Destroyed my kegerator?

[cincinnatikid513]

So my Edgestar kegerator is only a few months old and there is a bunch of ice buildup on the back inside wall. Think two inches thick and about six inches tall, six wide in a standard Edgestar kegerator. So while the kegerator was running, I took out the kegs and got a hammer and gently took the claw and started taking the ice off, nothing extreme just enough to dislodge the ice. I took a big chunk of ice off the back corner, on the wall the co2 tank sits against (on the outside) and I got a loud hissing noise after the ice fell off. The hissing kept going for two to three minutes off and on. I couldnt quite place where it came from (kegerator or tank) but I smelled something funny coming from it and started to get dizzy from the fumes while I cleaned up the ice.

Does this sound like something happened with the freon tubing or the co2? Should I keep the kegerator running to find out if it runs cold or do I risk damaging it? Hoping it isnt damaged but if it is, how would I go about repairing? Is edgestar a solid company in regards to fixing this for new machines, or at least providing support? It was a very light tap that caused it, could have easily been caused with normal wear of changing out kegs.

Thanks in advance!

 

[day_trippr]

Sounds like you breached the evaporator, and the hissing was the refrigerant vaporizing and escaping. I doubt this would be covered under any warranty, and repairing something like this would run at least a couple of hundred dollars.

Bad juju...

 

[outside92129]

I did the same thing when i was a kid, i used an ice pick and punctured the coils. Opps!

 

[501irishred]

The other possibility is that it already had a micro leak in the coil. The low pressure causing the evaporator to ice over and in effect temporarily sealing the leak off. By forcing the ice off, you could have simply made the leak worse, not "caused" the leak. I know nothing about Edgestar, but most companies cover refrigeration issues for at least one year and compressor for at least three. Next time trade your hammer in for a box fan to melt the ice off........