Reset the breaker once, and if it trips again when the refrigerator starts, stop resetting it and keep the doors closed. LG's guidance is direct: if the breaker trips only when you plug in or turn on the refrigerator, stop using the refrigerator (LG). Your food has about four hours in a closed fridge, so use that time to work out where the fault is.
Do this first
- Find what tripped. Check the main panel for a breaker in the middle position, and check GFCI outlets nearby. Garage, kitchen counter and outdoor outlets often have GFCI protection, and a single GFCI can protect outlets further down the line. Whirlpool's guidance is to reset the circuit breaker or GFCI (Whirlpool).
- Reset it once. Push the breaker fully to off, then back on.
- Watch what happens when the compressor starts. If it trips right away or within a few minutes, unplug the refrigerator and leave it unplugged.
- Keep the doors closed. A closed fridge keeps food safely cold for about 4 hours, and a full freezer about 48 (FoodSafety.gov).
In the next few hours
- Take the fridge off power strips and extension cords. LG notes that household power strips have limited capacity and recommends plugging the refrigerator directly into a dedicated wall outlet. Whirlpool says not to use an extension cord.
- Test the outlet without the fridge. With the refrigerator unplugged, reset the breaker and plug a lamp or hair dryer into the same outlet. If the breaker trips with nothing heavy connected, or the outlet is dead, the problem is in the wiring. LG and Whirlpool both point to an electrician at that stage.
- Look at what else shares the circuit. A microwave, toaster oven or space heater on the same circuit can push it over its limit when the compressor starts. Whirlpool recommends a separate circuit serving only the refrigerator.
- Check the cord and plug for heat marks, cracks or a loose fit in the outlet.
- Move food if repair won't happen today. Coolers with ice work for the fridge. Freezer food is fine for a day or two if that door stays shut.
Before the technician arrives
Write down:
- The model and serial number. Most refrigerators carry them on a label on the fresh-food side, so check the side walls, the ceiling and around the crispers.
- Breaker or GFCI, which one tripped, and how fast after the fridge started.
- Whether the outlet works with a small appliance and the fridge unplugged.
- What else is on the circuit, and whether anything new was added recently.
- Recent events: a storm, power flicker, water near the back of the fridge, or a move.
What not to do:
- Don't keep resetting a breaker that trips every time the fridge starts. Repeated resets stress the circuit and the fridge's electrical parts.
- Don't run the fridge from an extension cord to another room's outlet. Whirlpool and LG both advise plugging it directly into a wall outlet.
- Don't touch the plug, outlet or breaker with wet hands. LG makes the same point.
- Don't remove the back panel. The compressor's start components and wiring are a job for a technician.
How to keep it from happening again
- Give the refrigerator its own circuit when possible, and an outlet that can't be turned off by a wall switch.
- Keep the area behind the fridge dry. Water from a supply line or drain pan near the plug can trip a GFCI.
- Clean the condenser coils so the compressor isn't working harder than it needs to, especially through a DFW summer.
- Test garage GFCIs monthly with the test and reset buttons, so you know they work and you know where they are.
- Use a plug-in temperature alarm on a garage fridge or freezer so a trip doesn't go unnoticed for days.
If the plug or outlet shows scorch marks, see what to do when the outlet behind an appliance is scorched. For a refrigerator that trips a healthy circuit, our refrigerator service page covers diagnosis.
Sources
- LG: If your refrigerator has no power or the circuit breaker trips
- Whirlpool: Tripping breaker, refrigerator
- FoodSafety.gov: Food Safety During Power Outage
Keep in mind: If the outlet trips even with the fridge unplugged, call an electrician; if it only trips with the fridge, call an appliance technician.
Call ProFix Dallas at (469) 886-1122 to have the refrigerator's electrical parts tested.