KitchenAid Side by Side Refridge won't cool.
My KitchenAid Superba 42 model # KSSC42FJS00 is not cooling on both sides. Service man stopped by and said the fins just need to be cleaned. He did mention that the compressor was not always turning on. He did a test and he did get a signal so the compressor was not completely gone. He wasn't sure if the compressor had a delay in it or not. He did replace the relay and another switch (I forgot). Well after a day, its still not cooling. I was contemplating just changing the compressor myself if its not too hard. Part will cost $221 plus shipping. I am not sure what service will charge but I am not confident that they can figure it out. I feel like I paid for cleaning of the fins for nothing. Does anyone have experience with this model? Does the compressor seem likey the problem? Is it something that a weekend DIY can do? Thank you in advance. Replacing a compressor is way beyond the DIY level not to mention that you have to have an EPA certification. What is happening now? Is the compressor running? Is it cycling? Is it HOT to the touch? How old is the box? Maybe the compressor is in warranty? It's about 7 years old now so no warranty. I don't hear the compressor running at all. Just the fans blowing. The compressor is on top of the unit and it's too late to check the temp now. I will have to check it in the morning. Looks like I will have to call service again. I wonder if they would give me a refund on the cleaning? If you're serious about having the compressor checked/replaced, call a refrigeration service company and not an appliance guy. Originally Posted by daddyjohn If you're serious about having the compressor checked/replaced, call a refrigeration service company and not an appliance guy. Well, I initially called KitchenAid to get the unit fixed. They had contacted this particular company to come and service it. The appliance company is not calling back. I think they are either not capable of fixing or just doesn't want to do it for some reason. The thing is, I already paid them $160 for the initial service call which didn't fix anything. They initially told me that they would apply some of it toward gettting the compressor fixed but now I don't know what to do. I have the exact same model, KSSC42FJS00. If it's 7 years old, it's still under warranty. It has a 2/6/12 year warranty; after the 6th year the warranty covers the PARTS (but not labor) for the sealed refrigeration components, including compressor. Luckily (I guess) my compressor died before the 6 year warranty, so labor was covered in my case. After watching the guys fix it, I can confirm that it's not a DIY job. For starters, they had to evacuate the system with a specalized vacuum device. You can download the owner's manual from kitchenaid.com if you'd like to read the warranty first hand. If I was in your shoes, I would DEMAND that the original appliance guys repair it, or refund a portion of their repair bill if they aren't able. Good Luck, -Dan Originally Posted by dantheman81 I have the exact same model, KSSC42FJS00. If it's 7 years old, it's still under warranty. It has a 2/6/12 year warranty; after the 6th year the warranty covers the PARTS (but not labor) for the sealed refrigeration components, including compressor. Luckily (I guess) my compressor died before the 6 year warranty, so labor was covered in my case. After watching the guys fix it, I can confirm that it's not a DIY job. For starters, they had to evacuate the system with a specalized vacuum device. You can download the owner's manual from kitchenaid.com if you'd like to read the warranty first hand. If I was in your shoes, I would DEMAND that the original appliance guys repair it, or refund a portion of their repair bill if they aren't able. Good Luck, -Dan Hey Dan, Thanks for your reply. I just wanted to update this old thread. It turns out that my unit is not cooling again. The first service company was bad and so was the second one. I am on my third company today. After reading your reply I did confirm with KitchenAid that my unit is under Parts warranty. Yay! So I wait for my 3rd service company visit and hope that my unit gets fixed for good. All three service companies have been recommended by the manufacturer so I wonder what is going on there. I will update after my service call. Can you tell us what both of the service companies did and what parts were replaced. If the compressor is not running, it should be fairly easy to find the problem. Compressor bad, relay on the compressor bad, defrost device bad. My guess is that the compressor is not bad. I am thinking, relay, defrost device, or if it has a master control board, that would be suspect also. H. Originally Posted by himeros Can you tell us what both of the service companies did and what parts were replaced. If the compressor is not running, it should be fairly easy to find the problem. Compressor bad, relay on the compressor bad, defrost device bad. My guess is that the compressor is not bad. I am thinking, relay, defrost device, or if it has a master control board, that would be suspect also. H. Well the first service company just cleaned the fins and charged me $125. They said it was dirty and should be ok. After 2 days, it was obvious that was not the problem and it was still not cooling, I called them many times and they never called me back. I was so pissed. I called Kitchenaid and made a formal complaint. They are off of the list of approved service companies from what I understand. The second service company just recharged the system and replaced the drier. It worked for about 10 months and now its not cooling. I called them and left 3 messages and they never called me back. Got the 3rd service company number from KitchenAid and they stopped by yesterday. It turns out that the compressor, evaporator and heat exchanger will need to be replaced. Apparently there is a leak somewhere. Good news is that the parts are covered by warranty but the bad news is, the labor is gonna cost me approx $1,200. I wish I didn't have to have a built in refridgerator. This is highway robbery! Is it super hard to pull this unit out? I am curious how that one service company simply cleaned coils only, and also wondered if there might be a delay for the compressor. Seems like an odd remark for a professional, as he should be schooled in schematics and should be able to know if there is such a thing or not. Is this some fancy, huge, stainless steel, digital controlled, water/ice dispensing unit, or something? Originally Posted by ecman51` Is it super hard to pull this unit out? I am curious how that one service company simply cleaned coils only, and also wondered if there might be a delay for the compressor. Seems like an odd remark for a professional, as he should be schooled in schematics and should be able to know if there is such a thing or not. Is this some fancy, huge, stainless steel, digital controlled, water/ice dispensing unit, or something? Yeah, it one of those fancy stainless steel built ins. Costs a fortune to buy but only holds about the same as a $1000 unit you can buy at you local electronics store. From what I understand, the process to change out all the parts is very involved and most tech's cannot do it. There is a person that only does this kind of work and it's a specialty. Even the 3rd tech that diagnosed the problem is not qualified to do this job although he has been a repair man for 16 years. I think this is one of the reasons the second company did not fix it completely. He just refilled the freon because it's easier to just do that then to replace the parts. I didn't realize that it was a temporary band aid at the time. Did any of the techs access where the cooling coils are, and with the compressor running and both fans running just before accessing, find out what the coils look like for frost and what temp is coming out the freezer? That will tell the story if freon has leaked out. I have been told that refrigerant molecules are now a lot smaller than they used to be and because of that, it becomes more difficult to locate small pinhole leaks. Often leaks are at the coils, and these can be expensive to change out. Owning expensive things can often lead to expensive repairs, unfortunately. Originally Posted by ecman51` Did any of the techs access where the cooling coils are, and with the compressor running and both fans running just before accessing, find out what the coils look like for frost and what temp is coming out the freezer? That will tell the story if freon has leaked out. I have been told that refrigerant molecules are now a lot smaller than they used to be and because of that, it becomes more difficult to locate small pinhole leaks. Often leaks are at the coils, and these can be expensive to change out. Owning expensive things can often lead to expensive repairs, unfortunately. I will take a look when they come to repair the unit. We are waiting for the parts to get here for now.
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