Maytag Chest Freezer troubleshooting possibly thermostat

[jekeane]

Updated with some better information.

Maytag MQC1552TEW01 mfg 6 years ago

The unit stays about 45° and there is a light ice ring around the top front.

The compressor is very warm to the touch and there is a working hum when the freezer is "running". When I unplug the freezer and plug it back in I hear what I think is the compressor kicking on it runs for a bit then quiets to a general hum.

I have tried a few general off and on type things. Changed the controller and plugged it into the wall unit stays at 45-46°

I dont have a multimeter but ordered one that wont arrive till may 5... May try harbor freight.

Everything looks pretty well accessible if I can determine what to do.




Recently my keezer has refused to go below 45° either plugged into a controller or directly into the wall. Im not sure what the problem is. Was thinking the thermostat is bad. The freezer is only 5 years old so I wouldnt expect it to be a freon or compressor issue but who knows.

With the virus making everyone impulse buy things chest freezers are way over priced right now so would rather repair it if possible.

Any thoughts or advice are appreciated

Was thinking about bypassing or replacing the thermostat but not entirely sure how to go about that

 

[day_trippr]

With the make and model, someone here might be able to help you out with that

Cheers!

 

[burntchef]

I just went through this with my kegerator. Find the thermostat knob and divine a way to get at the back of it to expose the wires. Based on how many wires you have back there, installing a quality wire nut and some tape will bypass the thermostat and allow the temp controller to run the show, or further diagnose your issue.
Eric

 

[Konadog]

A little more info will help, like is the compressor shutting off, limiting it from going below 45, or does it run 24/7 and net get any colder than 45?

 

[jekeane]

Updated with a bit more information up top.

 

[jekeane]

Here are a few bad photos. Its on and has a rattling compressor noise. when I push on that gray box the ratting dies down a bit

 

[day_trippr]

Very helpful additions. The unit appears to be a white box sold under numerous brand names, including Whirlpool, and parts appear readily available.

That the compressor settles down to a steady hum and runs continuously is good, as it eliminates both the thermostat and the start relay/condenser as problem causes. But the fact that it still isn't driving the cabinet temperature below the 40s - and there's a noticeable ring of frost at the top (which corresponds to the top of the evaporator) suggests the unit is very low on refrigerant.

Some people have gone through the effort of installing a charge port and adding refrigerant. No way to know in advance if it'd be worth the cost and effort...

 

[jekeane]

Very helpful additions. The unit appears to be a white box sold under numerous brand names, including Whirlpool, and parts appear readily available.

That the compressor settles down to a steady hum and runs continuously is good, as it eliminates both the thermostat and the start relay/condenser as problem causes. But the fact that it still isn't driving the cabinet temperature below the 40s - and there's a noticeable ring of frost at the top (which corresponds to the top of the evaporator) suggests the unit is very low on refrigerant.

Some people have gone through the effort of installing a charge port and adding refrigerant. No way to know in advance if it'd be worth the cost and effort...

From what I have read if the unit is low on refrigerant that means there is likely a leak somewhere. Is that right? I have a nice oak collar it and the same unit assuming it is the same size still is running $500 with all the end times buying lately. It is arguably worth fixing based on cost. But not if there is a leak.

 

[Konadog]

It does sound like a leak. You might look for a light oil stain on what you can see in the compressor compartment. Look around any fittings or solder joints you can see. That will usually show you a big leak, if it's a small leak (took years to dump) you might not see it, but is worth fixing.

 

[jekeane]

It does sound like a leak. You might look for a light oil stain on what you can see in the compressor compartment. Look around any fittings or solder joints you can see. That will usually show you a big leak, if it's a small leak (took years to dump) you might not see it, but is worth fixing.

Im not seeing anything that looks like a leak puddle. there is a bit of corrosion build up a bit like what you see on a car battery on one of the copper pipes connected to the compressor. Have you refilled freon before? this video makes it look pretty straight forward and about a $50 investment.

 

[day_trippr]

You need to make sure to use refrigerant compatible with your machine.
The type can usually be found on the manufacturer's plate...

Cheers!

 

[jekeane]

Ordered the parts to attempt to recharge freon. will be about $45 if it works. Borrowed a multimeter and all components that i could test seemed fine.

stopped by lowes and every single either chest or upright freezer is sold out. crazy times...

 

[craigmw]

Keep us posted on this. I'm curious to hear what the culprit is since I've also got a Maytag chest freezer.

 

[jekeane]

It was definitely low freon. I followed the video above and recharged the freezer. The only thing I did differently was that I purged the freon hose a bit before filling as I had read that a bunch of times in the comments.

I recharged the freon a week ago and it has been running well since. I assume there is a leak somewhere but I am hoping its a small one that will only require an occasional charge.

I had read somewhere that low freon can be a result of the freezer having to work too hard. With it having a collar and being in a florida garage I suppose that is possible. I'm just not sure i believe that freon just disappears from a closed system.

 

[day_trippr]

You should not believe that because it's nonsense, and you should smack the next person that tells you that

Yes, low freon is not good for compressors. As most chest freezers expect to run between 0°F and below, they'll just keep running trying to reach the thermostat Set Point - which will never be achieved. If you've taken over control by using an external temperature controller and using the freezer for fermentation you may not even know there's a latent issue - it doesn't take much to make fermentation temperatures - but using it for dispensing or cold-conditioning the ugliness will appear much sooner.

Anyway, good for you being brave enough to recharge the machine (it's not for the faint of heart) and congrats that it seems to be up and running again
With luck the leak took a long time to bleed out to where you noticed the machine was struggling, and you'll get another long cycle out of it...

Cheers!

 

[craigmw]

It was definitely low freon. I followed the video above and recharged the freezer. The only thing I did differently was that I purged the freon hose a bit before filling as I had read that a bunch of times in the comments.

I recharged the freon a week ago and it has been running well since. I assume there is a leak somewhere but I am hoping its a small one that will only require an occasional charge.

I had read somewhere that low freon can be a result of the freezer having to work too hard. With it having a collar and being in a florida garage I suppose that is possible. I'm just not sure i believe that freon just disappears from a closed system.

Good for you! I did the same on a 600 bottle wine cellar that I received for free. We just needed to pick it up. I purchased a refrigerant manifold off Amazon and some R134a from Walmart and was able to get that unit running again. So far, it's been running in my garage (which gets pretty hot during summers here in SoCal) perfectly. But there must have been a leak in it to cause it to loose its refrigerant. I actually purchased a freon detector to see if I could find the leak, but didn't come up with anything, likely because it's a very slow leak. There are refrigerants that can be purchased with sealants but I've read that these can damage the compressor. If I had to seal the leak, I'd just as likely replace the lines and dryer bulb and do a proper recharge with a vacuum. Then again, I might just retrofit it with a small window AC unit. So, as day_trippr mentioned, it's likely your chest freezer has a slow leak somewhere. But you should be able to get it to work for some time before needing to think about this again, hopefully.

 

[jekeane]

Good for you! I did the same on a 600 bottle wine cellar that I received for free. We just needed to pick it up. I purchased a refrigerant manifold off Amazon and some R134a from Walmart and was able to get that unit running again. So far, it's been running in my garage (which gets pretty hot during summers here in SoCal) perfectly. But there must have been a leak in it to cause it to loose its refrigerant. I actually purchased a freon detector to see if I could find the leak, but didn't come up with anything, likely because it's a very slow leak. There are refrigerants that can be purchased with sealants but I've read that these can damage the compressor. If I had to seal the leak, I'd just as likely replace the lines and dryer bulb and do a proper recharge with a vacuum. Then again, I might just retrofit it with a small window AC unit. So, as day_trippr mentioned, it's likely your chest freezer has a slow leak somewhere. But you should be able to get it to work for some time before needing to think about this again, hopefully.

Yeah thats what Im hoping. Its a $500 freezer and probably $100 in Oak so I figure If I have to pay $7 to recharge it every 6 months Ill do that till it dies or the same freezer goes on sale.