How Do You Know If Your Refrigerator’s Compressor is Bad?

We all are habitual of leaving our food items in the refrigerator until and unless the items don’t smell bad. The time when I notice the   bad stinky smell is when the refrigerator’s compressor stops working. 

All electronics items i.e. 33″ wide refrigerator work well when they are being used. Excessive use or no use may result in the form of malfunctioning.

How do we know if the refrigerator compressor is bad?

It’s a funny fact that we estimate the failure cause of the refrigerator’s compressor by blaming the person who used it last time. ?

One of the best and physical indications or symptoms of a bad refrigerator compressor is when the refrigerator stops cooling, which means some areas of the fridge are not as cool as they were used to. It’s a sign of an alarming situation. The reason behind the compressor’s failure is its continuous functioning. The compressor breaks down without letting refrigerator and freezer compartments reaching their desired temperatures. At this level, the compressor’s values fall down or may damage the refrigerant.

When my refrigerator starts giving me some signs of broken refrigerator compressor that it is going to die soon then I didn’t only lose the food items that I have had stored in it but I may also come across a long repairing bill or possibly I might have to buy a new refrigerator ?.

Before thinking about all this stuff, the very first thought that comes to my mind is to ponder out what causes a refrigerator compressor to fail either compressor has worn out completely or not.

Ways to know — How refrigerator compressor is bad

Refrigerator compressor problems are hard to figure out. Sometimes I didn’t focus on the symptoms of a bad fridge that gives me before time. I only notice when the refrigerator stops working thoroughly and gives me a spark or an oily smell. If I know what causes a refrigerator compressor to fail then I can save my refrigerator from the damage of the entire system.

Therefore, before jumping to any conclusion I decided to figure out the functionality of the compressor through various ways that are described below.

 Let’s shed some light on each DIY method to explore how do we know if the refrigerator compressor is in pretty bad shape one by one: 

Check relay of the compressor

Relay is an overload protection device that starts the winding in the circuit until the compressor comes at its running speed.

Let’s discover how bad relay is associated with the refrigerator compressor problems:

• Unplug your refrigerator from the wall socket and pull the refrigerator away so that you may have plenty of space to work without obstruction.
• There would be a side panel located at the side of the compressor.
• It will be held on by one or more screws that can be removed by turning the rotation in a counterclockwise direction. A flat blade driver can help you to remove it from the panel.
• After accessing the beneath level there would be a black box device called a starter relay switch. This is directly attached to the refrigerator compressor problems and has major information to deliver about how do know the refrigerator compressor is working badly.
• Shake it out and hear the noise. If something knocks inside it that means the relay is bad and this is excluded from refrigerator compressor failure symptoms.
• But if it doesn’t rattle, the relay is good and this time this is one of the symptoms of your bad refrigerator compressor. you need to change your compressor.

Testing the compressor’s motor

Testing the compressor’s motor is the fundamental and foremost step in the process of knowing the bad refrigerator compressor. You may get an estimation from it that what’s happening in the refrigerator or what causes a refrigerator compressor to fail. It’s not as hard as you’re thinking.

Unplug the fridge and access the compressor’s motor from the back. Test it well or let an expert do this job efficiently!

  You may find the complete instructions and ways of checking the compressor’s motor in one booklet or a video. 

Compressor clicks on and off

When the compressor begins to worn out it starts clicking on and off or in some situations compressor clicking doesn’t work at all. The compressor clicks on when the fridge needs to maintain its cooling temperature and automatically triggers off after acquiring the desired temperature.

Having a problem with its triggering means there is some sort of overloading that the refrigerator’s compressor has faced. Such type of situation occurs when the electricity suddenly blows out.

Some other Reasons

Refrigerator troubleshooting can frequently occur due to a bad compressor. But sometimes other reasons also stops the compressor’s functionality. Before calling a repair company so let’s have a look at them:

Fan stops working

Every electronic item that works with a processor is accompanied by a fan part system to maintain inner temperature and keep the system cool by exhausting heat. Fan also prevents the items from overheating. The fan generates an audible noise while functioning properly.

Once I was alone in my apartment and I hear the noise clearly. It scared me, I wasn’t getting up to see what’s going on. I gather courage and discover that when the fan stops working it will make some funny noises that are also audible. This is one of the clues of bad fridge compressor symptoms and I feel the need to call someone who can fix this issue. The bad refrigerator compressor will start working fine once its fan is replaced.

You may hear a bad noise

Bad noise refers to the buzz sound like mosquitos make. It is known that in older fridges, the compressor does its magic. But modern and latest fridges are used to work in a quiet and much peaceful way that I don’t even need to ponder that something has been working in my presence.

A bad fridge compressor accompanies noise that can be heard with a naked ear. This may happen when bearing balls or valves ages out. That bad mechanical noise is combined with the current draw and causes a circuit breaker to trip occasionally.

Valves clunking and creaking noise is the sign of not cooling the refrigerator properly. A compressor with failed bearing and valves also runs hot and leaves a stinky oily smell like an overheated wire gives off.

Check the capacitor

The refrigerator keeps items cold as long as the compressor runs and the compressor works well with the support of the capacitor. If the compressor is working fine but not able to cool the items inside the fridge then there might be a chance that the capacitor has been worn out and causing refrigerator compressor problems.

Clean it out

How long since have I cleaned my fridge? A dirty refrigerator condenses the cooling coils by blocking the way that causes the poor performance of the compressor. Make sure to clean your fridge once in a while with a damp cloth and soap.

Don’t terminate the power all of a sudden because the compressor takes time to maintain its desired temperature. Frequent power termination may result in the failure of the refrigerator compressor. Don’t give it a power supply until and unless it fully dries out.