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Hello,This is regarding a side-by-side refrigerator/freezer. I had two appliance techicians look at my side-by-side refrigerator/freezer, which isn't freezing, but the refrigeration part is working fine. They both said there is absolutely nothing wrong with any part of my appliance: the freon is okay, the compressor is great, all the electrical components are fine, etc, etc. They did say that the wall outlet that my refrig. is plugged into has varying wattage, the wattage was going all over the place and that was likely the problem.I asked them if that outlet needed to be replaced, if the specific circuit breaker for the kitchen needed to be upgraded, and they didn’t have a real clear answer.Do you have any ideas?-Dan
Optional Information: Make: Amana Model: ARS2364AW
hi this is john and will try and help
first of all...........the technicians telling you that the wattage is all over the place is a false statement (just trying to keep it clean), there is no way to test wattage from an Outlet....more than likely they may have been refering to Voltage
okay
well I do believe them that there is nothing wrong with my fridge...both appliance technicians have over 25 years experience with refrigerators
second...i read your previous posts and saw whee they also said that the top plug is ok but the bottom one is all over the place...if that was true then why didn't they plug it into the "good: plug
they said the top plug of the outlet is fine though, I don't know what they mean by fine then, if they aren't electricians
they did plug it into the good plug..the refrigerator still is having trouble getting enough power for the freezer section
I don't think they knew enough about electrical matters, specifically
in your outlet is what they call a bridge that connects the top and bottom Plugs together....it is extremely rare if at all that the plugs would be reading differently
so where do I go from here?
are you having any issues with the other appliances in your house
no
i would bet that there is still a problem with the freezer part of your refridge....the compressor of the start capacitor....
if it would ease your mind.....you could have an electrician come out and verify the voltage coming out of the outlet, but i think you will find it being a non issue
is the refridge on a breaker of its own
there is nothing wrong with my refrigerator, I had two technicians go over practically every component of the refrigerator/freezer and everything was fine...they were not stupid people..they answered very intelligently about the refrigerator...they were acting like they were trying to make stuff up about the outlet though...so I think they really didn't have the knowledge there
it is not impossible, however for an appliance tecnician to make a statement that the "wattage" is all over the place in half of your outlet does not make sense
that's what I said, regarding the wall outlet, I don't think they had any knowledge, they were trying to pretend like they did
and the other half is fine but the freezer is still having problems when it is plugged into the good plu......i would try and plug the refridge into another outlet over night ...one that is on a different circuit and see if the freezer starts working....
but if the appliance is eliminated, what is the likely problem....does the wall outlet need to be replaced, is the wiring in the wall bad, or does something in the Circuit Breaker need to be replaced
the refrigerator and freezer are one side by side unit, with one plug in
not two plug ins
yes i know but you said the refridge works but the freezer part doesn't
i would get an extentsion cord and plug into another outlet that is on a different breaker and see what happens overnight
that would either confirm or blow their theory
okay..that idea sounds intelligent
humor me and let's say the refridge works on another outlet
now...would it likely be the outlet, wiring in the wall, or circuit breaker
its a start and may ease your mind about re-wiring half the house (only kidding)
i think it is none of the above
you still think there is actually something wrong with the appliance?
everything starts at the electric Panel.....where all voltage comes into the panel on two 120 volt wires from the Meter
from that point it goes throughout the house in different circuits
what are you saying?
i didn't see your answer about is the refridge on its own breaker
or are there other things on with it
just a microwave and the kitchen light
ok...so if you turn the breaker off, the micro and the kitchen light go off as well
correct
The microwave and light seem to be working fine though
the point i am trying to make is i assume you are not having any problems with your micro or your kitchen lights (although if the lights are on with the refridge and the micro they probabely blink when the refridge or the micro are turned on)
you beat me to it
(the oven is gas by the way, so it does pull a little electricity to light the LEDs for clock on the oven, but not really)
so logically the wiring has to be fine up to the point of the microwave and kitchen light, and the microwave outlet is almost literally adjacent to the fridge, like 2 feet away
i think the solution would be like i said earlier...plug it into a different outlet on a different breaker and see what happens overnight......if you have the same problem you have ammo for the tecnician
technician
replacing an outlet or a circuit breaker is cheap and easy, replacing the wiring in the wall is not....so am I correct that if the wiring to the microwave outlet, which is right next to the rerfrig outlet, is fine (because the microwave works fine), then I don't have to worry about ripping out the wiring in the wall?
that is my main question that will ease my mind
i would not worry about replacing wiring.....that would be the most extreme measure that would have to happen....at the very most, if plugging it into another outlet solved the problem then i would suggest replacing the .79 outlet and the 10.00 breaker
how old is the house
Built in 1978
keep thinking ........micro is fine, lights are fine, oven is fine, and allegedly half of my refridge outlet is fine
only kidding about last part
yup
no comment on the 1978?
no just curious....i'm glad its not 50 years old.....i really want you to let me know what happens tomm. morning
today they usually separate the appliances on different circuits although not mandatory
you are implying that the house is fairly old though
no not at all....telling me the year gives me an idea about how the house may have been wired, what codes it fell under at that time, etc
has your mind eased at all
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just wondering how you made out overnight.......was there any difference with the freezer
There is no difference in the freezer. I plugged it into a completely different circuit. I think I need to call a few technicians.
thats what i thought......either it is something that nobody wants to deal with or its a hard fix......i would suggest the same thing, get a reputable tech and at least if they say the same thing you can tell them that you had tried it in a different outlet/circuit and they better come up with a better answer
Experience: over 40 years of all phases related to residential wiring and remodeling