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Maytag Bottom Drawer Refrigerator MFF2557HES

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Posted: Mon Oct 11th, 2010 02:37 am

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the.anti.fridge
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Warm beer compartment on my Maytag Bottom Drawer Refrigerator MFF2557HES. It's about five years old.

We had a power outage and plugged the refrigerator into a battery pack to keep it running overnight. I think that may have caused the problem. The next morning there was an acrid electric smell in the beer compartment. Furthermore, there was ice build up blocking the vent (back left) behind the crisper drawers. (All advice or thoughts about refrigerator backup power would also be welcome. We use a Xantrex powerpack 1500.)

We thawed the ice from the vent for 24 hrs, so it's now clear. I can see light through it to the freezer compartment.

So I checked:

http://fixitnow.com/wp/2010/07/14/warm-refrigerator-troubleshooting-flowchart/

The ice cream compartment stays frozen. (I didn't measure the temp, though.)

The evaporator fan is not working. It does not seem to run at any point either at start up or 15+ minutes into running. I tested the voltage at the fan and it was 2VAC.

There isn't fuzzy ice on the evaporator coil.

There is a light sheen of frost on the evaporator coil after running for a while. Seems to work fine by me.

The compressor is running (otherwise it wouldn't be cold, right?).

The flow chart says "Sealed System Failture. Buy a new fridge." Argh. Please tell me there's something else I'm missing!

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Posted: Mon Oct 11th, 2010 03:18 am

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RegUS_PatOff
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the.anti.fridge wrote: ... There is a light sheen of frost on the evaporator coil after running for a while. Seems to work fine by me.
seems the flow-chart needs to be modified ...

check why that Evaporator Fan isn't running ..

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Posted: Mon Oct 11th, 2010 11:54 pm

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the.anti.fridge
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I ran the service test 3- to toggle the evaportator/freezer fan on and off. The fan didn't work. I measured the voltage at the connector with the motor attached and it still showed less than 2VAC.

I ran the service test 2- compressor fan test. And the fan ran fine.

Likewise, I ran the service test 6- damper test, and the damper opened and closed.

Next?

Thank you.

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Posted: Tue Oct 12th, 2010 12:24 am

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RegUS_PatOff
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you could disconnect the Evaporator Fan and check it's resistance ..

you could then, also test connect the Evaporator Fan to 120v AC to see if it runs ..

click on picture

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Posted: Tue Oct 12th, 2010 11:45 pm

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the.anti.fridge
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When I tested the resistance of the motor, it read 0 (infinite), so from what I gather this means that the motor is dead. (It should be a small resistance.)

So, happily, thinking I'd found the problem, I got a new motor. (The one in the previous picture.) And plugged it in. Nothing happened. I re-ran the service test to toggle the evaporator motor on. Nothing.

One anomaly, which I think has nothing to do with it, but I want to include it here in case it does or for anyone else. The old motor was a white, plastic-encased jobber. The new one (and the one above) does not have a plastic housing. The gentleman at the local shop said that they must have "went back" to using the standard motor. He said he's seen several of these plastic-encased versions replaced.

So the new motor has a third connector, which seems to me to be a safety ground. The previous one had only two. I'm assuming that the third connector isn't necessary to function if it is a safety ground. (That doesn't mean I know what to do with it. Should I ground it to the chasis somehow?)

Since there is no VAC going to the motor, there must be something further upstream, which to my grasshopper eyes seems scanning the schematic to be the pc board. (yikes.)

Ideas?

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Posted: Wed Oct 13th, 2010 12:26 am

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appl.tech.29501
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Yes, most likely a board issue...cant view your model at the moment, but dont go replacing boards until you verify no voltage to the fan.

There should have been a long ground wire included in the box with the evaporator fan...if not you will want to connect to another ground for the fan motor.

The parts guy was right. They went back to the old reliable metal fans because the plastic ones failed tooooo much...they were trying too hard to save a buck when they designed it.

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Posted: Wed Oct 13th, 2010 12:35 am

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RegUS_PatOff
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the.anti.fridge wrote: When I tested the resistance of the motor, it read 0 (infinite), so from what I gather this means that the motor is dead. (It should be a small resistance.)

The old motor was a white, plastic-encased jobber. The new one (and the one above) does not have a plastic housing.

0 ohms is a short, not "infinite"

Infinity is "infinite, but depends on which OHM meter scale you're using ...

If the "old motor" did have 0 OHMS (short),
(again, depends on an alog/digital meter and which scale)
then it would have ruined the MotherBoard.

The "old motor" was a "energy saver", but they don't live very long.

The replacement Motors are "real" Motors.

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Posted: Wed Oct 13th, 2010 01:43 am

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the.anti.fridge
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The old motor was shorted (0 Ohms).

So, then, what I need is the control board.

This one, from what I can tell, right? controlboard

Can you explain how a shorted motor ruins a controlboard?

Thank you for all your help!

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Posted: Wed Oct 13th, 2010 02:01 am

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appl.tech.29501
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By your diagram it appears that your evaporator fan will only run if the freezer door switch is actuated...did you have the switch pressed in during your testing?

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Posted: Wed Oct 13th, 2010 02:23 am

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the.anti.fridge
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Nice catch. Thank you. But no dice.

I re-ran the tests, both the self test and measuring the voltage at the motor with the freezer door switch depressed, and the motor still does not run.

I also found a connector for the safety ground from the motor to the chassis.

I pulled the control board out and it smells like it was overheated, reminiscent of the odors we first experienced. There is a small resister with some brown on it that looks like it might be a bit "distressed."

Is your verdict to replace the control board? Or any other possibilities?

Thank you so much!

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Posted: Wed Oct 13th, 2010 02:40 am

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appl.tech.29501
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Check voltage at the board...blk/red to red. If voltage is still "0" with freezer door switch shut then yes you need a new Jazz board. These boards are known problems...

Control Board Link

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Posted: Thu Oct 28th, 2010 04:59 am

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the.anti.fridge
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Bingo. It was the control board. Voltage at 0.

For the record, the control board was a bit of a bother to replace because the plastic covers require a bit of twisting and squeezing to get the plastic hooks to release. (Why can't we use screws anymore?)

Put it all back together and its been running fine since.

And the cleanest it's been in years!

Thank you!

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Posted: Thu Oct 28th, 2010 05:05 am

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the.anti.fridge
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One last thing: I tried to make a donation at appl.tech.29501 page but got an "internal server error." I can't seem to be able to send a private message or email using the menu, either. I'm using firefox, if it matters.

Thanks also to RegUS_PatOff and I'd leave a tip in your jar if you'd have one out.

Instead, I'll donate to the united beer fund and hopefully some of the liquid refreshment will come both of your way.

All my best.

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