[RalphS]

Re: Maytag RCD problem

Update
I reinstalled the heater & the RCD tripping returned.

I found a genuine 67007091 on Amazon £27.49 delivered (out of stock & more money now). Fitted it, which involved a few scuffed knuckles and numerous expletives…

18 hours later, no RCD tripping. I assume it is defrosting….

Testing the old heater, it has a resistance of 121 ohms which equates to roughly 0.5kW heater. However there was only about 1.5M ohms highly variable resistance between the element & the heater casing, which by my calculations would be just enough to trip a 30mA RCD.

Next: I’ll take out the Ice / Water dispenser PCB to re-flow suspect solder joints to cure any dry joints.

[RalphS]

Re: Maytag RCD problem

Thanks Spimps & Bob.
Sorry for the delay in replying. Was in France all weekend &
Can’t access Maytag’s UK or US website (& trouble with many others including here). Won’t resolve / BT’s DNS server seems to have fallen over….

The original leakage was always momentary. Resetting the RCD, 10 seconds later, fault is clear.

I have accessed the condenser which was partially frosted / iced up. Just above it the thermostat & connectors had a lot of ice on them; probably the point of earth leakage. I have taken the defrost heater out to test it. 121 Ohms which seems too high (No leakage to the element’s outer casing). But I can’t find any data relating to a UK model. US ones have ~23 Ohms, so I’m guessing say 50 Ohms or less.

(Oddly if it was the thermostat that is faulty, it would require the wiring to be cut to replace it.)

Have defrosted with a hair dryer & reassembled without the heater to test for earth leakage. Will take say ~7 hours. (OK after 5 hours)

Meanwhile I am trying to source a new heater, but most of the ones I find look different to mine. It is a simple L shape with a single dual in-line oblong connector. It has a component in a clear plastic tube, in series with the wiring, strapped to the top of 1 leg of the element.
Think this 4Maytag one might be right, if I can’t source elsewhere…
http://www.4maytag.co.uk/defrost-heater-evaporator/product.pl?pid=1806214

[RalphS]

Re: Maytag GC2225 Noise

The 01737 231000 number no longer works.
Message says
0844 499 0101 UK
0044 (0)20 8616 5145 INT (which works)

Have studied the noise pattern in greater detail. The 10 second noise cycle happens every couple of minutes until the compressor does fire up. Compressor then runs normally for a few minutes & then cuts out until the thermostat kicks in again…

Found this

To give you confidence in your purchase, your appliance comes with a guarantee against mechanical breakdown as follows:
Admiral: 1 Year Parts & Labour
Maytag: 2 Years Parts & Labour
Amana: 2 Years Parts & Labour

Just phoned to try and establish whether it’s covered. They don’t have serial number records. Customer care, 01737 232251, isn’t open until Monday. Bated (according to Shakespeare) / Baited (according to JK Rowling) breath.

And I took all the advice here about not buying any other brand!

[RalphS]

Re: Maytag GC2225 Noise

So the choices are.

Call out an independent. Knock Knock… Near J4 M1 (hope this is allowed, sorry if not)

Phone Maytag. It might be under guarantee, but I doubt it!

A faulty starter I could fix. I know my limitations if it is the compressor. My guess is its the starter as it is performing / cooling OK.

Not that I’m going to delay, but is it likely to suddenly fail?

[RalphS]

Re: Maytag GC2225 Noise

Thanks for the reply.

It is my impression it is nothing to do with the ice maker. Besides, the noise emanates from the bottom grill. No fixed frequency of occurrence, but can happen as often as every 5 minutes, or maybe not for an hour or two.

I haven’t noticed any deterioration in performance. It was one of the first things I started monitoring.

Struggling. That seems apt. Something is trying to run & repeatedly fails. However I have noticed occasionally that this happens when the air circulating fan is running, although usually it happens when all is silent.

Each episode is clearly defined. There is no build up or decline. It is ‘switched’ & no hint of struggle. It can’t be that old, the model hasn’t been around too long.
Have briefly read up on ‘Klixon’ elsewhere here. I don’t think it is to do with thermal overload of the compressor. The noise seems to be linked to a component in the startup sequence for the compressor to run and happens instantly from cold.

I am quite competent, formerly a hands on research electronics engineer. I could easily replace anything electrical. Trouble is it will be really difficult to get the Maytag out. If I can almost certainly identify the (relatively cheap?) component, I would take a chance and buy it first so as to only have to drag it out once.

In case it is relevant, both compartments are set to level 4.

—————-
One day in the not to distant future, refrigeration will have no moving parts and run more efficiently and silently! Try looking at http://www.coolchips.gi I am associated with the company.

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