Indesit Frost Free evaporator fan cuts out (Indesit BAN12NF)

[lulucrumble]

Newcomer here, desperately looking for some help as my fridge freezer has failed and I am expecting guests tomorrow. Not an engineer or an electrician but I have a good technical brain for a pleb and have researched as much as I can, so I hope this makes sense.

The problem is the evaporator fan. Usually, when the unit tries to start up, the fan comes on for a second, followed by about four clicks, and then goes off. This repeats every ten minutes or so.

If I bypass the evaporator fan, by keeping the fridge door open, the unit runs for a long time until it eventually cuts out (presumably through overheating... I'm not keen to repeat this test as I don't want to wreck the condenser).

The evaporator coil did have small solid chunks of ice in it, but these have mostly defrosted off now. The last time I tried to turn the unit on, it did run for about five or ten minutes, with the evaporator fan spinning nicely, before the clicking noise sounded again.

I have checked all the air inlets and outlets and they seem clear as far as I can tell from sticking my fingers into them.

Any ideas why the evaporator fan keeps stalling? Please help!

Thanks,
Lulu

[cadwaladr]

Sounds like the compressor is faulty the clicking may be the current limiter on the compressor electrics

[lulucrumble]

Does the compressor only ever come on when the evaporator fan runs? When I keep the fridge door open, which in effect bypasses the evaporator fan, it seems like the compressor runs then, based on what I can hear and feel (it gets warm). The clicking only ever happens when the evaporator fan tries to come on.

[lulucrumble]

Would the evaporator fan have a limiter?

[cadwaladr]

It could have domestics are not my forte,but it sounds probable.

[lulucrumble]

It could have domestics are not my forte,but it sounds probable.

Here are some pictures, are you able to identify anything that might help determine if the fan has a limiter or anything that might be responsible for the clicking noises?

https://ibb.co/ni8n1a
https://ibb.co/ktZhZv
https://ibb.co/dHxQnF
https://ibb.co/noqBSF
https://ibb.co/guRUEv

Thanks,
Louise

[Glenn Moore]

Does the black pot (compressor) at the back of the unit get hot to the touch some pictures of the back of the unit may help

[lulucrumble]

Yes, when it runs with the fridge door open. I don't know if it gets hot when it managed to run for a little while with the door closed. I think it got warm, but I can't remember if I checked that. I'll see if I can get it to run again with the door closed this morning.

[Glenn Moore]

The compressor has a delay timer and overload . I suspect this is an R600 compressor which has lost its charge and the compressor has short cycled ie the clicking noise .

[chemi-cool]

Evaporator fan kicks in only when the evaporator surface is below 0C to avoid throwing water all over.
Your description is typical for lost some of the refrigerant charge.
I'd go with Glenn on this one. Get a fridgy to have it checked out.

[malik55]

It is mentioned in the manual that it has a initial timer and will start after 8 minutes, After that let it run for a while and check it, keep door open and let push in the door switch to see the fan is running or not, if not running then it could be faulty, also see the compressor if it trips and you hear any clicking sounds then fault will be in the compressor side, and as said by Mr. Chemi-cool better to call a professional.