1934 ge monitor top refrigerator compressor

Jan 5, 2019 4:15:02 GMT hightime1 said:

thanks David for your reply.. I have purged the system of air , which greatly reduced the compressor noise and chilled much quicker.   I cleaned the start relay contacts which were slightly "corroded" and they are making much better contact, but still having the same problem.   is it possible the relay needs to be replaced even tho it works intermitently   

It's good that the purging helped with the cooling and compressor sound. That's a real move in the right direction.

Normally, these relays are good if they appear undamaged. Original parts for these machines are very hard to come by these days, even used parts. The next best thing is a Supco relay; such as an RO81. If your Monitor Top is a show-quality all-original unit I understand your wanting to use an original relay, however.

Jan 5, 2019 4:45:47 GMT elec573 said:

monitortop.freeforums.net/thread/1439/got-ca-first-mt-today  

Check  this post out . 
It would also help if we knew what you auctilly have ?  Model to be sure we are advising you right? 

Yes, pictures are always really helpful!  Some pictures of the relay arm and contacts would help as well. It seems that the top (non-moving) relay arm sometimes gets bent down too close to the relay armature. This makes it arc and results in poor contact. The arm should have as close to a 90 degree bend in it as possible.

There is one other really big concern with the CA and DR models.  The crankcase heater. This is a critical one, especially in cold weather. The heater is located underneath the compressor, in the center of the compressor oil sump. It's generally not possible to feel the heat from it, so that is not a good way to gauge if it is functional.  Test for resistance of the heater to see if it's working. First, turn off the refrigerator control. Then, unplug the unit and measure resistance at the plug on the end of the cord. You should see about 1000Ω of resistance across the plug, with the control OFF. If you see more than that, the heater is bad and the compressor is running with refrigerant in the oil sump, which will definitely cause damage.

Hope this helps!

Sincerely,

David

Jan 5, 2019 16:49:57 GMT hightime1 said:

ok. will do. it is to the point that the compressor will not start now. only humming noise coming from compressor when turned on. with these symptoms is it possible the relay is causing the problem. have not measured resistance yet but will do. thanks again for your help. tommy,

Hi Tommy. It is possible the relay will completely stop working. Have you tried to operate the unit with the relay cover removed? Can you post some close-up pictures of the relay with the cover removed as well?

If the heater is not working, it can cause the compressor's oil to be displaced by refrigerant liquid, causing the compressor to become hard-starting. If the heater is not working, continued start attempts may make the compressor worse and worse, until it's completely ruined.