Fisher & Paykel E413T (Aus) evaporator fan problem

[The Red Krawler]

G'day,

My parents have a E413T F&P refrigerator which isnt getting cold enough. I can count on one hand the number of domestic refrigerators I've ever worked on, so I'm immediately out of my depth here... but I believe its the "thing" that provides power the evaporator fan motor.

The fan motor is a rubbish little 12VDC fan which I have proven working via a PC power supply. With my multimeter reading the power supply to that fan, it is 0VDC with the freezer door open, and 4VDC with the door closed.

My current belief is that the reed switch (or whatever switch is uses to determine the door open/closed) is making a poor circuit and thus not allowing full voltage.

I dont believe the 12VDC supply is faulty as the electronic display on the back of the fridge compartment wall works fine. If there is a relay on the board that controls the fan it could be that relay I suppose.

Has anyone come across this before? Have any thoughts? And just as importantly, does anyone know where to buy parts for these things?

[mikeref]

Hi Red. To start with, guessing you are somewhere in the island down under, F/P fridges do not usually have just the one fault. Fan not running could be because evap sensor is faulty or evap not cold enough OR pcb not working correct. Is this an all fridge or fridge/freezer? Is there red green flashing on pannel inside or just green flashing or green constant? Does the alarm sound off apart from when the door is open too long? Yep, too many questions.. Mike QLD.

[The Red Krawler]

Hi Red. To start with, guessing you are somewhere in the island down under, F/P fridges do not usually have just the one fault. Fan not running could be because evap sensor is faulty or evap not cold enough OR pcb not working correct. Is this an all fridge or fridge/freezer? Is there red green flashing on pannel inside or just green flashing or green constant? Does the alarm sound off apart from when the door is open too long? Yep, too many questions.. Mike QLD.

G'day Mikeref,

Yep, "island down under" here. Brisbane, in fact.

It is a combination fridge/freezer, with the freezer on top.

There is a panel inside the fridge compartment with two green LEDs on it - one indicating the freezer, one indicating the fridge. No alarms at all, except for when the door is held open too long (approximately every minute, then sustained beep after 5 minutes? Going purely by memory here as I took little notice of it at the time).

For all intents and purposes the fridge is working perfectly - the evaporator fan just doesnt start. Considering I only get 4VDC supplied when there should be 12VDC, I'm pretty sure its either the reed switch that turns the fan on/off when the door is open, or the PCB itself.

I'll give F&P a call and see what a PCB is worth and give it a whirl if its not too expensive I guess. I can see this turning into a fishing expedition though, with the sum of replaced parts worth more than the fridge itself

I dislike not knowing everything about a machine

[mikeref]

Red krawler. Problem will be in PCB. The fans are two stage,(dual speed) one in freezer and one in ductwork behind pannel in fridge. They are suspended on rubber bands (so to speak). Replacement pcb might be 4.2, check the box number at bottom left behind fridge is the same, as updated pcb's may also advise to replace fan motors as well, which makes it somewhat pricey. Never had any failed magnetic door switches before, nor have i wanted to tinker with components on pcb. F/P number ..1300-650-590. Best of luck, Mike.

[The Red Krawler]

Hi Mike,

I've ordered a board from F&P (trade price of approximately $130AUD including GST and freight, for what its worth). We'll see how it goes and report back on Monday when it arrives

[mikeref]

Hi Mike,

I've ordered a board from F&P (trade price of approximately $130AUD including GST and freight, for what its worth). We'll see how it goes and report back on Monday when it arrives

Make sure you read the paperwork for startup proceedure, door open/closed. It sets up pcb function, Mike.

[Magoo]

Hi Red,
have you checked that the fan spins, as had similar problem on my own fridge/freezer, and turned out the auto defrost wasnt clearing coil, and ice was jamming the fan.
Just a thought.

[The Red Krawler]

Hi Red,
have you checked that the fan spins, as had similar problem on my own fridge/freezer, and turned out the auto defrost wasnt clearing coil, and ice was jamming the fan.
Just a thought.

The coil clears properly after a defrost, and the fan runs fine (I took it out and used an old PC power supply to run it - easiest way to get a 12VDC supply I could think of :P)

[The Red Krawler]

Just a quick update to this thread....

I received the new PCB from F&P quite timely, so I replaced it and everything is working a treat. I busted open the old PCB box to have a look around and found why the fan wasnt working:







The part didnt come with instructions - I assume it was MEANT to have instructions, but instead I got this:


Once I powered it on with the door open I found the interior light didnt come on and the evaporator fans stayed on. I just hit the left hand most button on the inside control, then shut the doors and reopened them and voila - interior light works, fans turn on and off as dictated by the door and evaporator temp, unit cycles off.

Thanks for the advice, and hope this helps anyone else googling for assistance

[mikeref]

Red k, nothing is made to last. good to see it worked out for you. I would have seen the dark patch on the board and called it quits, then ordered in replacement. One never knows if chip in picture #2 has been affected. Does this mean you will work on domestics now? Lots of fridges out there with far more computer power just waiting for someone like you to come along..cheers, Mike.