Beer Forum

So after a day of my mini-fridge leaking water out of the side it finally dawned on me to open it up and take a look. Yeah it's not cold anymore at all. It's barely three years old and I bought it brand new so I expected a bit more life out of it than this. Nothing looks "broken" per se but is there anyway to test to see if it's actually the motor that fried out? All the wiring and cooling lines still appear to be intact and whatnot....I gotta a Pliney clone going to waste!

There are ways I believe but not sure how and you need electrical measuring equipment (Amp, Ohm meter is my guess). What happens when it is running? Do you hear anything? If you hear "clicking" like it is trying to come on but then stopping it likely is the relay/overload switch which you should be able to replace cheaply. If it is fully running but not cooling my guess is you are screwed. Send the Pliny to me for safe keeping.

My chest freezer gave up the ghost about 6 weeks ago. Since then, I've be keeping two kegs cool in the lifeless freezer by rotating one-gallon jugs of ice every day or two. It amazes me how efficient a chest freezer is.

What kind of mini-fridge did you have? I learned soon after buying my own house, that a small fridge didn't hold all the beer I needed.

You should check the defrost timer.., I had my box go out and this was the problem and a really simple fix... I'm not sure where it would be located on a mini fridge but it's usually a white component with a small knob you can turn... The knob is finely geared... Turn it slow and listen for the motor to try to come on... If it does come on, it won't stay on long.., if this happens it's most likely your defrost timer and can be replaced for around $20...
Josh

ahhhhhhh. your killing pliny, go fucking buy a new fridge asap