Grunert Mystery

After anchoring and running the refrigeration on generator power for the last 5 nights with no issues, we arrived at our marina slip in Stuart, FL. I plugged into shore power and turned the fridge breaker on and it started up instantly. Tempting fate, I turned it on and off a few times with no problems.

Perhaps Bluto is correct and the two marinas we went to had low voltage at their power pedestals. My fridge guy will checking things out but I'm not convinced he will find anything awry.

HMason, when you wrote this-
"One other fact: when it wouldn't start on shore power, I started the generator and it wouldn't start with that either."
It occurred to me your unit might have been 'out on protector' at that time.
If the shore power voltage was too low, the excess current drawn by the stalled compressor (LRC, locked rotor current) would have heated the windings to the point the internal protector (temperature interlock) would open.
Until it cools down, it wouldn't have started.
All conjecture, of course.
What size (amps) is your refrigeration circuit breaker?
<curious>

hmason said:

He checked everything. He worked for an hour with gauges, meters, the works. Diagnosis---nothing wrong with the unit. He was a real gentleman and said there would be no charge.

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I like to name names when someone does right by me.

hmason said:

After anchoring and running the refrigeration on generator power for the last 5 nights with no issues, we arrived at our marina slip in Stuart, FL. I plugged into shore power and turned the fridge breaker on and it started up instantly. Tempting fate, I turned it on and off a few times with no problems.

Perhaps Bluto is correct and the two marinas we went to had low voltage at their power pedestals. My fridge guy will checking things out but I'm not convinced he will find anything awry.

Click to expand...

The voltage would have to have been pretty low for it to not even try to come on. So I would have thought you would have seen the effects ion some of your other equipment.

I don't recall if you ever said, is it s 240v unit or a 120v unit? And I take it you don't have voltmeters to show the incoming voltage like on most of the GBs I've delt with?

So it quit entirely this morning. My refrigeration guy diagnosed a seized compressor.

Bummer.

hmason said:

So it quit entirely this morning. My refrigeration guy diagnosed a seized compressor.

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Yeah, my AC guy suggested that could be a possibility, too.

Apparently not, in our case.

Have your guy putz with those wires and connections a bit (unless he already tried that) before a larger expenditure.

-Chris