I have a Maytag MSD2758GEB side by side refrigerator that has stopped cooling. I tried reading through the forum before posting, but haven’t been able to narrow my problem yet. My problem is that both the Freezer and Fridge is not cooling. But upon reading this forum, I discovered that the bottom portion of the freezer and fridge is slightly cooler than the top portion. The ice and food in the top portion of the freezer have all melted, while the bottom half is still frozen. Also, the top most drawer on the fridge side is registering 10 degrees higher than the drawer right below it(56 vs 46). I have also noticed frost build up in the back bottom half on the freezer side.
I’ve pushed the refrigerator out and cleaned the condenser coils. I’ve also verified the resistance between the three pins on the compressor. If I remember correctly, they were in the range of 5-10 ohms. The condenser fan is running and the compressor is very warm, almost hot, to the touch. I can feel it vibrating softly(not sure if it’s working). I can also hear another fan in the back middle area of the freezer side running(a little too loud in my opinion).
Could it be the starter piece attached to the compressor or is it something inside in the back of the freezer side? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
BTW, I’ve already replaced a water valve in the back, ice maker, and the housing assembly for the ice tray a couple of months back because I had water leaking all over the icemaker and freezing all over inside the top portion. I’m not sure if this is related, but you can’t have too much information when it comes to this kind of things.
I doubt it is a compressor problem. It sounds like the compressor is running correctly. It runs constantly as it is trying to get the temperature down to set point.
Remove the cover inside the freezer so that you can inspect the evaporator coils.
Check that the evaporator/freezer fan is running. It is required to pull air through the evaporator coils to cool it. It also circulates the cold air in the unit.
If thecoils are heavily iced/frosted over you have a defrost problem.
If there is just frost in one area (usually where the freon enters the coils, you have a sealed system problem. This will be an expensive repair as you need a pro. Often it makes sense to put the dollars towards a new unit.
I would check the warranty, sealed systems often have a longer warranty.
If heater assembly checks out OK - then you have a bad
adaptive defrost control, located in the refrigerator top right
rear under the cover. It’s marked 13 on the diagram #2.
PS. Use the blow dryer to melt the frost, but it would be the best if you can just unplug the refrigerator for 24 hrs to avoid risk of melting plastic lining.
I ran the continuity tests. The heater element is about 22ohms, and the defrost thermostat(little round thing in the first picture above) is open. I don’t know if it’s ice cold though because I had just manually defrost the whole thing with a hair dryer and plugged it in about 20 minutes ago. I noticed the evaporator coils are beginning to have some frost starting near the inlet hose. Is that normal? I also noticed that the frost is starting to move through the length of the coil. I guess it’s the refrigerant cooling it down right?
What’s strange is that before you replied. I had measure the resistance of the defrost thermostat(while warm) and it was about 188kohms while the heater element is also about 22ohms. I also measured the fan motor resistance after defrosted it and it was about 3.0ohms. Thanks for the help.
I noticed the evaporator coils are beginning to have some frost starting near the inlet hose. Is that normal?
Yes. After a couple hours the frost should cover the evaporator coils as long as the unit does not go through a defrost cycle.
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I also noticed that the frost is starting to move through the length of the coil. I guess it’s the refrigerant cooling it down right?[/COLOR]
Correct.
The parts listing includes a wiring diagram. If you look at the defrost thermostat you will see it has a zigzag in it. This denotes a resistor so your 188 kohms is probably normal when the thermostat is open.
When closed (frozen) it should read 0 ohms.
It is probably frozen by now so check it again.
Holding it onto an ice cube should also freeze it.
If it is deformed (bulged) replace it even if it does measure OK.
I measured it again today and it is still zero. The evaporator coils and fins are all covered in frost again(i think more than normal). I already ordered the new defrost heater and temperature sensor. How can i verify that my adaptive defrost control is working properly without waiting to install the new parts? Thanks for all your help.
I got the part today and decided to test the defrost thermostat one more time and it has continuity this time. So, I think that is not my problem now, but it is the ADC. I pulled the ADC out and could not find the Test pin. I have L1, Door, Stat, L2, Comp, and HTR in that order. I guess I’ll return the heating element and order the ADC. =/
So, I decided to replaced just the relay on the adc board because money was tight and that fixed my problem. Replacing the relay isn’t as simple as it sounds unless you know what you are doing. Thanks for all the help guys. I’ll definitely recommend people here.
