Pro tip: Check the door seal on every freezer call, even if it's not the complaint

I was at a customer's house in Oak Park last Tuesday fixing a freezer that wouldn't stay cold. After messing with the compressor and thermostat for an hour, I noticed the door seal had a tiny crack letting warm air in. Swapped it out and the unit cooled down in 20 minutes. Now I check the seal first on every freezer job, even if they say it's fine. Saved me from swapping a $200 compressor that wasn't even bad. Anyone else have a simple fix that kept catching you off guard?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_rowan12d ago

Wait, are you telling me I've been replacing perfectly good compressors for years when all I needed was a new piece of rubber? That's a bit painful to think about, honestly. I mean, it's kind of like getting a flat tire and replacing the whole engine before noticing a nail in the tread, right? Now I'm probably going to be that guy who walks in and immediately starts staring at the door seal like it's a suspect in a crime scene. Your wallet must be a lot happier with you than mine is with me, that's for sure.

reese_hayes7112d agoMost Upvoted

Funny you mention that tire analogy, I read something similar on a HVAC forum just last week. Some guy said he'd been swapping out whole condensers when all it took was a cheap cap for the start relay. Had me laughing but also thinking about all the money down the drain. Makes you wonder how many shops are just throwing parts at problems instead of doing real diagnostics. You start looking at the little things first after stories like that, don't you?