Jump to content
Click here to check out our structured, online appliance repair training courses for rookies and experienced techs.

FAQs | Repair Videos | Academy | Newsletter | Contact


Samurai Appliance Repair Man's Blog

A blog by Samurai Appliance Repair Man in General

  • entries
    862
  • comments
    1,398
  • views
    2,718,657

About this blog

Pearls of appliance repair wisdom from the Appliantology Forums

Entries in this blog

Field repairs on electronic control boards: the new PCM frontier

I used to do board level repairs on state of the art computer controlled radar systems where there was real troubleshooting involved with signal generators, digital probes, oscilloscopes, and a fully stocked bench. Yes, you had to understand how electronics circuits work and how to read electronic schematics. I did this all day long for several years in the Navy and with Delta Air Lines. And by the way, almost all the electronic failures in these units were completely invisible— you had to find

Samsung Dryer Troubleshooting and Electric Circuits Review

Many techs have trouble interpreting a schematic diagram and understanding how to use it for troubleshooting. In this webinar, held on March 29, 2019, we used a Samsung electric dryer and a GE double oven as case studies to review electric circuit principles and troubleshooting. Some of the topics we talked about: Neutral sensing in Samsung dryers: what that means, what it does, and how it affects troubleshooting Series and parallel circuits and how to identify them on a real-worl

The Future of Appliance Repair - The Internet of Things

You guys have heard me say in webinars and elsewhere that we are going through a paradigm shift in the appliance repair trade. Gone are the days of Buttcrack Bubba. Parts Changing Monkeys are already obsolete and everywhere going out of business-- and good riddance! At the same time, techs who keep learning the new technologies being incorporated into appliances are thriving and have growing businesses.  Appliance techs today have nothing substantive in common wit

What's wrong with this picture?

This is a picture from a recent service call I did. That white/translucent plastic tubing you see coming out of the floor and connecting to the gray PEX tubing on the refrigerator is a big No-No. That's a flood waiting to happen. Think about it: that plastic tubing us under household water pressure 24/7-- that's 40 to 60 psi. Combine that with with the fact that it gets hot behind a refrigerator that's pushed back against the wall, especially in summer. Heat... plastic... brittle... cracked or b

MST Radio Episode 28 - The Biz of Selling New Appliances

Special guest, Justin Duby, with Just-in Time Appliance Repair in Grantspass, OR ( @applianceman97 here at Appliantology) joins us to talk about his experience selling new appliances and offer tips and advice for anyone thinking of adding this to their appliance service business. Also, at the end of the show, we give an update on the developing Facebook data-selling debacle that's unfolding. More info on this in my previous blog post.   You can subscribe and listen to th

[Tech Tip] How to find Whirlpool tech sheets at Appliantology quicker using the PUB number

We have have a huge and growing library of technical literature here at Appliantology. If, after searching the Downloads section using the techniques shown in the how-to search video, you're not finding what you need, I have a trick for you that applies to all Whirlpool-built appliances, including those that are Kenmore-branded Whirlpool-built.  Whirlpool-built appliances include the following brands: Whirlpool Kitchenaid Jenn-Air Amana Maytag some

Using an Airflow Meter to Check Your Dryer Vent for Safety and Efficiency

In this journey into appliance repair enlightenment, Samurai Appliance Repair Man shows you how to use an airflow meter to analytically test the back pressure on a dryer vent for safety and efficiency. Looks can be deceiving, as this video shows, and even a short simple dryer vent that appears to be ideal can have airflow problems. So it's always wise to use a meter to actually measure the back pressure. Here's the air flow tester I used in the video ==> http://www.repairclinic.com/PartDeta

Appliantology March 2018 Peer Group Meeting

Fantastic Peer Group meeting last night! We had 5 presentations (including mine) and I want to thank the other presenters for doing such a fantastic job! We had almost 20 techs in attendance who stayed the full two hours. Good presentations, good discussion, good times!  Here's a listing of the presentations and presenters: Network marketing for your business, @Ed V New AHAM Guidance for Safe Servicing Appliances with Flammable Refrigerants, @KaveMan Dealing with Custo

The Facebook Zuck n' Jive

Unless you’ve been living under a washing machine all this time, you’ve undoubtedly heard the kerfuffle where Facebook was recently caught selling the personal information of over 50 million people to a marketing firm. I'm not surprised-- saw this coming a long time ago. So did Facebook Dear Leader and CEO, Mark "The Zuck" Zuckerberg. Here's an exchange between The Zuck and a friend shortly after founding Facebook: [Source: https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-03-25/dumb-f-ks-jul

Rigging and using a compressor test cord to manually operate a compressor

One of the many things that can make a refrigerator warm up is the compressor is trying but failing to start. You may occasionally hear this type of noise from the back of the refrigerator (starts about 15 seconds in): This is the sound of your compressor trying, but failing miserably, to start. Best case scenario: Bad compressor start relay. Worst case scenario: open compressor start winding or seized compressor bearing == buy a new refrigerator. Question: How do you tell which is which? Answ

MST Radio Episode 27: Online Appliance Repair Schools- the good, the bad, and the scams

In this special international episode, the Samurai is in Fiji at Samurai International Headquarters, while Mrs. Samurai is in the Team Samurai New Hampshire pavilion. Although halfway around the globe from each other, Team Samurai comes together through the miracle of the Internet to deliver you this timely and crucial information in this episode of Master Samurai Tech Radio. We compare and contrast three online training options with the Master Samurai Tech Academy.     

MST Radio Episode 25: Sears tech attacks customer

Samurai Appliance Repair Man and Mrs. Samurai suss out various angles and facets in a sensational recent news story where a Sears contractor tech attacked a customer. Lots of interesting lessons from this story for both customers and in-home service professionals.  Link to the news story: http://denver.cbslocal.com/2018/02/19/repairman-arrested-homeowner-attack/    
Samurai Appliance Repair Man

Samurai Appliance Repair Man

0

Using an Oscilloscope to Understand 120 VAC Split-phase Household Power Supplies

Can you believe there are techs out there who use an o-scope to look at the output from a sound mixer and conclude this is how Line voltage works? The output of a sound mixer is the output of a summing amplifier (Google it). It is an electronically modified signal. To look at this output and assume that Line voltage behaves this way is the height of stupidity. I call it "Idiot with an O-scope syndrome."  Household power supplies in North America use what's called a split-phase system. The t

Troubleshooting a Gas Dryer No Heat Problem

In this appliance repair extravaganza, Samurai Appliance Repair Man shows you how to think like a real technician using the schematic as your troubleshooting strategy map and track down the cause for a no heat problem in a gas dryer. Learn appliance repair online at the Master Samurai Tech Academy Get tech support at Appliantology.org  
Samurai Appliance Repair Man

Samurai Appliance Repair Man

0

Master Samurai Tech Radio Episode 23 - ASTI 2018 Wrap up and More!

In this epic episode: - Wrap up of the 2018 Annual Service Training Institute (ASTI) held in St. Petersburg, FL - Technical and business training at the ASTI - Travel tips to avoid getting sick - Fun facts to know and tell about how social media manipulates you and gives you brain damage   You can subscribe to the podcast and just listen to the audio portion here.

Master Samurai Tech Radio Episode 22: How big is the Samurai's ego?

In this special episode, we explore the question of size of the Samurai's ego. Turns out that it's so massive that we needed a whole episode devoted to it. Yes, size does matter!  Also:  - Upcoming ASTI in St. Petersburg - Tech training challenges - Three stumbling blocks to becoming a better tech - What makes Appliantology so great?  - MST Alumnus program   Subscribe to the podcast here.  

It's not too late to claim this tax deduction

2017 is quickly coming to an end, and the new year is just around the corner. This is your last chance to get in some tax deductible business expenses, and an enrollment in one of our enlightening and empowering appliance tech training courses at Master Samurai Tech is just the thing!  Most of you reading this will be in either the 15% or 25% tax bracket. Training costs for your employment or business are tax deductible. If you claim your tuition as a deduction on your 1040, this is effective
Samurai Appliance Repair Man

Samurai Appliance Repair Man

0

How to disassemble the CustomCool compartment in a GE Profile or Arctica refrigerator

The CustomCool is a gimmicky marketing name that GE came up with for what is basically a souped-up crisper drawer in the refrigerator. The drawer has been outfitted with a system of dampers, a fan, a temperature thermistor and a heater. Depending on the function selected on the CustomCool settings in the controls at the top of the refrigerator, a combination of these components can be used to theoretically chill items quickly, thaw items or hold the drawer pan at a specific temperature.

Special repair trick for fixing an LE error code in LG front-load washers (and it's NOT the hall sensor)

As most people know after a quick search of the Internet, the LE error code in LG front-load washers is usually caused by a bad hall sensor, also called a rotor position sensor or RPS. Part number: AP4440680 The hall sensor is easy to test and replace, see this post at Fixitnow.com for detailed instructions. Okay, let's say you replaced the hall sensor because you believed it was bad and you're still getting that ding-dang infernal LE error code. What's a brutha to do? First off, don't go in
×
×
  • Create New...