Just figured out I was over-tightening compressor bolts on fridges for 10 years

Was working on a customer's old Whirlpool in Bakersfield last Tuesday and the compressor mount was rattling like crazy... turns out I had been cranking those bolts down way too hard, which caused micro-cracks in the base plate over time. A senior tech from across town saw my setup and pointed it out, said to just snug them with a torque of 15 ft-lbs max. Has anyone else realized they were messing up something basic for years?

2 comments

2 Comments

jana_miller3111d ago

Oh man, the compressor mount thing... reminds me of when I spent like 5 years using the wrong refrigerant recovery machine setup on older R12 units. I was hooking up the hoses backwards for who knows how long, wondering why the recovery times were so slow. Then a buddy from the supply house saw me struggling and just laughed, showed me the proper flow direction right on the machine. Felt like a total idiot but hey, at least it wasn't ruining anything permanent. It's wild how the little details we never question can screw us for a decade, right?

lilyb2711d agoMost Upvoted

@jana_miller31 your story hits close to home. I did something similar with a vacuum pump, used the wrong fitting adapter for almost a year and wondered why my pulls took forever. The little details really do sneak up on us. It's humbling how a simple fix can save so much time once you finally see it. I mean, we all have those moments where we just trust the setup and never question it. Helps to know we're not alone in that forgetfulness.