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Is my freezer behaviour normal?

Yesterday I installed a small freezer in the garage to supplement our kitchen fridge/freezer. It's a BF200.HD bought here:

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and the PDF guide 'manual' that came with it is here:
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I also found a PDF on the specific XR04CX controller in this freezer, which I've uploaded here:

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I was lucky to get any freezer at all, but it's way more complicated (OK, versatile) than I'd have preferred. I simply want it to maintain

-18C, as our Bosch kitchen unit does, and do whatever clever defrosting it's capable of with no attention from me.

But after some 12 hours usage I'm not confident it's behaving as it should. So I'm seeking assurance on a few specific points please:

  1. It seems to be 'cycling' much more frequently than I'd expected. For much of this morning it was coming 'on' (compressor and/or fan audible) roughly every 8 mins, then 'off' again after 5 mins. During that time its display would rise from the set -18C to -14C and its green 'defrost' icon would be displayed too.

  1. From the 'Default Setting Values' table, its 'interval between defrost cycles' (id) appears to be set to 6 hours, which seems an incredibly short period! I'd have thought days or weeks, not hours?

  2. Similarly, the default defrost time (Md) appears to be 30 mins. How can that possibly be enough? Doesn't defrosting require reducing the temperature to 0C?

I'd much appreciate any comments from those with experience of similar products please.

Meanwhile I've transferred my Soft Scoop Chocolate Ice Cream tub from kitchen to garage, and will check tomorrow to see if its consistency has noticeably softened.

Terry, UK

Reply to
Terry Pinnell
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Put some 3/4 full gallon jugs of water in, one or two at a time. Thermal mass is your friend when it comes to getting stable freezer operation :-). Load it up to simulate what you think the normal contents will be, then see how stable it runs.

--
Regards, 
Carl Ijames
Reply to
Carl

As Carl says, you have to have a load in it for stability. The larger (when pulled down) the more stable.

Reply to
RheillyPhoull

Thanks both. It was about 60% loaded during those tests, but only for a few hours. Will check again very shortly.

Rheilly: What do you mean by "when pulled down"?

Any insights from anyone on my questions about those defaults please?

Terry, East Grinstead, UK

Reply to
Terry Pinnell

Ahh! sorry. Pulled down means the set temperature is reached. Cheers ....Rheilly

Reply to
RheillyPhoull

such frequent defrosts aren't normal

once a day has been common for years. Once per 6 hrs is quite workable.

increasing it to 0C, which is done with a heater of 100s of watts. It's onlt the evaporator that's heated of course, not the food cavity.

NT

Reply to
tabbypurr

Thanks, understood. The defrost and compressor icons are almost identical s o I may have been mistaken with some of my timings.

I?ve now dusted off an old add-on for my DMM I?d forgotten I had, a temperature sensor. After checking its accuracy on my Bosch fridge /freezer, that?s making methodical diagnosis a bit easier. The ? ??stable? display (I.e. all quiet after a long period of compre ssion, with no door opening) was reading -13 when actually mid shelf was at -18. I?m trying to use its (rather complex) program mode to recali brate.

For practical reasons there?s only about one inch space at the back , against a wall, and at the top under my workbench. Is that OK?

Terry

Reply to
terrypingm

so I may have been mistaken with some of my timings.

n I had, a temperature sensor. After checking its accuracy on my Bosch frid ge/freezer, that?s making methodical diagnosis a bit easier. The ?stable? display (I.e. all quiet after a long period of com pression, with no door opening) was reading -13 when actually mid shelf was at -18. I?m trying to use its (rather complex) program mode to rec alibrate.

ck, against a wall, and at the top under my workbench. Is that OK?

I doubt that. If the coils are in the back you need more room for the air to circulate around. I guess there's nothing you can do about the space ab ove other than raise your work bench. How about space on the ends? Can th e workbench be pulled out from the wall a few inches?

--

  Rick C. 

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Reply to
Rick C

I'd say you're fortunate to have a programmable controller. Once you learn to use it, and tune it to your situation, you'll be better off than the rest of us.

--
 Thanks, 
    - Win
Reply to
Winfield Hill

so I may have been mistaken with some of my timings.

that could explain it

n I had, a temperature sensor. After checking its accuracy on my Bosch frid ge/freezer, that?s making methodical diagnosis a bit easier. The ?stable? display (I.e. all quiet after a long period of com pression, with no door opening) was reading -13 when actually mid shelf was at -18. I?m trying to use its (rather complex) program mode to rec alibrate.

ck, against a wall, and at the top under my workbench. Is that OK?

not really, if that's where the hot heat exchanger is. A small fan could fi x that but you'd then need to clean back there annually. If the hot bits ar e on the sides, less common, then that's where the airflow is needed. And o f course the compressor needs airflow.

NT

Reply to
tabbypurr

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