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I have a 12 year old (circa 2009) Samsung refrigerator, model RFG237AARS, compressor BK190C-L2C. Recently, out of the blue, it stopped cooling and fridge/freezer were close to room temp. I unplugged, took off the grill in the back, cleaned the condenser coils. Next day I plugged it back in, and after a few minutes the fan was spinning and everything. However, the fridge showed temps:

  • 10m after plugging in: 40 freezer, 65 fridge
  • after 30m: 39 freezer, 62 fridge
  • after 1 hour: 39 freezer, 61 fridge
  • after 2 hour: 39 freezer, 61 fridge (i gave up here thinking it wouldn't cool more, but then...)
  • after 5 hour: 4 freezer, 44 fridge
  • after 5:20 hour: 4 freezer, 50 fridge
  • after 5:30 hour: 4 freezer, 54 fridge ... started heating back up. ... update
  • Started cooling back down at some point, and stayed cool overnight.

So clearly it CAN cool when it wants to. What could be wrong?

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  • Could be lots of things. When it stops working correctly, does the compressor run continuously (meaning it knows it should be cooler but just isn't getting there), intermittently (indicating it thinks it is OK - possibly thermostat/sensor problem) or not at all (meaning: got cold, then stopped working)? Model #?
    – manassehkatz-Moving 2 Codidact
    Commented Oct 3, 2021 at 21:42
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    I will take a guess and say you probably have a bad compressor. Since I could not see the condenser coils or the fan I assume the fan was not operating for whatever reason and the coils were full of crud causing the refrigeration system to operate out of specification. IE. The head pressure (high side (hot one) was over temperature causing the compressor to put out excessive pressure eventually causing it to fail. I hope I am wrong but without more information it is just a best guess.
    – Gil
    Commented Oct 3, 2021 at 21:45
  • I would look up your specific make and model to see if there's some history of this happening with your specific unit. This can lead you to possible causes and repair parts. I use repairclinic.com and ereplacementparts.com. good luck!
    – DAS
    Commented Oct 3, 2021 at 23:00
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    @manassehkatz-Moving2Codidact I just added the model (RFG237AARS) to the question. I think the compressor is NOT running continuously.
    – Scott Stafford
    Commented Oct 4, 2021 at 12:46

3 Answers 3

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This is a common sign in a Samsung refrigerator that the inverter board is bad. There is a smaller possibility that the compressor is bad, but typically the inverter board can detect that, and that will display an error on the front panel (if you model can do that).

Most of these modern Samsung fridges have a sticker on the back or under a panel on the back that describes how to run a diagnostic or display any stored error codes. Note that if you unplug the fridge, stored error codes are lost, so try to pull the fridge out without unplugging it.

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  • Thanks! The fridge is model RFG237AARS. I don't see any errors on the front panel. What does an inverter board do?
    – Scott Stafford
    Commented Oct 4, 2021 at 12:43
  • The inverter board is what powers the compressor. See my edit about error codes.
    – longneck
    Commented Oct 4, 2021 at 13:08
  • I tried that before. It flashed up 88 88 yesterday, but today it just blinked a few times and went back to normal. So maybe it was unhappy yesterday but ok today? It has been working fine today so far.
    – Scott Stafford
    Commented Oct 4, 2021 at 13:43
  • What does the label say 88 88 means?
    – longneck
    Commented Oct 4, 2021 at 13:55
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    @longneck though samsung seems to be the exception - samsung.com/us/support/troubleshooting/TSG01003409 has 88 88 as "Communication Fault This error can occur if power is disrupted during bootup."
    – Pete Kirkham
    Commented Oct 19, 2023 at 20:53
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It's possible it went into a defrost cycle when you plugged it back in. If the problem persists, you might want to check the door seals, and if that's not the problem, have the charge checked out by an refrigeration professional.

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I fixed mine 10/2023. I want to help someone else with my story, my fridge stopped cooling over night. I have SamsungRFG237AARS with PCB DA4100614F. I had 1 flash on the light stating "Failure Start." I tried an ebay main board swap, PCB DA41-00404D since mine was discontinued, tested continuity on the compressor and it was good, none of these worked. I saw a Samsung control board repair kit on ebay DA-41-00411-Kit that said it was for my board and some others. No idea what was in it but it was replacements for smaller capacitors on the PCB. This does require soldering but it worked! After swapping these the compressor kicked right on. $25 fix!

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    A bit of an edit for formatting would make it much easier to find the useful info here.
    – FreeMan
    Commented Oct 19, 2023 at 11:56

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