refrigerator "Start device" 216954205 doesn't have N & L terminal labels and is NOT a "plug and play" replacement in kenmore 253.52349303 !

[Colin Q Bang]

I was really annoyed to find that
1) the official OEM substitute* Start Device (AKA start relay) was not plug-compatible  -- the plastic shroud/boot/whaddayacallit plug that encloses 2 wires and plugs into the original part, does not similarly plug in to the substitute part and
2) the wires aren't even "pin compatible" -- the metal sheath ("female disconnect") on each wire can't fit on either blade on the substitute part (due to surrounding plastic clearly meant for a different whaddayacallit plug than the original) and
3) those blade contacts on the substitute part ARE NOT LABELED (the original part labels them with an "L" and "N", respectively, molded into the device's plastic box enclosure.

tl;dr :
I can deal with (1) and (2) (clip & strip the wires, attach new female disconnects or remove some plastic on the new part) if someone could help me out with which wire goes on which (unlabeled) blade connector in the substitute part, 216954205. They are fairly thick insulated wires, one red, one (light) blue. I don't know where they lead (I have a wiring diagram for just this subsystem -- these wires are shown going off the edge, so not helpful) but I'm sure a lot of y'all will know what the two wires would be that would plug into the start relay/"start device".

 BTW, so far, buying the original part doesn't seem to be an option, may be no longer made -- everything I've found by searching on that part # turns out to actually be this substitute part.)

Thanks!

[Jump Start]

You would be better off getting the Frigidaire kit. part number 5304491944. It will come with a harness that fit.. you just have to connect old wires to it, then it will plug in 

[Colin Q Bang]

Thanks, that looks like what probably repairclinic.com, appliancepros.com, and searspartsdirect.com should be offering when i search for original (discontinued) part number 241527802 ! And I probably need the capacitor too (tests infinite resistance, though seems to pass voltage test taking charge from a 9v battery!?) so it is a good price, but is there a way to know if the electrical specifications of this kit are the best match for my fridge model?

Thanks!

[Colin Q Bang]

Hmmm, I wrote "it is a good price" because it is less than OEM specified substitute capacitor + relay bought separately, but https://www.appliancepartspros.com/frigidaire-starter-kit-5304491944-ap5691827.html says "Sorry This part is not compatible. See parts for model 25352349303"

So I might as well get a generic "3 in one" device such as https://www.amazon.com/Supco-RCO810-START-Hard-Start/dp/B00A8O0E5Y for one quarter the price, right? I mean, either way I am simply getting a start relay (aka PTC thermistor), an overload protection device, and a capacitor, right? Ones whose electrical specs don't quite match the original equipment but might be good enough anyway, right?

Thanks for any input or clarification anyone can provide. What I really need is either an answer to my wiring question or to know how to know what devices actually are a good enough match for this refrigerator. Especially for the "start relay", since the capacitors tend to have a bunch of specs printed right on them but for the PTC thermistor and "overload protector" combined into a so-called start device or start relay, I don't know any of the actual technical electrical specifications.

Many people on forums seem to have a negative opinion on the "3 in one" devices and I think the reason, or the only *actual* reasoning i've seen, is simply that they are a "one size fits all" answer that might not acgtually fit all (i.e. the devices' electrical specs of which I just spoke). If that is right, using a wrong or random frigidaire "start kit" is doing exactly the same thing. Or are the "hard start" devices many pros seem to be harsh on different from so-called "3 in one" devices which pretty clearly are just what they say -- generic substitutes for the 3 devices you need anyway (ptc "relay", overload protecgtor, capacitor), put into one unit.

 

[Colin Q Bang]

On 7/9/2019 at 4:04 PM, Jump Start said:

You would be better off getting the Frigidaire kit. part number 5304491944. It will come with a harness that fit.. you just have to connect old wires to it, then it will plug in 

The advice turned out to be unintentionally funny because buying that item (almost) manages to fail to answer that question of which goes to which. It was meant to answer it, of course, but the instruction sheet supplied with the kit says to connect the wire leads on the supplied new molex connector to the fridge wires (which plugged into the relay/overload protector you are replacing) according to color. Now, never mind that counting on the color of the existing wires in your fridge might not be the best practice, no the reason it is funny is that the molex-connected wires supplied in the current version of the kit are actually in fact both white.  :roflmao: But in the instruction sheet's black and white photo of the connector plugged into the relay/overload device, you can see one of the wires is darker than the other. If one of your fridge wires is red and you connect it to that one, probably you'll be right.

According to an answer to me from appliancepartspros.com, apparently the canonical sensical  answer -- which you can verify with your fridge's wiring manual docs -- is that this terminal connects to the "overload protector" device. But since it is combined with the PTC thermistor "relay" into one unit sealed in plastic, I don't know how you could know which terminal that is.