Hello,
First of all thank you for producing the great instructional videos that you do. They really are a god send for amateur DIY folks like myself who have some mechanical skills but are approaching a new problem they are unfamiliar with – in my case a warm refrigerator.
I have a Sub-Zero refrigerator (model # 650/S) that won’t cool below approx. 50 degrees in the main refrigerator section, (the freezer section works fine). I’ve cleaned the condenser coils and cleaned the door seal, but the problem remains. I checked the condenser fan and it is running OK. I checked the compressors and both are warm and have a slight vibration, indicating (to me at least) that they are working. The evaporator fan in the man section of the refrigerator works OK as I see it spinning when I open the door. I removed the back panel of refrigerator to expose the evaporator coils and observed frosting only on the top left section where the tubes go into the evaporator. Everywhere else on the evaporator is free of frost and warm to the touch. Does this indicate a refrigerant leak at the join and necessitate replacement of the evaporator and unit recharge? Are there any other possible causes that I should check out before purchasing a new evaporator?
Thanks,
Eoin.
Cleaned condenser coils – OK
Checked condenser fan – OK
Cleaned door sills – OK
Checked evaporator fan – OK
Checked thermistors resistance – both have resistance of approx. 26kOhm when placed in ice water.
Observed frost build up only in top left of evaporator coils.
- Guest asked 7 years ago
- last edited 7 years ago
Hello
See the link below for the model 590 Series Sub-zero evaporator replacement, its free. The 600 series is considered A premium video based on production time and is $7.99 to view for 7-days. Hope this helps its very similar to your model. Matt Ace technician
- AV Repair Help answered 7 years ago
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Hello
You have A dual compressor system with two evaporators and one condenser that is split internally to handle both evaporators . These evaporators use half the condenser are completely independent refrigerant systems. That is why your freezer is working and the refrigerator section is not. The refrigerator evaporator should have an even layer of frost across the complete evaporator. Yours is not doing that indicating A starved refrigerant condition or low refrigerant charge. This condition can also be caused by A weak suction valve in the compressor. That would mean A compressor replacement. We find with this symptom you are have 95% of the time is A refrigerant leak needing an evaporator replacement and 5% of the time needing A compressor. The only way to diagnose this symptom is with refrigerant gauges. This is a R134a refrigerant system. If you put on gauges and the unit is in A restriction, that tells you the compressor is pumping and you have A low refrigerant charge. If you put on the gauges and have A high suction pressure of 25-30 lbs. suction, that tells you the discharge valve seal is leaking causing high suction pressure that cannot get the evaporator down to the proper cooling refrigerating temperatures. That would mean A compressor replacement. These are hermetically sealed compressors and need to be replaced , they cannot be rebuilt. Matt Ace technician
- AV Repair Help answered 7 years ago
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Hello. Thank you for this response. I’m trying to view the video link you attached (“Evaporator video 600 Series”), but I’m being prompted to pay an additional $7.99 to view it. I’ve already paid $20 to ask my question, so do I need to pay another $7.99 to view the complete answer with video?
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