Reefer troubleshooting

A reefer container is primarily a mobile warehouse where temperature-sensitive cargo is stored, requiring the maintenance of a specific temperature regime.

Therefore, in order to protect yourself from unnecessary financial losses associated with cargo damage or emergency transfer to another cold storage, it is advisable to service the container on a regular basis. Only regular diagnostics can minimize breakdowns and equipment failures. Yet every mechanism has its limits of durability, and it is important during diagnostics to identify and replace worn parts or components to prevent the entire system from failing.

Diagnostics of reefer containers and scheduled maintenance — stages of work:

The first stage — visual inspection:

The mechanic inspects the container body for deformation and damage. The appearance of the refrigeration unit itself is also checked, including the appearance of the compressor, filter, pipelines, traces of oil, the appearance of the condenser, and the degree of its contamination. After this, the container’s wiring is checked, as well as the condition of the contacts, the operation of starters, insulation resistance of motors, and heaters (if any).

After all inspection steps are completed, the container can be started:

At this stage, the refrigerant level in the system is checked, as well as its pressure, the oil level in the compressor, the condition of the filter-drier, and the presence of any extraneous noise.

Reefer containers are equipped with modern electronics capable of performing self-diagnostics and reporting detected malfunctions. If the compressor is considered the heart of the system, then the controller is its brain.

Each year, manufacturers continue to improve the technology, striving to make system operation as perfect as possible while reducing the risks of failures and errors during operation. The controller is capable of performing a pre-trip inspection (PTI, or Pre Trip Inspection), testing all components and assemblies.

As a rule, the PTI test on major container types is almost identical. It can be either short or long (full).

The controller tests heaters, the condenser fan motor, evaporator fan motors, sensors, compressor, solenoid valves, pressure relays, and other components and assemblies.

During a full inspection, a performance test is added to the above checks. Within a specific period, the system operating in cooling mode must reach a temperature of 0°C. Once this test is successfully completed, the system should maintain this temperature.

After that, the defrosting process begins

This allows checking the operation of the heaters and the defrost termination sensor. At the end of the defrost cycle, the controller switches the system to freezing mode, and similar to the cooling test, the system must reach -18°C within a certain time and maintain the temperature.

It is important to note that if a malfunction occurs or an error is detected during the test, the process stops and the controller displays an error message.

It is also important to remember that despite all technological improvements and automation of the reefer container’s operation and diagnostics, servicing and repairs should only be entrusted to qualified specialists trained at manufacturer-certified service centers.