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Samsung American Fridge Freezer | RSH5 | Defrost Heater Test | How To Do...

Writer's picture: Gordon LawsonGordon Lawson

Evaporator defrost heaters can be found on all Frost Free type fridge freezers. 

The job of the defrost heater is to periodically heat up and defrost any ice trapped against the evaporator coil. 

If the defrost heater fails it will lead to excessive icing across the evaporator coil. This will result in poor air flow through the cabinet and high temperatures.

Although this may sound straight forward, it's not! Understanding an ice build up comes with years of experience. Generally, I can diagnose a component failure with a visual of any particular ice pattern however, physical testing is good practice and is still required.

**Ensure the electricity supply is isolated to the appliance**

With the lower evaporator cover removed, we have access to the defrost components of the Samsung RSH5 Fridge Evaporator. 

There are 3 main components


Evaporator Defrost Sensor


Evaporator Defrost Heater


Thermal Fuse

Identify the heater terminal by following the wires to the heater component.

Set the autoranging multimeter to OHMS for the resistance test.

At the jack plug connection for the heater, insert the meter leads.

Assuming the leads are correctly positioned, checked the meter display for the resistance reading.

On this Samsung RSH5 Defrost Heater Circuit, there should be 375 ohms of resistance approximately.

As you can see from the image, this Samsung RSH5 defrost heater is good.

It's a process of elimination. Through experience, professional engineers can move quickly to probable causes and eliminate the unlikely quicker! This will save time, inconvenience and cost for unnecessary part fitting!

If your Samsung American Fridge Freezer is noisy or has cooling issues Kingdom Appliance Care can help! As a former Authorised Agent for Samsung Electronics, we're confident we can help.

To book a Samsung Fridge Freezer Repair Call Nina in the office on 01592 303025


We can supply Samsung Fridge Freezer Spares too.


Image 1.

Samsung RSH5 Defrost Heater Test

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