The following information is not my personal opinion, it comes from a well respected industry professional.
I have lost count of the number of times I have seen online people advising to remove a 3-way fridge that isn't working properly, and invert it or rotate it.
The reason this myth perpetuates is that very occasionally it does work, but only occasionally, and to actually work, it must be done in a certain way, and only under certain conditions. If it is done the wrong way, it can actually finish off a fridge that otherwise might have been saved.
The first thing you have to check is this - if the fridge works OK on 220v or 12v (while driving), but not on gas, then rotating it or inverting it will not solve anything, and may finish it off completely. If the fridge works on any one of the 3 power sources then that means there is nothing wrong with the actual fridge cooling mechanism, and therefore it should not be inverted or rotated.
There are 2 reasons why a fridge may not be working on any power source. The first is that the chemicals inside the tubes may have separated, usually through old age and not being used very often. The fix for this is vibration, not inverting or rotating. The best way to vibrate a fridge is to find a cobbled road or rough track and take the fridge for a rough ride. This has been proven to work on many occasions.
The second reason is that in an old fridge, the pipes and tubes that contain the chemicals may have corroded internally and bits of corrosion have blocked the evaporation venturi. This is a small hole in the piping system through which the chemicals are forced as part of the cooling process.
And this is what gives rise to the myth - if this hole is blocked by internal debris, and the fridge is rotated the right way, then there is a chance that the debris will be dislodged. But if rotated the wrong way then even more debris may be forced into the hole, making the blockage even worse and possibly damaging the fridge beyond repair.
The only time it is advisable to rotate the fridge is when you are sure that there is a working heat source, yet the tubes at the top of the fridge do not get warm, and you have tried upright vibration. Then it is essential that the fridge is rotated in the correct direction, so that the rotation pushes any debris AWAY from the hole, rather than into it. And even then, this method has only an approximate 1 in 4 chance of success. If rotated correctly, no further damage will be done. But if rotated the wrong way, then the problem could be made worse. After rotation, before re-installation, put the fridge on 220v on max, and see if you have been lucky. If not ... it's usually time for a new fridge.
And this is what gives rise to the myth - if this hole is blocked by internal debris, and the fridge is rotated the right way, then there is a chance that the debris will be dislodged. But if rotated the wrong way then even more debris may be forced into the hole, making the blockage even worse and possibly damaging the fridge beyond repair.
The only time it is advisable to rotate the fridge is when you are sure that there is a working heat source, yet the tubes at the top of the fridge do not get warm, and you have tried upright vibration. Then it is essential that the fridge is rotated in the correct direction, so that the rotation pushes any debris AWAY from the hole, rather than into it. And even then, this method has only an approximate 1 in 4 chance of success. If rotated correctly, no further damage will be done. But if rotated the wrong way, then the problem could be made worse. After rotation, before re-installation, put the fridge on 220v on max, and see if you have been lucky. If not ... it's usually time for a new fridge.
So which way is the right way? As you look at the back of the fridge, with the chimney on the right, it is anti-clockwise. Rotate the fridge (2 person job) smoothly as you can 3 or 4 turns anti-clockwise.
It must be stressed that this is a last resort, and only has a low chance of success. But occasionally it does work, and this is what has given rise to the online meme that is increasingly being advised for just about any fridge problem.
I have also been told about another method to try and revive an old fridge. Run it on 220v AND gas at the same time, with the thermostat on full. This extra heating is often enough to remix the chemicals and get things working again. Whether you can do this easily depends on the model - some fridges have controls where you can run on both at the same time, others don't. If not, you have to manually hot wire the 220v element around the back so it runs while on gas.
The commonest problem with old 3-way fridges is "not working on gas". The usual reason for this is lack of maintenance and cleaning. The gas part of the fridge is far more prone to failure than the electric part. The electric part is just an element, similar to a kettle or immersion heater, and it either works or it doesn't. The same goes for the 12v element.
So the first thing to do with a fridge not working on gas, is to connect it to 220v and turn it up to max. The chimney and the pipes should get should get hot. If not - the 220v element is suspect, and should be checked.
The commonest problem with old 3-way fridges is "not working on gas". The usual reason for this is lack of maintenance and cleaning. The gas part of the fridge is far more prone to failure than the electric part. The electric part is just an element, similar to a kettle or immersion heater, and it either works or it doesn't. The same goes for the 12v element.
So the first thing to do with a fridge not working on gas, is to connect it to 220v and turn it up to max. The chimney and the pipes should get should get hot. If not - the 220v element is suspect, and should be checked.
Only if there is heat from the 220v element, but no cooling, should you then consider removing the fridge and vibrating or rotating it.
If the fridge works fine on 220v but not on gas, then there is no point in removing, vibrating or rotating, and the good news is that gas problems are usually easy to fix, either by the owner or a professional, and at reasonable cost.
If the fridge works fine on 220v but not on gas, then there is no point in removing, vibrating or rotating, and the good news is that gas problems are usually easy to fix, either by the owner or a professional, and at reasonable cost.
The commonest problem is dirt or dust obstructing the gas jet - there are plenty of articles and Youtubes online on how to clean the burner and jet.
Fridges don't last forever - but many last for 25 years or more, which is fantastic compared with normal household appliances. Just don't finish off an otherwise fixable fridge by believing everything you read online. Removal, inversion and rotation is a last resort, after everything else has been tried, in a logical manner.
Fridges don't last forever - but many last for 25 years or more, which is fantastic compared with normal household appliances. Just don't finish off an otherwise fixable fridge by believing everything you read online. Removal, inversion and rotation is a last resort, after everything else has been tried, in a logical manner.
Hi there. A couple years back you wrote this thing about turning fridges upside-down, and because of the magic of the Internet I just read it today. I very much liked your explanation of what's going on inside; it makes more sense than most of what everybody else has told me.
ReplyDeleteMy situation is a bit different from yours, because my Consul gas-powered absorption fridge is in my off-the-electrical-grid home, and has been for about 25 years. I'm in the midst of my THIRD (fingers crossed, successful) turning-upside-down fix, and what I'm wondering is...
Okay, I rotated it the right way (anticlockwise) to turn it over, but... Should I keep going the same way to turn it back up, or should I reverse the process?