Sunday, October 3, 2010

Refrigerator Compressor Repair

This Alabamian gave me a non-working wine cooler mini-fridge, half out of generosity because I might be able to fix and use it, half out of wanting to get rid of it :-).

Regardless, I've had this fridge sitting in the middle of my apartment now for the better part of a month. It haunts me every time I walk by it. Sitting there... not working... taking up space. I finally had time this weekend to troubleshoot it.

Symptoms:
After plugging it in,the compressor would hum for 15-20 seconds and then there would be a click and it would be silent for about two and half minutes. Then it would click and the cycle would repeat itself. I let this go on for about 15 minutes while I monitored the temperature inside the fridge. There was no change inside but the compressor was almost too hot to touch. So began the troubleshooting.

Teardown:
I took off the condenser (panel of tubes on the back), removed the thermostat housing and finally pulled out the compressor.



I had to bend some of the brass tubes in the process, being careful not to kink them. All that was let was to pull off a cover exposing the relay and circuitry for the compressor.



Troubleshoot:
The first step was to bypass the thermostat, sending an "always on" to the compressor to eliminate that as a potential problem. Here is the thermostat with the dial and cover removed.



Bypassed



Making sure to not touch any of the exposed contacts I plugged it in again. Same result, so I did a little Google searching and found a convenient How to Test a Refrigerator Compressor article. The takaway from that and a few other forums with posters with similar symptoms was that its either a bad relay, overload protector or compressor. If the compressor is gone then I'm hosed so I decided to check the relay and overload protector.



The overload protector is the small black plastic housing attached to two terminals protruding from the compressor housing. (P6R8MC OR0510, just in case someone searches) The common wire attaches to the overload protector. After taking it off this is that it looks like.



Now after removing the metal securing strip and the cover.



You can see a strange white disc shape that separates the two sides.



As you can see, the two sides of the disc are in different condition. One looks like it has been shocked/burnt and the other is only slightly scratched. I think this disc acts as either a sort of discharge capacitor or a large overload resistor.



Either way, I decided to flip it and put it back in the overload protector. Voila! Whatever contact or circuit that is supposed to make wasn't being made on the destroyed side. Within 20 minutes the fridge was down to 40 degrees! Hopefully this will provide others with some DIY troubleshooting inspiration. And thanks to the Alabamian for the (now working) fridge!

118 comments:

  1. After having the same issue with my Magic Chef fridge I followed your instructions and they actually worked. It took about 5 minutes for the fix ad it saved me ordering another starter relay. I hope it contnues to work. Thanks !!!!

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    1. I have a magic chef same thing here, you made me look good today lol.....Thanks a bunch!

      Delete
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  2. Mine was a Magic Chef MCBR445B1 compact experiencing the notorious "click, click, click, time to pay for a new PTC Relay". When tryng to decide if it was worth the $25-$30 price for a 5 year old fridge (versus buying a whole new fridge for about $100) I came across this post. Gave it a try any YES! ..worked for me too! Great post and thanks to the Chad Experience! So for those who have diagnosed the PTC Relay, don't buy one until you try this out. How long mine will continue to work, don't know. But if it shuts down again, with the "click, click" I'll do another flip, if it doesn't work...then decide whether or not to buy a new PTC. Might be another five years though!! ;_)

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  3. Ok so my old lady was mad when i told her i couldn't fix this thing. model MCBR445b1 and i was actually google'ing for the warranty information. well i found it and was not happy with it. i saw something saying hot compressor and looked and after a few minutes found this page. OMG it was so easy it hurts to think about the time i took to diagnose the wiring ect. This worked and it kicked on and started its perfect running. Thanks to you the author!!

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  4. Same issue with a General Electrics wine cooler, thank you!

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  5. The Alabamian is a genius!!! I have a Master chef mini refer MCBR445S1 and reversed the little disk in the relay and it's working.I wonder if you can buy just the disk for future repairs???

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  6. Wow! worked like a champ after this fix

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  7. You, sir, are a steely-eyed missile man! Same problem here and, yessiree....all better now. Thanks!!!

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  8. Thanks- I too have a Magic Chef MCBR445B1 and had the same clicking problem. I took thatP6R8MC apart and fixed the problem.Thanks to the Author! BTW, it is not a relay but a thermal resistor. The white coating is a conductive coating on the disk. The Disk is a resistor that measures about 12 ohms from side to side. It breaks easily so be careful with it. What looks like burnt marks in the picture, is just warn away coating. You really just need to rotate the disk a little. Mine works now, but I'll buy a replacement anyhow.

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  10. Rescued a Haier minifridge with P6R8MC OR0403 thermal resistor in it using this tip. Rescued from the dumpster...

    Repair is just a good as Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. Thanks for posting your experience.

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  11. Thanks kindly, your little trick worked for me. I am still going to order a new relay but for now its nice to know that it'll run while the new part is shipped.

    Thanks again for your insight, you saved this fridge from getting junked!

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  12. Worked like a charm!!! Fixed my Haier mini-fridge! Thank you so much for posting your trick!

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  13. Worked great for me. Did the quick fix but then bought the $13 part and changed it. Easy fix for my GE GMR04BLTBASC bar fridge. Hope more people can search this great post. Thanks.

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  14. fixed mine to but it was the overload protector. I bypass it and walah the compressor came on and went down to 45* now just need to order the protector.

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  15. You are the best! That worked perfectly. No need for extra money for parts or new fridge. Thank you very much. I am so happy to find this.

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  16. Thank you very much! This instructions are priceless (or at least have the price of not buying the new fridge!). Worked as a charm - thanks again!

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  17. Great fix for a PTC starter and fix to a Magic Chef refrigerator. Thank you

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  18. After a year of letting the Magic Chef MCBR445B1 sit in the bar it was time to throw out. For grins and giggles I decided to take one last stab thinking it was dirty contacts and realized it was a failed relay. Stumbled upon your post when looking for parts and in 5 minutes had it working! You are the Man!

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  19. Wow, this posting SOLVED my problem in less than 5 minutes. The central disk is apparently a temperature sensor that opens up when it gets too hot. My disk looked exactly like yours with one side looking new and the other having four distinct marks on it. The connector on the marked side was very dark and oxidized. I simply scraped the oxidation off of both the disk and the connector. Before that, using a multimeter it appeared as an open-circuit. As soon as I cleaned off the oxidation, I read 0 ohms (a short circuit). After reassembling the unit and plugging it back into the compressor, the compressor immediately started running and the cooling the wine cooler. THANK YOU THANK YOU for this gREAT article. It saved me hundreds of dollars for repair or replacement of the cooler. BTW, this is a Vinotemp Model VT60 unit and has been in service for over 8 years now. I have two of these units and have replaced the control board on the same one with this problem about a year ago. At first, I thought the board had gone on my again.

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    1. NVDon, you're very welcome. I'm glad this post continues to help people. Thank you for taking the time to let me know it helped and also for providing your model number and diagnostic (multimeter measurements) information!

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    2. Thanks, worked like a charm for my Vinotemp fridge.

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  20. Thanks for the advice. I had the same problem and this fixed it. Thanks for saving me $30 for the part!

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  21. Worked perfectly on my Haier. Thanks!

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  22. Worked perfectly on a Kenmore Wine Cooler.

    Model # 183.14242500

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  23. Thank you so much, buddy! I´m in Brazil. I have the same problem and fixed. Thanks for saving me time and money. In Brazil this kind problem costs a lot of money!

    Priscila - Sao Paulo - Brazil

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  24. Bravo! Same thing here with a Haier HSQ04WNAPG 4.2 cu. ft. I fretted over this thing for awhile. I Googled the fridge number, the compressor number and finally decided to try the starter number and found this. I followed the instructions and it worked like a charm. Thanks for saving me some money and time.

    LPadrino

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  25. Holiday mini-fridge here. I had the PTC out, apart, and was searching the part number looking for a replacement when I ran across this. Flipped the disc around and slid it back in, cleaned the pitted contact, and reassembled. Works like a charm! The replacement ptc is only 3 dollars and change on amazon so I'll order one to have a spare but it's nice to have it working without waiting on parts! Thanks for the write-up!

    One slight correction, the ptc isn't an overload protector. It's there to switch off the start windings in the compressor after the compressor gets up to speed. Not meant for continuous use, the start windings will overheat and eventually burn out if left on. With the ptc damaged, the start windings never get energized in the first place and the compressor can't start with the run windings alone. Running power through the run windings with the compressor stalled causes it to overheat which trips a bi-metal strip thermal protector causing the familiar click after 20 seconds or so.

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  26. Hey thanks a lot for this information...this was a quick fix that otherwise would have cost $45.00 to buy a new starter on ebay! Really appreciate you taking the time to write up the information and show the pictures...home run!!!!

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  27. Just tired this on my Magic Chef - exact same situation. It worked for me too - and it took only a few minutes to fix! Thanks for the info.

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  28. Thanks you so much man, you are the best. Problem solved without spend money. Awesome, now I will sell it, an general electric mini fridge. Thanks

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  29. Other sites have said you need to replace the relay AND the overload protector. So I took both off and in my exhuberhance to get it off now I have another question - which wire - the red or the black goes back on the PTC?

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  30. Just getting ready to 86 my Vinotemp VT-60 when I came across this, I'll see what the contacts look like first

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  31. And now I have a perfectly operational Vinotemp !

    Relay was exactly where you said
    Problem was exactly as you described
    Solution was exactly as pictured

    Thanks

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  32. Score it works. Just makes me smile.

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  33. Thank you so much for the great advice. I was not expecting to fix my refrigerator, but I was curious about the price of a new compressor. I noticed some pages about it most likely being the starter relay and not the compressor. I started googling for a starter relay. When I found one, I was debating about spending @ $20 for one when that might not be the problem.

    I happened to find your great article with the fix for the relay. I gave it a try and within 5 minutes, the refrigerator is working.

    Thank you very much for sharing your knowledge. This was one of the best fixes I've ever found.

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    1. I couldn't agree more with the comment above! I first searched for the starter relay as well, and was surprised at so few results for this high priced little item. One last search for a better price, or at least a local store with the part in stock, and I stumbled upon this posting. Now, I'm enjoying a chilled glass of vino with the sweet taste of victory, thanks to you!

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  34. Worked for me too! on my Haier wine cooler. Anybody find that this is just a short-term fix or that it causes any other problems down the road? Fingers crossed it'll work awhile and doesn't do any harm.

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  35. P.S. The disc is actually the relay, not the overload protector.

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  36. Great article, Chad...you are the man !!
    My magic chef mini fridge stopped working yesterday, and I your solution worked like a champ. Many Thanks.

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  37. Hello frndz.........
    Great Information! Nice post,it is really very helpful for me.One of the few articles I’ve read today.I’m saying thanks

    Compressor Repair Service

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  38. Hi - When I was finally able to pull the housing off I had to do a bit of wiggling to get the other piece off in order to see the little wheel (there was no metal securing strip). I then saw that a piece of the round disk had broken off. I decided to flip it over and try anyway and the motor is humming away. I would like to know what that piece is in case it doesn't stay working. Thanks much for your help!

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  39. The center piece was not attached to the out ring..is this normal?

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  40. Still wondering if it is possible to buy just the PTC Pill.

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  41. Wow it worked! The center piece and inner contacts looked burnt on one side. I scraped them clean and the compressor fired right up.
    I think I will replace the relay anyway now that I know it was the culprit.

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  42. Even in 2015 this helped me. The haier mini wine fridge had this issue. At first I was confused because it did not rattle unlike the overload protector. The overload protector is supposed to charge (its white and black), the relay which is all black did not rattle as it should if its bad. Well after taking it apart and flipping the ceramic disk while rotating a bit and sanding the metal leads. I put it together and turned it on. Good as new. Not bad for a free craigslist mini fridge.

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    1. My model was "hvf020bll", Just want to make it easier for others to find this article for help :)

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  43. Worked for me to…! Anyone know a source for a replacement disk..?

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  44. My Magic Chef 4.4 mini frig MCBR445S1 has been dead for 2+ years tried your solution and now it is humming and running. Waiting to see it cool, but this took me all of 5 minutes! Now I have to fix my oven and my washer, I am on a roll and this repair cost me nothing nor did I have to wait for parts. Now I am back in to cold craft beers always ready to enjoy. As a female fixer I always appreciate knowledge sharing, saves huge repair costs.

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  45. I'm sitting at work excited about trying this when I get home today. I'm sure this will fix my problem.

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  46. I hope somebody reads this bc in my haste to repair my visani wine cooler I don't remember exactly where the different wires go on the relay. I have the blue on the bottom post closest to back but am unsure which post the red wire goes on. DOH!

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    1. Jason, in a couple of the pictures you can see the location of the wires on the thermostat and the relay. Does this help?

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  47. Kind of but there is a blue wire I can tell where it goes but a red one I can't tell.

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  48. Brilliant, Simply brilliant. Call it a THREE minute fix!

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  49. I flipped mine over the way the OP stated in his post, and it worked like a charm for a year. Now it is doing the same exact thing, and it looks as though I have to buy a brand new relay. Great advice for a quick fix though. Thumbs up

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    1. Please do not promote appliance repair companies. This is meant to be a DIY article.

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  51. The ceramic disc inside the relay is broken what can I do for my cooler star until my new relay arrive, is something I can do?

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  52. Victor.... "is something I can do?"
    Sadly not.As stated in a previous post, the relay allows the Start windings in the compressor to momentarily switch on.Extreme caution should be exercised here as the capacitor is attached to this relay and if not discharge....can kill!!

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  53. I will again come to visit your website that’s so awesome and precious that I couldn’t stop myself commenting on this. freshrefrigeration

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  54. Nice very helpful..found another relay on a fridge in my scrap pile..not the same relay but I tore it apart and got the disk out and was an exact match for my bad relay which was just the disk inside was broken into little pieces..only $10 for a new relay but hell free is even better..

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  55. Is there a way to purchase just a replacement disk? I've searched everywhere and can't find it - anyone know what it's called?

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  56. I had EXACTLY the same problem with my Haier BC112GIR wine cooler.

    I know the PTC relay is ALWAYS the first thing to check on these things when they stop cooling, the compressor doesn't come on, and there is a cyclic clicking noise.

    First thing to do with the PTC after removing it is to shake it. If it rattles, order a new one. But mine didn't rattle. I was concerned it might be something else. But somehow, I managed to stumble on to this website and I read your suggestion about flipping the little disk inside the PTC plastic housing.

    And so I did.

    I plugged the thing back into its widget, and plugged in the wine cooler.

    Voila! IT WORKS!

    Thanks!

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  58. Just tried this on my NewAir AWC-330E model and it did the trick. Thanks for the share.

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  59. Thanks Chad!. This fixed my fridge right up. My disc was broken in 2 pieces. I put 2 drops krazy glue on each end and glued it back together. So if anyone has broken disc try a little krazy glue. Worked for me.

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  60. I replaced the PTC relay but still not cooling... Could it be the thermal overload protecter

    Help please.. Need advice

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    1. Did you try my trick of flipping the disc over?

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  61. Worked for me too! Quick, easy fix once I got the new part!

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  65. I have a Magic Chef and I impressed the heck out of my husband with this repair! It was simple to do and it worked like a charm! Thank you!

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  66. Another Magic Chef repaired over here! Was googling how to fix it during breakfast this morning. Did it in-between feeding bites to my one year old at breakfast! Tells you how easy it was! I'm so relieved!! COLD BEER THIS AFTERNOON!

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  67. Thanks man - really appreciate your post - I was about to order the new relay for $30 + shipping but cleaned the contacts inside the relay and all worked like a charm. May the karma be with you!

    Gleb, Vancouver BC

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  69. I have a Danby DWC440BL. It was in the house I just purchased. It was rarely used but since we moved in it hasn't worked. It's an older model and not longer in production. The relay housing does not have the "clip" to open up to expose the ceramic disc. Instead, it is fully closed with fused tiny pins. Any recommendations for a replacement piece relay that is comparable?

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  72. I had the same problem with a GE wine cooler. Opened up the compressor starter relay and my center disc was cracked down the middle. I needed to order a new P6R8MC for about $18 but that's a lot better than getting a new fridge. Also have the peace of mind knowing that the relay was truly shot. Thanks everyone for the troubleshooting wisdom and confirmation!

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  73. We were about to buy new relay for office fridge MCBR445B1. OEM was $22-30. Your fix worked perfectly! Cost: 5 minutes labor!!!

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  74. Excellent advice, this was exactly the fix for my 10 year old Magic Chef Wine Fridge. I went ahead and purchased a new part on Amazon for $11 as the ceramic disc was in really bad shape and thought I might as well replace it while I had my unit pulled out. Thank-you! You saved me $500 on having to replace my 52 bottle unit!

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  75. Great post. Exactly what was wrong with my Vinotemp. Thanks!

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  76. Wow - repair guy wanted $280 to fix my Vissani (Magic Chef) Bev cooler - I refused (may as well buy a new one for that!). Then I found this and fixed it in about 15 minutes. Disc was cracked even though it is working, so I ordered a new part ($25) from MC - so easy to replace.
    What a ripoff that repair service was.

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    1. Exactly why I decided, "to hell with it, I might as well take it apart" in the first place! Glad things worked out for you. It might help others if you would include the MC part number or link if you have it. Thanks and have a good one.

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  77. Just followed your little super helpful guide and got my mini fridge to work.... thanks

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  78. I have the same problem. Took the relay apart but the center ceramic disc crumbled. I've tried googling the part no. but no luck. Anyone know where I can get a replacement. My part No is P220MC OR0403

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    1. I couldn't find anything after about 15 minutes of searching as well. Depending on the cost to replace your refrigerator, you might just take a gamble on one of these starter relays that looks the same:
      https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias%3Dgarden&field-keywords=starter+relay+refrigerator
      You could also try calling the manufacturer and see if they sell a replacement part. Best of luck!

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  79. thanks a lot! It fixed my problem. thinking of all the people you've helped with this post, you've cumulatively saved thousands of dollars in repairs, etc...you're the man!

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  81. Amazing!! Thank You!!! I was just about to get rid of it, but I love to take things apart and I'm so happy I found your tip and did!!
    I wonder how many people end up throwing these wine coolers away and buying new ones?? The company that makes this part must know about this issue and the companies that use it in their products, but I bet long term they make more money bc it took 6 years +/- for mine to go... So it was out of warranty.

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    1. After calling the Vinotemp tech support and being told that I had to change the relay (cost $72 before taxes and shipping through them) I started to look on line for the part and found your blog! I followed your instructions and the miracle happened! Thanks so much!!!

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  82. Thanks Chad, This worked for my get refrigerator

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  83. So no body found a source for the ceramic disks after all that!! I think we can do better

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  84. Tried this today and it worked...compressor now turns on and fridge gets cold....i just removed the ptc and took apart flipped disc and bam

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  85. Oh my gosh. I can’t believe it! I fixed my little studio fridge with these incredible directions! My ceramic disc was cracked, so I carefully super-glued it back together then I put everything back together...nothing happened. So bummed. Then I thought maybe I put the disc back in just the way it was, so I opened it all back up, flipped the disc and Shazam!!! WOW! I’m so happy! Thank you Chad Munkres!

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    1. Glad to hear this post is still helping people! Thanks for commenting.

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  86. Just throw a nickel in there until your party arrives LOL

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  87. Thank you Chad. This is still helpful in 2020!

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  88. You're the BEST! I have a Haier Aficionado mini fridge and the relay was bad (opened it and the white disk was broken/shattered), so I ordered a new one off of Amazon. I put the new relay on and still the same problem (clicking noise and not cooling), then I came across your page and thought I would give it a shot. I took out the new relay, removed the white disk, and put the new white disk in the old relay housing and plugged it up. It's running like a charm! I added a thermometer inside the fridge. The starting temperature was 70 degrees inside and after waiting just a few minutes it cooled to 20 degrees. So thankful our fridge is now working to use during Thanksgiving for drinks and such! Thank you so very much!!

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    1. Awesome that it helped, and just in time for the holidays. Thanks for sharing!

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  89. Buen aporte,casi mando a cambiar compresor :)

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