I just became the unexpected owner of a Kenmore chest freezer. This is what I get for having a big truck, and a friend who needed to pickup a new freezer. The story on the on old freezer is that it was only three years old, and stopped working. A repair tech told them that the starter relay had failed, and that it was a discontinued part. The Sears Parts Direct website seems to support this.
The tech told them he could find a generic replacement, and fix it all for $200. They had a line on a larger upright freezer for free, so they went that route. I took the Kenmore off their hands thinking that I would either fix it myself, or send it to the graveyard.
I have done some searching online and have come up dry on finding a replacement part. I have included pictures of the parts in question as well as pics of the compressor.
I realize there may be a chance there is more wrong here than the relay, but I did notice this: The insulating boots on the blue and brown wires that go from the relay to the capacitor where very discolored from heat. This would lead me to believe that the relay has been getting very hot.
I tried to call Appliance Parts Pro this morning, but it would seem that they are no longer offering Saturday hours.
That freezer unit was made by Haier, I would recommend using an generic start device part AP3540667 or a 3 n 1 hard start(ommitting the present capacitor) AP3540659.
Is there any advantage/disadvantage to going with a 3 in 1 instead of replacing just the relay? Will it make any difference in the operation and longevity of the freezer. Also, since I now know this is made by Haier should I maybe go to them for the OEM part?
Good luck with that! Haier makes the crap and then doesn’t supply any support or parts to fix em when they break.You could go to a junk yard that scraps appliances and start pulling the relays off of them and put one on and see if it runs The compressor may not handle a 3n1 for very long but it would be the easy way of getting it fixed Haier is junk made in china and personnaly I wouldn’t risk filling a haier freezer full of food becuse they are such crappy appliances. even tho its only three years old it wasn’t made to last much longer than that Its cheap crap made in china and I don’t know why anybody would even buy something like that. GE parts seem to fit and work on Haiers. After Sears found that out what junk a haier was they quit putting their name on it.
[COLOR=#333333]Update: I installed the Supco Relay/Overload Protector (not the 3 in 1) and plugged the freezer in. The compressor blew up in my face, and I am now being rushed to the hospital… okay, yes I am kidding. Seriously, the compressor is now making a low buzzing noise that sounds a bit like an electric motor under load trying to turn without success. Sometimes it turns a little faster, and then slows down again. Is the ZEL compressor shot? Or is there something else I should look at. Yes, I know I should just junk the thing since (according to the last post) Hiaer makes, well Junk. I am however willing to pursue fixing this a little longer before I go to sears and plunk down some money on a new freezer. This one was free, and thus far I only have 20 minutes and $16 into it. I view this as a little bit of cheap entertainment, since I pride myself on being able to fix things instead of sending them to the land fill. I am sure some of you out there may view my pursuit as some sort of strange self punishment. In any case, anyone that can offer any help or guidance on this little project of mine would be greatly appreciated.[/COLOR]
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[COLOR=#333333]Thanks [/COLOR]
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[COLOR=#333333]WI Badger[/COLOR]
We are having the exact problem - the relay rattles and the cover looks like it got very hot. We called Sears and they are supposed to research and get back to us. We will see - we have no working freezer and company coming for the holidays.
WI-badger,
If the unit is humming then the compressor itself is shot and whould require replacement. Recommend just taking it the the graveyard, as you so put it.
Jimer,
Please post your model number, since Kenmore doesn’t make anything it’s hard to say which part you may need. Although a relay is a definate!
LibertyApp,
The freezer is 3.5 years old
Freezer model 183.13601300
Relay part #rf-0010-65
It’s the same one that WI-badger posted above.
Also the blue and brown wires are discolored.
This freezer will probably also end up junked- too bad.
Thanks,
Jimer
Hey all… The freezer is fixed and has been running for about a month now. The solution was to install a 3 in 1 Relay kit (Part# AP3540659). I have two theories of thought regarding this fix.
I was told that refrigeration systems sometimes get overcharged at the factory thus making them harder to start, and that the 3 in 1 Relay/Hard Start kit can overcome this.
The two discolored(over heated) wires were the ones that go to the original capacitor. It may be that the original capacitor was weak/failed, and thus caused the freezer to stop working.
Now although I don’t disagree with Libertyappl about these being a very cheaply made unit, instead of sending it to the appliance graveyard (landfill), I now have a functional freezer for a total investment of $20 in parts. I fully expect that this freezer will not last 5 years, but for now it is doing just fine. Hope this helps.
[QUOTE=WI_Badger;51531]Hey all… The freezer is fixed and has been running for about a month now. The solution was to install a 3 in 1 Relay kit (Part# AP3540659). I have two theories of thought regarding this fix.
I was told that refrigeration systems sometimes get overcharged at the factory thus making them harder to start, and that the 3 in 1 Relay/Hard Start kit can overcome this.
The two discolored(over heated) wires were the ones that go to the original capacitor. It may be that the original capacitor was weak/failed, and thus caused the freezer to stop working.
Now although I don’t disagree with Libertyappl about these being a very cheaply made unit, instead of sending it to the appliance graveyard (landfill), I now have a functional freezer for a total investment of $20 in parts. I fully expect that this freezer will not last 5 years, but for now it is doing just fine. Hope this helps.
Badger[/QUOTE]
WI_BADGER: I have exactly the freezer and problem. I’m hoping you can tell me where you order the part. Thanks.
I got mine at a local store that had the part in stock, but it is the same exact part. Good luck with your freezer… mine is still running strong almost 9 months later.
Thanks Badger … Glad to hear that after nine months your freezer is still running. Great job.
How hard was it to put it in? Amateur here. If it’s not too much to ask, can you tell me how you did it or maybe a SNAPSHOT of the replacement part installed? Did you have to do any soldering? Again, thanks for any info. I just hate it to junk this. I know I could probably squeeze a few more years from it.
I also have a 183.13601300 freezer that does not work. I bought a 3 in 1 as mentioned, but when I looked at how to wire it up, it made absolutely no sense. The diagram on the 3 in 1 shows 3 connections and the power wires. There are too many parts to determine whice wires they are speaking of replacing. Please help with diagrams or instructions. I do not know what each component is called, which one is the capacitor and so on.
Badger, I would also be interested in seeing a picture of how you wired in the replacement part. When I look at the existing (broken) relay on mine, I see six wires, 2 green, 2 black, 1 red, 1 white. The picture of the part you bought shows 5 wires (3 black, 1 red, 1 white).
What is the proper wiring required for this to work?
[QUOTE=tangfoot;119243]Badger, I would also be interested in seeing a picture of how you wired in the replacement part. When I look at the existing (broken) relay on mine, I see six wires, 2 green, 2 black, 1 red, 1 white. The picture of the part you bought shows 5 wires (3 black, 1 red, 1 white).
What is the proper wiring required for this to work?[/QUOTE]
Did anyone ever figure how to wire this? We have the same problem and have no idea how to wire this… begging for help guys!!!
I would NEVER use a 3n 1 start device on a modern compressor. Eventually it will fail with both windings burning out.
The 3n1 has no overload klixon to protect the compressor during overload conditions, and there is no thermal protection. It is designed to provide a much larger starting current to overcome either a partially shorted start winding, or other mechanical/electrical characteristics increasing starting torqe requirements.
Compressor manufacturers select a specific current trip point klixon for each model of compressor they make that is designed to trip open fast during overload conditions and stay open a sufficient period to allow the compressor windings to cool down.
Compressors typically draw more than 3000 watts peak during start periods.If the compressor fails to start for any reason, including brown out conditions, which happen ocassionally, the rms power consumed will blow out both windings. I have seen compressor windings blow open and short to the compressor housing when a 3n1 was used!
For the more robust, older compressors that are rated higher than 1/4 hp, the magnetic core material permeability curve is “softer” and the greater core cross section area prevents total saturation, limiting the inrush power to levels that do not damage the compressor windings.
Hi Richappy,
Since a 3-in-1 is not recommended and the part is not available, I was wondering if there was a part that would be compatible with this freezer. It’s listed as RF-0010-65 in the Kenmore manual and as part#AP3723113 (made by Haier) on the Appliancepartspro website.
We’re just stuck right now as how to proceed. I wouldn’t want to use anything that has even a remote chance of causing a fire. If there is not a compatible part, then I guess it will have to go into the landfill which i just hate to see in a freezer that’s only 5 years old. The switch seems pretty basic and I would think there would be alternatives, but being inexperienced in freezer repair, I just don’t know.
