We took a vacation for 10 days and decided to keep our fridge switched off. We were back, switched on the fridge and got a burning smell after a while. Found that the fan in the freezer was not working. Since it was a Saturday late evening and the service call would not happen until Monday, I decided to give it a try to fix myself. I opened up the freezer back plane and found that the fan motor was indeed not working. Took it out and the next day set out in search of a replacement motor. Went to SP road (The place in Bangalore for all electronics/computer spares) and found most shops closed being Sunday. Enquired at a few places and got to know that I need to look at Chikpet for electrical appliance replacement parts. Headed to Chikpet and enquired in a few electrical shops and got to know that one Prakash Electricals stocks the replacement motors. To my dismay, I found the shop closed and was about to leave. After a few strolls, found another Prakash stores and the small shop indeed had the motor. It didn't looked as good as the original one, but the dimensions matched. I was worried about the rotation direction of the motor, the shopkeeper assured me that all Freezer fan motors have standard direction.
Got back home and replaced the motor in no time and was happy that it worked. But something was wrong, the bottom section was not cooling enough. Since the original fan was not working, I did not know which direction the fan should run. After careful looking, it seemed the direction of the motor was reverse. The fan should blow air into the freezer from behind (the cooling coils), but the new fan motor was blowing warm air into the cooling fins. Since it is an AC motor, reversing the terminals won't change the rotor direction. Disappointed, I decided to call in for service and put the old motor back. But later, I thought why don't reverse the rotor, so that it turns opposite direction. The motor assembly was simple and allowed me to change the rotor orientation. Put the motor back and the fan now works correctly. Though the replacement motor is a bit weak and I am not sure how long it would work.
Here are some pictures:
Freezer's back plane removed. The fan motor is mounted on the back plane and has channels for air circulation. The square cavity on the top is where the fan draws air from.
Old motor. Had markings MSP63S 10mm Motor.
New motor in place. The rotor doesn't rotate as smoothly as the old one. The rotor is exposed.
Electrolux 235L (EKL 235FF) wiring diagram
This is the second time our Fridge needed repair, after close to 8 years of purchase. First, it was the defrost timer that failed and had to replace.
Freezer's back plane removed. The fan motor is mounted on the back plane and has channels for air circulation. The square cavity on the top is where the fan draws air from.
1 comment:
Yes, Bejoy's post was a great moral booster for me. My Electrolux's freezer fan was not working, so I too went out and got a new one, which is quite easily available. These local ones are mostly made in Delhi itself and priced around 200 INR. A word of caution though, be sure to check the speed of these motors, as the required speed is around 2400 rpm and what's available could be of very low speed! If proper speed is not there the lower compartment could get warm!
Another thing is, if the original motor is not working, before discarding, check that the winding is OK with a multimeter, if OK, then check for the stickiness of the bushes. I had this problem, the front bush was sticky, put a bit of oil and was OK, to go.
Thanks Bejoy.
John
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