[keepoffthemarbles]

Re: Maytag side-by-side fault

Maytag engineer came round and very quickly said it’s the compressor based on my description of the failure. It’s a shame the customer service people couldn’t have share this information and saved us all a load of grief and 2 weeks. At least the compressor is covered by the 5 year warranty.

Anyway, the guy had no compressor and it looks like we are looking at a couple of weeks to get one… The cheeky knob I spoke to suggested I should buy a cheap fridge to see me through. Whilst we’re dishing out the fridge buying tips, here’s one everybody should take notice of.

Don’t buy a Maytag fridge. They are over priced, unrelaible and customer service is an alien concept to these people. I can’t wait to ditch this thing coz I live near the Maytag headquarters and their chief exec may just find it in his parking space one day…!

Thanks for all the useful responses.

[keepoffthemarbles]

Re: Maytag side-by-side fault

After reading several posts on a US website I replaced the Overload/Relay a week ago. This cost me £20.67 direct from Maytag and I was able to collect it on the same day thanks to a very helpful young lady called Alex.

All was well for a week. It has never performed better. Until today when it’s done it again.

So is it the compressor or just bad luck that the overload/relay has failed again?

[keepoffthemarbles]

Re: Maytag side-by-side fault

… and a fan that seems to be running happily.

[keepoffthemarbles]

Re: Maytag side-by-side fault

I promised an update, so here it is..

As feared the issue has returned, but this time it seems to be isolated to the freezer defrosting.

I removed the lower back panel and got the vacuum cleaner in there for a thorough clean. In doing so I exposed what I assume is the compressor (large black bulb object), a small, 2-3 inch silver cylindrical component and a plastic housing on the side of the compressor.

The compressor was hot. Almost too hot to touch at the top. I’m guessing from my basic understanding of how fridges work and the insulation that surrounds it that the compressor is expected to get hot. But how hot?

When the freezer is playing up there is a distinct buzzing noise every 5 minutes or so that sounds like a relay or solenoid trying to switch in. With the back off the fridge it sounded like it was coming from the cylindrical item. What is this?

Lastly, I have read a number of posts on an American forum which point to the relays burning out and these seem to be the items that are housed on the plastic housing on the side of the compressor. But these seem to be exclusively talking about older models (mine is three years old). Anyone have any experience of this?

I’d appreciate anymore insight that you good folk may have.

Cheers, Jon
to

[keepoffthemarbles]

Re: Maytag side-by-side fault

Thanks for the feedback guys.

The legal stuff makes some sense now you mention it.

Update of the fridge. The freezer did defrost itself, but started working again within a few 8 hours. I guess the issue could be ambient heat related, but our kitchen is reasonably cool and the first failure wasn’t during hot weather. I’ve checked all the vents are clean and the unit is installed with more clearance than the handbook specified.

I’ll keep an eye on it over the next week or so before I decide what to do next.

Thanks, Jon

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