ZX9?? Frost Free Zanussi, is it worth attempting a repair?

[tobys]

Hello,
We have a ZX9 something Zanussi. The number on the back is 9284053483370027, which I assume makes it a ZX99/3w, but the serial numbers are shorter and slightly different to the number on the back (I assume its model number, then item number/line, ie so many thousand were built in some factory?).

Anyhow, from reading other posts on here, it appears that the freezer has a defrost problem. The symptoms are that the fridge started to warm up to room temperature, but the freezer compartment still appeared to be OK.
When I took the fridge apart (a bit), I could see that the freezing fins were clogged with ice. I defrosted this (lots of water dripped out onto the compressor), and it worked OK for about 2 weeks. Now the fridge is starting to warm up again. Its not as bad as it was, but if I trick the fridge into thinking that the door is shut (by holding a magnet against the sensor), I can hear the compressor and a fan, but I can’t feel cool air being circulated at the back.

So… The fridge is now about 5 years old and is out of warranty. We managed to buy it cheaply, as it was an ex-showroom model and had some scratches. My dilemma now is whether I should try to repair it, or to suck it up and buy a new freezer (which is unlikely to be anywhere near as cheap).

I’m pretty handy with electronics, so the repair is my favored option, but I’m not sure where to start.

I did check the continuity of the heating coil that surrounded the channel near the fridge fan (inside the back of the freezer compartment on a sticky sheet of foil). It was a struggle to get a good contact with my multimeter, but I did eventually get a reading. It occurs to me that part of my “struggle” to get a good contact could have been a small break in continuity, that flexing the cable brought back together?

Otherwise if I were to limit my spending to £50, which parts are most likely to be broken, can I test them, or are they swap out repairs?

I hope that this all makes sense, but if you have any questions, then please feel free to ask them.

Thanks in advance for your help.

TobyS

[helo_75]

no doubt its a zx99/5si

itll need an ntc if the heaters ok

[tobys]

Thanks, but what is an NTC

Thanks for the reply. That looks eminently replaceable, so I’ll definitely give it a try. Without getting into too much of a discussion about how refrigerators work, can you explain why the fridge has a thermostat and the NTCs (which I assume are thermistors)?

Would my guess be right that the thermostat controls how much cold air is diverted to the fridge compartment, while the NTC controls the evaporator/condenser circuit?

When I fit the NTC I’ll give the heater another check, but I’m pretty certain it was OK.

Thanks again.

TobYS

[Guido22]

Re: ZX9?? Frost Free Zanussi, repair

Hello
I also have a Zanussi ZX99 – that periodically (almost every single day) is ‘beeping’ and the three lights flash on and off. The only way to stop is to power off then back on again…. this is a short term fix however and within a few hours – it starts again…. nothing noticeable wrong with either fridge or freezer as both seem to maintain a regular temperature. No ice evident and I did attempt a defrost for 12 hours last week – but no water pooling confirmed no ice present…

I have read this could be an NTC fault – (and for £30 it could be worth a go). ? If so, how do I go about replacing? Do I remove the back panel and look for a wire similar to that I will replace? Or is it a little more involved than that?

Any help would be greatly appreciated….. thank you.

TIAFYH

G

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