing happening . so now im wondering why you dont fit these during manufacture to stop this happening . this i believe amounts to faulty manufacturing which has caused this fault at just 14 months from a 1000 pound freezer

why is it that the sealed system is covered by an extended warranty in the us for example but here in the uk it is covered by the same 12 months as the main unit


anyway , your repair company has decided they will not replace my evaporator and regas the unit so now im left with a 1000 pound paperweight .

why is it my hotpoint fridge that is over ten years old is still working flawlessly

do you honestly expect a lifetime of just over 1 year from a 1000 pound fridge?

and what about EU directive 7 - 1999/44/EC. 'A two-year guarantee applies for the sale of all consumer goods everywhere in the EU.

especially that i can prove this item was of substandard manufacture by not having the supports for the defrost heater fitted


all im asking for is a replacement condensor and a regas .

i would be gratefull if somebody could contact me and explain why you think this is acceptable . i am very reasonab le

but please whoever you are reading this , ask yourself if you would be happy with a 1000 pound unit failing after just 14 months and then being told by the repair company that they "dont want to get involved" this is after i was reasonable enough to even pay for the repair - which to be honest i think should be paid for by yourselves because you manufactured an item which was not fit for purpose

regards