Window A/C Compressor Runs Constantly, Even with Power Off!


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Old 05-29-11, 08:59 AM
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Window A/C Compressor Runs Constantly, Even with Power Off!

I have a Frigidaire window air conditioner that is all digital and is only 2-3 years old.

This morning I woke up to a very cold room and when I turned the power off, the compressor continues to run! I actually have to unplug it to make the compressor stop running. When the power is off, the compressor runs, but nothing else (like the blower fan).

I have done some searching to find out what causes this and what can be done to fix it. So far I have found only two posts and it may be that the unit cannot be repaired?

Please let me know what can cause this. I will be very disappointed if it is not repairable since I just spent hundred of dollars on it 2-3 years ago. I see units from the 70's still working!

-tony17112acst
 
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Old 05-29-11, 04:28 PM
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This is the joy of digital controls!
They work well when they work but they are pretty much disposable.

If the fan doesn't work and the compressor runs continuously you would have to replace the cct board.
Some of these units use a replaceable compressor relay but the fan not running is a good sign the board is bad.
 
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Old 05-29-11, 06:45 PM
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GregH, Thanks for the reply.

I do want to verify something with you, however. Everything works fine except the compressor continues to run when the power is off. The fan DOES run perfectly fine when it should.

Is your opinion still the same about the cct board (whatever that is ...I"ll have to look it up)?

-Tony
 
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Old 05-29-11, 07:27 PM
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Ok, I misread your original post.

The cct board is the circuit board............sorry for not being clear.
It is one of two things most likely that is not allowing the compressor to shut off.
The first are the relay contacts that open the circuit to make the compressor stop.
These could be welded together and are likely part of the circuit board which would make it necessary to replace the board.
The second is that a problem with the board is causing the relay to be constantly energized, again making it necessary to replace the board.

Although not as common there are a few other things that could cause your problem which would require an electrical diagnosis.
It would be a gamble to put out money on a hunch the board is the problem and it would also be a gamble to pay for a proper diagnosis and repair.

I personally would take a quick look for an obvious electrical problem and if nothing is visible cut my losses and just replace it.
 
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Old 05-29-11, 07:31 PM
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Thanks so much Greg. I didn't look up how much a circuit board costs, but it sounds like it isn't viable. This is a larger unit (like 12,000 BTU) where the cost of the unit is more, and I wonder if the circuit board becomes less of a cost as a percentage of the cost of a new 12,000 BTU unit. I'm not happy this thing lasted only 3 years as much as they cost!
 
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Old 05-29-11, 08:07 PM
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Ya, I'm hearing you!
Like my daughter and her husband that purchased a $1200.00 refrigerator that after 18 months leaked all its refrigerant.
At one time fridges had a standard five year warranty on the sealed system and the Crosley SxS we own came with a ten year warranty.
Unfortunately hers was only one year and they were not told about an optional warranty so they wound up hauling it to the dump!

Maybe it would be worth the service charge to get a repair estimate.
 
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Old 05-30-11, 07:02 AM
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TV's are doing the same thing too. I had a tube TV for over 30 years, now my $1000 plasmas are breaking down in 2-3 years (2 of them now).

My model is a Frigidaire FAC107P1A2 and I found a computer board inexplicably cheap ($38.62) at appliancepartspro ( Replacement parts for FRIGIDAIRE FAC107P1A2 Frigidaire/air Conditioner | AppliancePartsPros.com ) .

I may be willing to gamble on purchasing the board and installing it, so the main question is: what is the probability that it is indeed the PC board that is causing the compressor to run even with the power off? ...thanks again!!
 
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Old 05-30-11, 02:10 PM
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It would be 43.025% that the internal relay on the board is fried, 21.225% that a bad control cct in the board is telling the relay to fire, 12.661% that it is an external relay that is bad if there is one or 23.088% that it is something else altogether!
 
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Old 05-30-11, 05:49 PM
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Nice!! Hehehe. I DID ask for probability. :-)

If I was willing to take this thing apart and look at the computer board, is there anything that I could just visually inspect to see if it indeed the board? Or do you typically not see see anything special if a board is bad that causes the compressor to run constantly?

I still can't tall if YOU'D replace the board if you were in my position for the $40 I'd be gambling. Do you think it's a good gamble? -Tony
 
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Old 05-30-11, 06:43 PM
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A visual inspection is the first step, even for a seasoned electronics tech.
The next would be if you had a multimeter and could use you could trace the path of the wires to the compressor to see if you could figure out which component was the compressor relay and test it.
Barring the tester it might be worth the price of a board on a gamble that was the problem.

If you were to be able to take some clear close up pics of the board and components we could take a look.
You would have to post them on a free host like Photo Bucket and provide a link.
 
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Old 05-31-11, 05:32 AM
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Well, I can't turn down that offer for you to look at it! Fate would have it that I a m an IT professional AND an avid photographer, so I'll post some outstanding pics in a few days.

Also, I just found my receipt and owner's manual. I bought it 5 years ago and the warranty is 5 years ...LOL I missed it by a few months. BUT I am calling my credit card today because they say that my warranty is doubled on all of my purchases up to one year ...so I'm hoping that means 6 years total.
 
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Old 05-31-11, 08:59 AM
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Pics would be good.
If you re-size them to no more than 600 pixels wide you can use the insert image button above the reply box.............We do not have auto-resizing here.

I forgot to mention that I had to laugh when you said you had a tube tv for 30 years.
I grew up with tube tv's and had to drive to the drugstore with a bag of them to test and replace when the tv quit!
 
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Old 06-02-11, 05:08 PM
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Hey Greg,

I took the PC board out and it looked perfect! I took 20 photos of it on macro, super macro, from this angle, from that angle; I was psyched.

Then I put it back together and the damn things works now.

About 30 times in my life, I've taken something apart and simply put it back together, doing nothing else, where it starts working again. This may be my favorite one since I now will save $280 for a new window A/C.

I wish I had more to say, but the compressor runs exactly when it's supposed to!! I must say that this was probably the easiest thing I've ever taken apart.

-Tony
 
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Old 04-01-12, 08:53 PM
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The same problem

I had the same problem last year, with an Admiral wall unit, after 4 years of sporadic use. I noticed the temp in the room kept dropping, turned it off and still heard the compressor running. I did all the mental acrobatics, trying to decide what to do. I figured I had nothing to lose so I whacked the control unit with my fist. The compressor turned off. Of course, I figured I "killed" it completely. I hit the power button and it was working, but the temp reading was 21. I didn't care because it WAS cycling on and off again. Then, I realized it had converted over to Celsius, so at least it made sense. I was grateful I could use it like a normal a/c unit. Sometime during a movie we were watching later, it mysteriously converted back to Fahrenheit. I was grateful for that, too.
Tonight, it did the same thing. It was set on 80 but it kept getting cooler. I realized it had gotten down to 69 by the room thermometer. I turned off the power and the compressor continued to run, as it had last time. I proceeded to whack it several times, but the compressor kept running. I pulled the plug and then took the filter which was due for its periodic cleaning out and cleaned it. I plugged it back in, turned it on. I don't want to jinx it, but......*gives Murphy a sharp left hook as he comes running in*.
I try to buy appliances with manual controls where possible. Sometimes, it's not possible.
 
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Old 04-02-12, 01:34 PM
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Hehe, Great story!
-Tony17112acst
 
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Old 08-14-12, 11:00 AM
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Here I am again, with the same problem I had and Tony had. Now, I will try as recommended to see if I can fix it, if I can find parts for mine at a reasonable price, as Tony did. This time whacking it did not help, not even with a hammer. LOL (I knew that fix was too easy, but it bought me over a year's more use last time.)
Thanks for your advice, guys! I really appreciate it!
Just curious if any has the time or inclination to answer. Isn't there any way to install an external thermostatically controlled power switch, maybe through the power cord?
 
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Old 08-14-12, 12:05 PM
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I have seen enough problems with digital controls on ACs I actually bought the cheapest because of not only the price but I knew for sure I could jerry-rig it if a manual control went south. Not hard to add a relay, auxiliary transformer, and a cheap LV thermostat to one with no CB. Not sure same could be said for one with a CB.
 
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Old 08-22-12, 12:55 PM
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I'm the original thread poster ...guess what? It's dong it again!

This time my wife and I woke up to 59 degrees, keeping each other from freezing.

I guess I'll take it apart again and see if anything happens. I don't think I have the images I took last year, so I will post them soon. Be back soon!

-Tony

P.S. littlbear ...did you fix your yet?
 
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Old 08-22-12, 02:22 PM
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I just pounded the left side then the right side with my fist and it's working correctly now. I'll ride it out as long as it works. -Tony
 
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Old 06-29-13, 08:22 AM
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Off and Running!

Just wanted to say, the same thing happened to my ac this morning, it kept running after I'd turned it off! Like a ghost! So I googled it, came upon this thread, and went in and smacked it left right and center. Center worked. I may take it apart if the problem recurs, as it probably will, having happened once. It makes me laugh that the DIY forum has such practical advice. Thank you, neighbors, and Al Gore for inventing the interwebs.
 
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Old 06-29-13, 08:56 AM
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I'm fairly certain, since I work on these control boards, is that the relay contacts are getting stuck closed. The contact points are welding together. The relays are not of great quality and are just barely sized for the job they are doing. When you hit the unit you are jarring the contacts open.
 
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Old 06-29-13, 02:21 PM
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The explanation does fit the fix. Can a person buy a new relay contact?
 
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Old 07-21-13, 11:55 PM
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Hello Jan,

Like a Ghost, I Googled the SAME problem and came up with this thread tonight... Lol... My A/C compressor will NOT shut off EVEN with the Power button on Off (SAME PROBLEM)... Tomorrow I plan on doing what you and Tony did by just smacking it and seeing if it fixes the problem...

When you say that you smacked it Left, Right, and Center, and then Center worked, where are you referring to exactly??... You mean as you're facing the unit's front, you smack all three sides WITHOUT taking the unit apart in any way, and it just seemed to knock whatever was stuck, BACK to it being UN-stuck (in other words, FIXED)??...

ALSO, you did this WHILE the Power button was ON (or was it on OFF?), and then when you heard that the compressor shut off after hitting it, the cycling then just worked as normal afterwards, or did you do this while the unit was Unplugged (because being unplugged is the ONLY way to shut off the compressor, as you know), and then plugged it back in, and then seen the Fix then??...

Thanks for ANY these details you can give to help me expedite my attempt at it too, and HOPEFULLY mine will be JUST as easy as a fix as yours and Tony's!

FGN
 
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Old 07-22-13, 09:21 AM
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I personally unplugged the unit, removed it from the window and punched it on the sides, the top and the bottom. the FIRST time it happened is whine I took it apart and put it back together and it just tsarted working again.

Mine is still working to this day.
 
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Old 07-22-13, 09:24 AM
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Wow, ok Tony I appreciate that information... I will do the same... glad yours is still working

FGN
 
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Old 10-01-14, 02:39 AM
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Like everyone else, my 4 year old $700.00 model LWHD1500ER LG brand AC window unit's compressor continues to run after power is shut off. The ONLY way to shut it off is to unplug the unit from A/C wall plug. It also is blowing only the coldest air possible, and the normal range is 60-86 degrees. But it will cool my bedroom down to 65 or less within 15 minutes. Normally I keep it on 80 degrees.

I have done the rapping on the unit with a 2 lb mallet, to no help. I have not taken it apart or inspected within the unit as the previous poster did.

I would consider purchasing replacement PCBs since the AC unit itself is a bit costly. However, I need some direction, since there are 3 PCBs on my unit, and IDK which one would cause the compressor problem?

And I am not sure if the temperature thermistor is the problem of no temp variability?

Thank you in advance.
Kittie (in hot Mesa AZ)
 
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Old 10-01-14, 07:24 AM
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Welcome to the forums.

Think about it..... if the compressor is not shutting off..... then you could not have any control over temperature.

Your problem is a stuck/burned relay. You need to replace the main control board.
The part number is EBR39283901.

LG EBR39283901 Pcb Assembly,main - Appliance Parts Pros
LG Electronics PCB Assembly,main | EBR39283901 | LG Electronics
Relay Board EBR39283901 Repair Clinic

In the control board picture below - I've marked the suspect relay.

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