Thomson Mini Fridge Compressor Seized in Palm Harbor

A service call in Palm Harbor was mainly about the client’s main household refrigerator, but while there, we were also asked to take a look at a small Thomson mini fridge that wasn’t working.

Power was there, but it wouldn’t start

The compressor was getting power and trying to start — humming and pulling about 6 amps — but it never actually kicked over and started running.

Ruling out the start device

A compressor that hums and draws current without starting often points to a bad start relay or start device rather than the compressor itself, so that was checked first. The winding resistance on the compressor tested normal, and the start device tested normal as well. To be sure, we swapped in a different, known-good test start device — and got the exact same result. That confirmed the start device wasn’t the problem.

A seized compressor, and not worth chasing

With normal winding resistance and a good start device still producing the same failure, the compressor itself is seized. This is a low-cost mini fridge, and replacing a compressor on a unit like this isn’t economical — the client will be picking up a new one instead.

If a small fridge or mini fridge’s compressor hums, draws current, and never starts even after swapping the start relay, it’s worth weighing the repair cost against a new unit before going further. See our refrigerator repair page for what else we typically check.