GE Eterna Fridge

[Arizona]

I am looking for help on a GE Eterna fridge (ESS25LSPABS), 5 years old. Compressor not running

[JWWebster]

Does your compressor have 2 pins or 3?

[Arizona]

The compressor has 3 pins. THe beginning of the trouble was with the start reley. The white wire looked like it had smoke on it. I went to an appliance repair store and the person suggested a 3 in 1 starter. I replaced the start relay with the 3 in 1 and it worked for a couple of weeks (2 -3) before the coils in the freezer compartment froze up. I replaced the defrost heater hoping to fix the frosting of the coils. That just didn't work out. I just replaced the defrost thermostat above the coils in the freezer compartment. The defrost heater came on after a few hours and I was starting to get happy. When I went to the fridge in the morning it was like a bad nightmare. The unit was not working at all. The night before all was good. I replaced the mainboard thinking it was the last thing I haven't done. $120 later it still isn't working. I replace the 2 pin start relay again last night, but not the single pin piece above it because the appliacne store didn't have one in stock, hoping the 3 in 1 failed. The compressor doesn't make any noise when I plug the unit into the outlet. The fan on the condensr comes on as does the fan inside the unit. If you have any suggestions other than going to appliance repair school please let me know. Is there a way to jump the starter on the compressor to check if that is the problem?

[JWWebster]

Get an old lamp cord and connect the hard start device to it. Connect it to the compressor and see if it alone makes that compressor run.

[Arizona]

Is the hard start the two pin connector? Does it matter which line I connect to which pin?

[jumptrout51]

You must have the other part of the relay that was out of stock.
That was the common terminal overload and must be there for the compressor to run.
The 3n1 has 5 wires.You stated you had one hooked up already.
The 3n1 black wire goes to the single pin at the top. The white wire to the lower left, red to lower right.
The 2 remaining black wires go to hot and neutral incoming power.

[Arizona]

I had the 3n1 hooked up and the unit was working. The unit stopped working after I replaced the defrost thermostat in the freezer compartment. The fans will cycle on but the compressor will not kick on. I checked the power supply at the  compressor when the 3n1 was connected. There was power at the compressor but the compressor will not start. Is there any chance the defrost thermostat is keeping the compressor from starting?

[jumptrout51]

If you are using a 3n1 relay and you have power to the relay and the compressor is not running you have a bad compressor.
Take a VOM set to OHMs and read the 3 compressor pins to ground( a refrigerat line will do).If you get a reading the compressor is bad. If not,
Read each pin to the other pin, C to S, C to R, S to R.
C to S and C to R should total the S to R reading.
If that happens you have other issues.
Do these steps and report back.
If I am not online someone else will give you the next step.

[Arizona]

On the three pin compressor the pins are arranged in a triangle.
   .

.      .

Which is C, R, and S? I am guessing you are looking for the reading with the wires not connected to the compressor or will it matter if the unit is not connected to a power supply when checking?

[JWWebster]

That hard start has 5 wires.
3 of them have compressor terminals on them
 two of them are bare wires and need to be connected to the power. The black wire goes to the top pin and is common. the white(start) wire goes to the left, the red wire(run) does to the right.

[Arizona]

OK it took a little longer to check everything. Here is where I am at. I hooked the 3N1 up to a cord and plugged it in direct. The compressor did not do anything. No noises or clicks. The compressor is getting power to the start and run pins from the 3N1 but is not starting the compressor. I checked the OHMs from the pins as you suggested and the lower right pin (I believe the run) is getting a reading when grounded. Based on your advice it appears the compressor went out on this unit. I am guessing a compressor is around $300 - $400 plus the cost of installation since I do not have the tools to charge the compressor. The unit is just over 5 years old and still in excellent cosmetic condition. How long can I expect a replacement compressor to last so I will know if it is worth repairing or if I should replace the unit. Who makes the most reliable unit these days?  Thank you for all of your advice and help along the way.

[JWWebster]

You might get a break from GE on that compressor a lot of them embracos made in south america had a defect. Contact GE and give em hell. They might send someone out.

[Icehouse]

Two chances of that happening. Slim and none.

[Icehouse]

If you are using a 3n1 relay and you have power to the relay and the compressor is not running you have a bad compressor.
Take a VOM set to OHMs and read the 3 compressor pins to ground( a refrigerat line will do).If you get a reading the compressor is bad. If not,
Read each pin to the other pin, C to S, C to R, S to R.
C to S and C to R should total the S to R reading.
If that happens you have other issues.
Do these steps and report back.
If I am not online someone else will give you the next step.

In case anyone is interested :
FIRST:
Single phase compressor motors have a "Start Winding" and a "Run Winding" with a "Common" connection between them. Therefore the total resistance is the sum of both windings.

SECOND:
Shorted motor windings:occur when the insulation on the windings become defective and allows a shorted condition (two wires to touch), allowing a bypass of the winding. Depending on how bad of a short it is possible for the compressor to operate, but will draw excessive amps.
There should be no reading from any terminal to the compressor motor case using an ohmmeter.

THIRD:
Grounded motor windings occur when the insulation on the winding is broken down and becomes shorted to the compressor motor case.
This can be verified with an ohmmeter by touching one lead to any terminal to the compressor motor case (it is recommended to scrape away paint).

FOURTH:
A compressor motor may have a weakened winding that will short to ground when called to run. It is therefore recommended that a "Hi-Pot" tester be used in conjunction with an ohmmeter to check for insulation failure.

[Arizona]

Thank you for the information. Did you have a chance to read from the beginning? I have power to the start and run pins 120 but the compressor does not start. I replaced the main board and the defrost thermostat inside the freezer compartment. Could a defective (new)defrost thermostat cause the unit not to start?
   I will check #2 in your post for a reading from the terminal to the compressor.