Our Picks

We're going to take a dive into what exactly is going on electrically with the high-voltage circuit in a microwave. We'll use this specific schematic as an example, but these principles apply generally.

How are we as techs supposed to understand the specifications we see on a split-phase motor's label? What's the difference between a motor's output power and its input power, and which of those specs is given on the label? What do acronyms like FLA and LRA mean? All that and more covered in this short video on motor specifications.

While all appliances use the same fundamental technology, their manufacturers often talk about them using different terms. Let's talk about DC power supplies and how not to get tripped up by the different terminology used there.

Loading down is a failure scenario unique to DC power supplies, and if you don't know what to look for, it can leave you scratching your head and eating some expensive parts. How do you identify that you have a potential loading down scenario, and what steps can you take to verify that? That's exactly what we cover in this Master Samurai Tech Workshop.

Triage tools for appliance repair service calls are all the rage today. Whether based on a frequent parts replacement database or more sophisticated database queries and constructs using AI, there's lots of talk about these products. Team Samurai weighs in on this topic to discuss the proper and improper use of these tools.

What do you do when even the service manual can't be trusted?

In this video, we discuss how to deal with bad or missing information in all kinds of tech docs -- service manuals, tech sheets, schematics, you name it.

Got a short and sweet one for you today. Here's the scenario:

In this video, we give a comprehensive answer to this question: "Why is it that high ambient temps cause high side and low side pressures to rise?"

Here's the weird scenario: several different loads aren't working on this Whirlpool-built Thermador refrigerator. The water and ice dispensers, the dispenser light, and the freezer light are all inop. Wow, four different loads all happened to fail at the same time! Crazy, right?

By now, most of us are used to variable speed drive motor systems in appliances. The control board sends a PWM signal to an inverter, which tells the inverter how fast to run the BLDC motor.

While this is the type of inverter that's been used in appliances for years now, it's not the only kind of inverter out there. In fact, another type of inverter is starting to crop up in the appliance world, and it may very well become the norm for some applications. It's called a drop-in inverter, and we're going to look at what sets it apart from the PWM-controlled inverters we're used to.

Let's practice our Circuit Fu™ combat skills on this seemingly straightforward GE top load washer lid lock circuit.

If you read my previous post about sealed system basics, you know that understanding the thermodynamic states of refrigerants (saturated, subcooled, and superheated) is essential to sealed system troubleshooting. In that post, I explained these states in terms of a simple pressure-temperature table. While that keeps things simple, it doesn't really give you a strong visual and mental model for how the refrigeration cycle works thermodynamically.

The very first step in troubleshooting a broken appliance happens long before the tech sets foot in the customer's home. In fact, it can happen even before the tech knows about the service call. We're talking about formulating a problem statement.

Let's look at a seemingly simple load that has more going on than you would think: a multi-speed hood fan in a microwave. The questions we want to answer are: how many speeds does this fan have and how does it achieve those speeds?

Sealed system thermodynamics is a deep well, but fortunately, you only need to skim the surface to gain a functional understanding. And as techs, it's this functional understanding that we need to acquire in order to effectively troubleshoot.

To do that, we're going to cover the three central concepts to understanding a sealed system: saturation, subcooling, and superheat.

Gas burners are a whole little microcosm within appliances with some interesting technology that we don't see much elsewhere. In this webinar recording, we cover how to troubleshoot various cooktop ignition systems, covering topics such as:
- DSI systems
- Single-point ignition
- Reignition systems
- Continual sparking after a flame is established
- Applying the Ten-Step Tango to real-world problems
...and more!

In this two-part Master Samurai Tech webinar series, we explore the nuances of sealed system diagnostics. Specifically, we're covering the nitty-gritty of applying our understanding of sealed system thermodynamics to real-world sealed system failures, such as refrigerant leaks, overcharges, and inefficient compressors.

Come on a journey with me as we explore just how tangled your circuit analyses can get when you're confronted with conflicting information in a tech sheet.

Imagine you're in this situation: you're trying to do some ohms testing on heater of an LG electric dryer. You're reading 21 ohms across a single coil, and 42 ohms through both coils. But when you look at the spec on the schematic, you're seeing almost exactly half that. What's going on?

Unlike when we first started Appliantology, the Internet is now full of appliance repair support resources. From Facebook groups to subreddits to Voxer and Telegram groups, you've got your pick of the litter when it comes to what flavor you'd like. Are there advantages to using a private forum-based site like Appliantology over the social media plantations? You betcha: Privacy and Functionality

Problem: I'm on a gas dryer service call-- no heat complaint.

Solution: Using only my jumper wire at the main board, I proved a problem with the Neutral sense line from the motor and made the burner fire up. 

Question: At what two points did I place my jumper wire to troubleshoot this problem? 


 

If you understand just three things, I guarantee you can successfully troubleshoot ANY appliance electrical problem...

Whenever you're dealing with a warm refrigerator problem, your first question to answer is, "Am I dealing with a failed sealed system or a control problem?" In other words, you need to half-split the problem between the sealed system and the controls (air movement, defrost system, temperature control, compressor start device, etc.). I'm going to talk about three ways to half-split warm refrigerator problems to either rule in or rule out the sealed system and the controls. 

What would happen if you took a 240 VAC outlet and swapped the terminals around? What effects might that have on the machine that's plugged into it?

If you're getting into appliance repair, or even just looking to downsize an overstuffed tool bag, you might be wondering: what are the absolute essentials that you should bring with you on any service call? Well, having my fair share of experience in the field, I'll put forward Team Samurai's list of must-have appliance repair tools.