Hi guys, I'm hoping you might be able to give me some advice on troubleshooting a wine fridge repair.
I purchased a Lanbo 52 Bottle wine cooler used from marketplace last week. (https://www.lanboappliances.com/lanbopro-52-bottle-dual-door-wine-cooler-LP66D?route=product/product&language=en-gb)
It was $200 and the seller had taken it from a reno where he said the owners had tried to use it as an outdoor beverage fridge. He was unable to confirm what temp it could cool to because he kept it in a storage unit, but said it seemed to be working at least partially when he removed it, since the metal trim on the inside of the fridge was cool to the touch.
When I got it home, after plugging it in and waiting 24 hours, it will only cool to 5-10 degrees below ambient temperature (I.e. I keep my house at 70 degrees, and it will only cool to 61-64ish). Leaving it longer does not result in any colder temps.
After reaching out to the manufacturer, their troubleshooting steps have been:
1. Check if the display is lit. Check.
2. Does the display show a fault code? No.
3. Check if the fan inside and at the bottom of the wine cooler is normal (the bottom fan can be at the bottom of the wine cooler where the compressor is running, see if there is hot air coming out of the front outlet bar, if so it is normal; or turn the fan directly from the back of the machine to see if it is normal)
The fan at the back of the fridge is turning. Putting my hand in front of the outlet bar on the front of the fridge below the door, I feel cool air coming out (not hot like they say).
4. Check whether the compressor has started, if you find that the compressor does not start, but the compressor is hot, you need to replace the compressor protector.
I believe the compressor is working.
5. After checking the above steps, if you find that it is still not cooling, please unplug the power supply for 6 hours and then plug in to see if it is cooling, if it is not cooling is refrigerant leakage.
I've tried this to no avail.
I guess my main questions are:
To that end, if anyone has a small appliance tech recommendation in DFW (Argyle) please let me know!
I purchased a Lanbo 52 Bottle wine cooler used from marketplace last week. (https://www.lanboappliances.com/lanbopro-52-bottle-dual-door-wine-cooler-LP66D?route=product/product&language=en-gb)
It was $200 and the seller had taken it from a reno where he said the owners had tried to use it as an outdoor beverage fridge. He was unable to confirm what temp it could cool to because he kept it in a storage unit, but said it seemed to be working at least partially when he removed it, since the metal trim on the inside of the fridge was cool to the touch.
When I got it home, after plugging it in and waiting 24 hours, it will only cool to 5-10 degrees below ambient temperature (I.e. I keep my house at 70 degrees, and it will only cool to 61-64ish). Leaving it longer does not result in any colder temps.
After reaching out to the manufacturer, their troubleshooting steps have been:
1. Check if the display is lit. Check.
2. Does the display show a fault code? No.
3. Check if the fan inside and at the bottom of the wine cooler is normal (the bottom fan can be at the bottom of the wine cooler where the compressor is running, see if there is hot air coming out of the front outlet bar, if so it is normal; or turn the fan directly from the back of the machine to see if it is normal)
The fan at the back of the fridge is turning. Putting my hand in front of the outlet bar on the front of the fridge below the door, I feel cool air coming out (not hot like they say).
4. Check whether the compressor has started, if you find that the compressor does not start, but the compressor is hot, you need to replace the compressor protector.
I believe the compressor is working.
5. After checking the above steps, if you find that it is still not cooling, please unplug the power supply for 6 hours and then plug in to see if it is cooling, if it is not cooling is refrigerant leakage.
I've tried this to no avail.
I guess my main questions are:
- Is the fact that cool air is coming out of the front bar indicative of another issue? Should I be searching for something else?
- If it is a refrigerant leakage, is recharging the freon something I can do myself, or is it something that an average small appliance repair tech can do? I don't want to drop a ton of money to get this fixed (don't have a ton of money to spare with a kid on the way) but I would like to at least have a fridge that can get bottles down into the 50s. My wife is going to be pretty mad at me if I dropped $200 on something that is a glorified wine rack.
To that end, if anyone has a small appliance tech recommendation in DFW (Argyle) please let me know!
