My fridge is tripping the main switch after working perfectly (fridge and freezer) for about 18 hours. It's a 380 l Whirlpool (yes, I live in Australia). Then it's out of order and blows the fuse for about 8 hours. After 8 hours I am able to connect it again and it it works for 18 hours. This happened now three times. Can I do anything? Is it worth repairing? I need a quick answer and need to call a refrigeration technican or electrican as long as I got time off from work. Thanks in advance.

Question answered by HyperDog

If it's a self-defrosting type refrigerator, it could be the defrost cycle is trying to run. Or you might have some other electrical device that's on the same circuit. Check the rating of the fuse and ensure it's what's intended for the circuit it serves. If you don't know what amperage rating should be there, you or an electrician might need to check the size of the wiring on the circuit to determine what it should be. At best you might just need to put in the correct rated fuse, or reduce the load on that circuit by plugging something into a different outlet. At worst you'll need to add a new circuit out to the main service entrance (unlikely unless you're living in an ancient house). Temporarily, if you have a 20 amp extension, you could try plugging the refrigerator into another outlet. Check the plugs for overheating after the unit has been running for a few minutes - don't leave home without doing this if you use this latter suggestion!

How much $$$ to fix GE refrigerator that intermittently stops cooling?

Our 6-7 year old GE refrigerator sometimes will stop cooling, especially the freezer portion. We hear it running, but it is not getting cold enough. If we unplug it for several minutes and plug it back in, it will usually start working again.... perhaps for several days before this happens again. Thus, we don't feel that it is a problem with the coolant itself, as the refrigerator is capable of cooling. I wonder if it is the defrost timer? Or if it is a problem with the compressor? Is it likely that we would have to replace the compressor altogether? I hate to pay $70 for the service repair man just to come out and look at it. The refrigerator only cost us $500 to begin with. We might just get a new refrigerator at the Scratch-N-Dent store, if it costs too much to fix.

Singer-girl

Question answered by gizmoe

It could be the compressor overload. This device shuts off the compressor if it is overheating or the amp draw is too high. The fridge may sound like it is running but compressor will not be. The cause or overheating could be from a dirty condenser coil keeping the heat from being drawn off the coil, condenser fan motor not working (if it uses one), weak or burnt electrical connections (causing amp draw to be too high). Usually when a defrost timer is defective the refrigerator side quits cooling first as the freezer side cooling coils gets blocked with frost and no or little airflow gets to the refrigerator side. Also when the timer is in the defrost mode the fan in the freezer portion stops and all you would hear is a slight crackling or hissing as ice is being defrosted from the coils. Unplugging the unit for a few minutes may be just allowing the compressor overload to cool off enough to restart. I would check for a dirty coil first. Some models have there condenser coils located at the bottom. Access would be through the bottom front grille and the rear bottom cover.