Hundreds of thousands of people come to visit Vancouver each year for its green forests, blue and vast Pacific Ocean and most importantly beautiful summer weather and mild winters with little to no snow.

Unfortunately this winter in Vancouver beats all previous records when it comes to negative temperatures. With unusual weather come unusual appliance problems.

The following are couple of examples that we ran into in the last couple of weeks related to cold weather.

Garage fridges 

A customer called in complaining of a garage fridge not cooling or freezing properly and products in the freezer thawing. When technician arrived to customer’s home, fridge was found in the garage with freezer temperature of -5C and fresh food section of +1.

During inspection it was determined that compressor is not running although freezer temperature is too warm. After  double checking all the components and confirming they are not faulty it was determined that ambient temperature in the garage is too low and does not allow compressor to cycle on and off properly.

The reason compressor is not cycling properly in low ambient temperatures is because some fridges rely on device called cold control to control temperature of the fridge. Cold control uses gas inside capillary tube to expand and in turn close electrical contact to complete compressor circuit. Due to low ambient temperatures cold control is unable to properly cycle therefore causing compressor to stay off long than it should. For some models of fridges, manufacturers came up with garage kits. These kits are designed to provide additional heat to cold control via low wattage heater to convince cold control to turn on compressor and maintain proper temperature inside the fridge.

Within Tricity area of Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and Port Moody as well as Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge, Tricity Appliances Quality Service have a vast experience dealing with all sorts of refrigerators and freezers when they break down and in need of service or repair.

If you are experiencing problems with your refrigerator or freezer, do not hesitate to contact us by phone 778-488-0397 or email tricityqualityservice@gmail.com or visit our web site tricityquality.com

Washers

Refrigerators are not the only appliances affected by cold weather that we have experienced lately.

Customer called in complaining that his washing machine did not fill with water and showed an error message. When our technician arrived on site, customer advised that he removed the hoses from washing machine and checked the pressure.

Hot water was working ok, cold line was frozen at first but eventually started flowing normal.

Technician reconnected water supply hoses to washing machine and ran diagnostic test. During diagnostic test washer was not able to advance past first step of diagnostic cycle. During normal operation most modern front load washers close the door first then rotate the drum to determine load amount and only then start the fill cycle.

This particular unit did not rotate the drum during diagnostic cycle indicating a problem with motor control circuit, in this case motor control board is built into main control board.

Technician returned and installed main control board and performed diagnostic cycle once again. Once control board replaced washing machine went through all the steps of the diagnostic cycle and the repair was compete.

Although original problem was a frozen water line, electronics can be extremely sensitive and due to water line frozen, water valve has drawn to much current causing adverse reaction to the board.

With a vast choice of appliance repair companies available nowadays it is extremely important to choose a company for your appliance needs carefully.

At Tricity Appliances our technicians have experience and knowledge necessary to fix any problem with your  appliance and do so efficiently and safely.

For service of your gas appliance please fill out our service request form at tricityquality.com or call 778-488-0397 

Front load washer is great addition to any household. Front load washer are slick looking and extremely efficient. Their design came a long way since being first introduced and capacity increased greatly and is comparable to top load counterparts. There is a down side however, the door seal, sometimes called door boot, can be damaged or dislodged by clothes inside the washer.

Causes and solutions

Throughout last few weeks we saw a number of front load washers with some sort of door seal damage. There are number of causes for this to happen.

1. Clothing items with sharp hardware. Many of our clothes have sharp zippers, accessories  and other design features that can cause damage to rubber of door seal especially on older washers where rubber boot is already weakened by mold and rot. The solution for this problem often overlooked. Many stores and grocers sell mesh bags of different sizes that can be used to wash clothes with zippers inside. Clothes such as jeans, jackets, hoodies should be put inside mesh bags, zipped up to avoid damage. Same goes for small items such as socks, undergarments, baby clothes to avoid clogging drain pump and avoiding costly repairs.
2. Overloading. While overloading a washing machine can cause a number of problems, one of them is that heavily loaded drum can become unbalanced and will cause the drum to jump and possibly dislodge door seal from its seating position causing damage to seal itself as well as major leak. 
3. Improper loading/unloading. It might not seem like a big deal but proper unloading of clothes from a front load washer is very important. While taking clothes out it is essential not to drag clothes along the bottom lip of the seal. Doing so will cause the lip to weaken and stretch and sometime warp causing poor seal between door seal and door glass leading to leaks.

Within Tricity area of Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and Port Moody as well as Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge, front load washers are common and quite popular and as a result we at Tricity Appliances Quality Service have a vast experience dealing with all sorts of front load washers when they break down and in need of service or repair.

If you are experiencing problems with your washer or any other appliance, do not hesitate to contact us by phone 778-488-0397 or email tricityqualityservice@gmail.com or visit our web site www.tricityquality.com

Tri City Appliances Quality Service LTD always at your side and ready to help you with any appliance repair and service.

You can give us a call @ 778-891-1359 or book online @ www.tricityquality.com

Recently we had a customer who gave us a text with the complaint that his new “washing machine is doing a breakdance”… Based only on this information, we identified the problem instantaneously – failure to remove shipping bolts before use.

It might sound simple and even funny, but this was not our first time to hear that. Unfortunately, failure to remove the shipping bolts and retainers before first use may cause severe vibration and noise and lead to permanent damage to the washer.

When you buy a new washing machine, you should know that they leave the factory with bolts installed to stabilize the inner tub during shipment. These bolts are intended to be temporary and should be removed before the machine’s first use.

In our case, it was a Samsung front load washing machine that comes with shipping bolts inserted into the back of the machine. However, if you purchased a different brand, please review your owner’s manual to learn the location and how to remove the shipping bolts, so you can safely install and use your new appliance. Failure to remove this will void the warranty, will result in excessive vibrations during the spin cycle. So please refer to the appliance manual for additional guidance.

Also, you should know that it goes both ways. If you plan to move and transport your washing machine to a different location, always ensure to insert the shipping bolts back into place before transporting it. Avoiding shipping bolts while transporting the washer machine may damage the suspension, leading to tub vibration, damaging the tub, and other major internal parts.

Uneven load is another most common cause of when a washing machine jumps and bangs on the spin. Occasional jumping around may not be anything to worry about if it isn’t banging too much. A general rocking of a washing machine on a spin cycle may also relate to an uneven floor or an un-level washing machine.

However, when shock absorbers weaken or become damaged, unbalanced loads will cause the washer to shake or move, and the machine will often make a loud banging sound during the spin cycle. If the symptom is not corrected, it can lead to damage to other internal components.

If you are unsure why your washing machine jumps on spin or you cannot correct it yourself – call the specialists!

Tri City Appliances Quality Service LTD always at your side and ready to help you with any appliance repair and service.

You can give us a call @ 778-891-1359 or book online @ www.tricityquality.com

Recently, while working in our main areas: Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows, we had a few customers who were complaining about the same issue: squeaking noise coming from their Maytag or Whirpool dryers. 

These customers called us directly for advice and/or submitted the online request form through our website @ Tri City Appliances Quality Service LTD. With our prompt response, they were able to express their concerns and get helped. After clarifying the information: make, model, and serial number, we were able to identify a possible issue and give them an approximate (free) estimate for the repair. 

Our consultation was based not only on our deep expert knowledge and experience but also on the information gathered from the manufacturer’s technical support. Before giving an estimate, we ensured that the particular unit (dryer in this case) doesn’t have any pending manufacture updates or recalls. In all cases, customers reported that the squeaking sound comes when the machine is running the cycle. Based on this information, we were suspecting few issues:

• the rollers are “sticky on the shaft” 
• or “drive pulley is broken” and not working correctly.

We scheduled the appointment for the same day conveniently for the customers, came, confirmed and fixed the issue. While providing in-house service, we followed all COVID-19 precautions putting the safety of our customers first. 

During the initial assessment, we ensured that the drum is moving well and without any noise. After testing the dryer with the light-weighted load, we could not hear any abnormal sounds, and the dryer functioned well. However, when we changed it to a heavier load, we heard the squeaking sound that the customers were complaining. This finding confirmed that the problem is the pulley. 

This issue is relatively easy to fix, especially if you have good access to the unit’s front. Note, if your unit is not older than 8-10 years, the manufacture has a universal part for both makes Whirpool and Maytag. We always recommend calling a professional technician for expert repair and the proper diagnostic. 

However, if you choose to complete this particular repair by yourself – you can do it too. Always consider your safety first before proceeding with the repair! If you work on any electrical unit, unplug it from the electricity first and only after ensuring that it is not powered – proceed with the repair or maintenance. 

Steps for the replacement of dryer pulley:

• pull out your dryer from the cabinet (you need access to the back);
• remove the main top cover: take a screwdriver and remove screws from the back, and slide-out the panel; 
• remove control and the front panel (screws at the front);
• remove bulk-head (4 screws);
• disconnect dryer belt;
• remove the drum;
• you will see the old pulley there: remove the clip-holder and the old pulley;
• with the paper towel and WD40, clean the shaft;
• install new pulley with the clip-holder (comes with the package);
• put everything back: drum, belt, bulk-head, front and control panel
• check the dryer by moving the drum clockwise with your hand and making sure that it is rotating and staying in place;
• connect to the power and turn on the dryer to make sure that the electrical parts are running and working correctly: put the load inside and make sure that the squeaking is gone;
• if everything works fine – slide back the top cover, attach the screws at the back and slide the dryer back inside the cabinet.

Consider these instructions only as a suggestion and not as a legal guide to repair. 

For the professional and ensured service call us directly at 778-488-0397, email at service@tricityquality.com or book online at our website www.tricityquality.com. 

We also give three months parts and labour warranty. Our service call is only $85, and this will go towards the repair once you proceed with the complete service. 

Our company has regular promotions and discounts, so by visiting our website, you will see it all!

If Samsung dryer has a squeaking sound, most likely, it has broken or worn out drive-pulleys. However, if it doesn’t start at all, it might has a broken belt also. Both these issues are repairable. We offer 10% OFF FROM PARTS (pulley, belt, bearing). Offer valid Oct 1-31, 2020.