If some kind soul could help me troubleshoot the issue with this chest freezer; I would very much appreciate it!
This is a basic 7 cu. ft. no frills model chest freezer with no display, manual defrost with a drain plug, and an Off-Min-Max rotating knob.
Brand: Arctic King (aka Midea)
Model Number: ARC070S0ARBB
Main Symptom: Not cooling
What happens & when: The freezer does not cool at all. When plugged in, the unit pulls about 600 watts for about 5 seconds. A click is heard and the wattage drops down to 0. It seems repeat the process after a bit… I don’t know if it’s 3 minutes or 8 minutes or some other length. When the unit is pulling the 600 watts, the compressor or does not vibrate, hum, or twitch.. nothing I can feel or hear. The compressor is warm but not hot to the touch.
Error Code (if any): No display or speakers for codes.
Compressor: GMCC FZ59E1G-U
Parts or tests already tried:
- The PTC relay (QP2-4R7) has continuity at room temp. Does not rattle and the internal looks intact (disc not broken and no lose metal parts) with no black scotching. The PTC relay has one wire going in with two pins to the compressor.
- The overload/thermal protector (DRB29T61A1) has continuity at room temp. This component has has one wire going in and one pin to the compressor.
- There doesn’t seem to be a large silver capacitor, like I would see with a home HVAC or microwave.
- Testing resistance between each of the 3 pins on the compressor … shows something like 13-15 ohms, 17-20 ohms, & 25-30 ohms.
- Testing resistance between the 3 pins and the body shows 0 ohms.
- All the connections seems to fit properly; not lose or “wiggly”.
Photos / video link:
[ Photo 1: Compressor with model #, PTC & Overload box to the left of the compressor. Dryer Filter. “V” shape white box on the far left is the thermostat control box (Off-min-max). ]
[ Photo 2: Inside the the black rectangular box to the left of the compressor are two components: the PTC (left) and Overload (right). ]
Side note: When I opened up the access panel, there was a good amount of shredded material along the bottom of the unit , mostly dried plant matter but also insulation from the lines. What really surprised me, was the amount of the same stuff inside the thermostat box. It seems like it was stuffed FULL and the only opening are 1/8" slits for the plastic tabs and maybe 1/4" space of the 1/2" hole for the wiring. So much that I’m surprised there’s any room left for an animal to fit inside. A small mouse, I guess?