Compressor will turn on, everything works, pumps cold air when you feel the air inside the doors, but the relay that stops the starter capacitor (spelling may not be correct) does not switch off the starter capacitor. Technician replaced old bad compressor (he said the original was bad, but now there's now way for me to know as this one is a rebuilt compressor), then this problem started. He's tried 4 different capacitors, 4 different relays, even one was a three-in-one (3W1 3 series capacitor) and it still burnt out smelling terrible. Originally thought it was the ground wire not being well grounded, fixed that, I also called another technician and he checked everything, ohms, etc., just said the compressor was bad. When you put a capacitor on it, the compressor turns on and pumps cold air, and after a very short time, it burns out, and no more cooling. This compressor was just rebuilt... any clue as to my problem? Like I said, the ohms check out, everything turns on, it even cools, but then when the capacitor burns out it starts to short cycle. The run capacitor is fine. Any clue? Thanks in advance!

I am having the exact same problem as the thread starter, but replacing the start relay did not fix it for me. I have tested my compressor by doing the ohms check, the readings are, common to run = 3, common to start = 5, and start to run = 8. Those seem to fail in between what Jeff said is good, so I am thinking my compressor windings check out ok. I bough a hard start kit, an rbo810 which was the same one that was in the refrigerator already. I wired it the same way and plugged the fridge in, I hear the fans start immediately and the lights are on in the fridge, but I do not hear the compressor turn on at all. The relay clicks and that's about all the noise I hear besides the fans. I have tested for power to the compressor and there are no volts at the terminals on the side of the compressor. I have one lead in ground and I put the other lead into the pigtail that goes to the hard start kit and I have approx. 120 volts there, but when I put my lead onto the compressor terminals I do not receive any voltage. Anyone have any ideas on what I could possibly test next?

Hi,

I had the same problem as the first poster in this thread. I did the resistance test on the compressor and it seemed to pass, if I did the test right. So from what you replied, my problem should be the relay overload. My question is, the relay isn't rattling and I have read it rattles when it goes. Is the rattle always the case? Or even if my relay doesn't rattle it could still be the problem?

my model number is: JBL2286KES

THANK YOU!! I just found this site and it is totally amazing!

One thing to note is that the compressor winding resistance test is not a definitive test. It will tell you if the compressor is bad but does not tell you that the compressor is good. It may have winding to winding shorts or mechanical problems.

Sounds like it is a meter reading problem re: you are on the wrong resistance scale.
If this is one of the auto-ranging type where you cannot select your resistance scale then I also would hate it.
K usually means kilohms *.000 so a reading of 1 is 1,000 ohms
M usually means megohms *. 000,000 so a reading of 1 is 1,000,000 ohms.
For instance my meter has the following scales.
200, 2K, 20K, 200K, 2000K and 20M ohms.
To measure the compressor coils I would use the 200 ohms.
This scale measures 0 to 200 ohms anything over 200 ohms shows as an open circuit / infinite ohms.
Lets say I try to use the 20M scale then the meter will show all windings as 0 ohms (dead short) because the meter does not have enough digits (resolution) to show the low resistances of the compressor coils.

The resistances should be just a few ohms.
Below is a good site on how to check the compressor coils.
How To Fix a Refrigerator - Appliance Repair Guide - ACME HOW TO.com

If your meter is a pain to use then perhaps just replace it.
You can get a decent digital multimeter for under $20.00. You do not need fancy though it is nice if the leads are a couple feet long.

There is a good post on meter use at the top of this forum section.
Below is my usual blurb on meter use.
A couple things to watch when measuring ohms and continuity
1. Always remove power from the machine otherwise you could blow your meter.
2. Always disconnect at least one side of any device you are checking. This eliminates the possibility of measuring an alternate/parallel circuit path.
3. When checking for closed contacts and continuity use the lowest scale (Usually 200 ohms). Then try higher scales. This scale is 0 to 200 ohms so if the device you are measuring is 300 ohms this scale would show an open circuit which it is not, you are just measuring outside the scale's dynamic range.
4. When you start always short the meter leads together. This will tell you that the meter is working and if there is any 0 offset.

There is a good STICKY at the start of this forum about it's use.

Hi Jeff, refrigerator stopped cooling completely, is getting power ok. I just replaced the c-fan thinking that was the problem but luck. I hear fan inside the fridge, every few minutes I hear a clicking noise from the side of the compressor after that the compressor turns on for 8 seconds then turns off, after while the compressor got real hot, any any suggestions on what the problem is.