Ironman Fridge freezing fixed $10 – Second hand Ironman YDC31. 30 ltr.

My fridge was continually running and freezing all my food. Blog and forum searches mostly blame the thermostat (thermistor ). A thermostat is cheaper than a new fridge and worth a try. I could not find an original part or supplier in Australia that wanted to respond or supply. So I took a shot at this $10 thermister on ebay (see below link: 2kohm - 50kohm rated) and it fixed my fridge!

DISASSEMBLY Look for disassembly you-tubes for help if you are not confident - on dismantling the compressor compartment. You Do Not have to rip or break any of the casing to replace the thermostat.

(MAKE SURE THE POWER IS NOT CONNECTED FIRST)

DETAIL: Tested the old thermostat: After taking a dozen screws out and detaching the circuit board from the compressor cage (easy), I removed the old thermostat easily from the fridge control board j2 connector and pulled the thermostat out of the slot where it runs into the casing of the fridge ( no power connected please!!) and put my meter on the terminals of the thermostat wire. At 25 degrees my meter showed about 1.8 k ohm resistance (resistance should increase with cooling). I put the thermistor in a cup of ice and the resistance only went to 2k ohm. Thats bad, Not enough résistance . This means the control board is always going to think your fridge is warm. In fact my compressor only stopped when i turned the required temp up to 38 degrees which means that whilst the thermistor is registering only 2k ohm when running the fridge thinks it is still 38 inside the fridge so it keeps cooling = freezing. It also had a split in it….So…

REPLACE THERMISTER Out if interest i put my meter on the new thermister terminals and it measured 1.74k ohm at 25 degrees….and in the ice cup the resistance rose to about 6.32 kohm. Great! I cut off the old thermistor head and solder joined the new one to the original cable (if you are lucky you might find a thermistor with a compatible j2 connector) as it has a J2 connector that attaches to the small control board.

DID It WORK? Yes.

I put a wireless temp gauge (bought on ebay for $25) in the fridge centre and set the fridge to 5 degrees. After a short run The fridge display displayed 5 degrees and the remote temp gauge I put in there also displaying at 5 degrees (plus or minus 0.5 - 1 degree). I will continue to use this temp gauge when touring so i can keep an eye on the temp from the car and my tent.

Search for ‘LCD Wireless Digital Thermometer Freezer Indoor Outdoor 2 Sensor Audible Alarm’

Fixed for $10 and my time! Go for it!

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/263820044453?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=705-154756200170&ssspo=Y2JERq1OQ3a&sssrc=2349624&ssuid=jOBV7eKKSJO&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

Or

Search ebay for: ‘ Universal refrigerator freezer fridge temperature sensor probe 2K round head AU’

PS. PICS- the black wire thermistor is the old one. The white wire thermistor is the new one.