Electrical Refrigeration Repair
PLEASE NOTE: A licensed electrician should be retained and used to wire any circuits supplying power to a commercial freezer. Severe and permanent damage will result from improper wiring of your freezer!
What are the electrical requirements for our merchandisers?
It is imperative to check the voltage and amp draw to determine proper line and fuse or circuit breaker size. This information is obtainable via the Data Plate found inside the unit.
Check power supply for low voltage. If voltage reads “230” with no load, and it drops below “207” when the compressor tries to start, it’s an indication of too little supply wire or possibly too long of a run.
It is also imperative that a separate circuit is run for each cabinet to prevent another appliance from blowing a fuse or loss due to low voltage from an overloaded circuit.
Can this plug utilize a 3-wire system?
No. Most manufacturers have a 4-wire system. There should be a red wire and a black wire (power legs – hot), a white wire – which is neutral, and a green wire – which is the ground. The ground will have an “L” shape to it on the plug configuration. It is important to note; when wiring the plug, the “L” shape – ground leg is the green wire, the opposite leg will be the white – neutral leg. The other two legs will be the “hots” – black and red.
What is the plug type needed for a freezer?
Most two and three-door self-contained freezers will have and come with a NEMA L14-20P twist lock plug. This is a 20 amp plug but interestingly reads 125/250 volt on it. The cabinet must be grounded.
Can I wire the neutral to the ground?
Although it is possible and the unit should still work, we do not advise you to do this! By wiring the neutral and the ground together, it eliminates the use of the run capacitor and will cause and create “hard” starts for the compressor. This will reduce the life of the compressor.