A Bedok customer paid for routine servicing on a Friday. The unit worked fine for two days, then stopped cooling on Sunday. When they called the contractor back, they were told 'sometimes these things happen' and were advised a major replacement. The customer wanted a second opinion. If this happens right after service, ask for a WhatsApp assessment before approving major scope.
When servicing causes immediate failure, it's rarely coincidence. We started by checking what the previous contractor did during the service, then traced the cooling circuit systematically.
We found it:
During servicing, technicians sometimes close service valves to check refrigerant pressure or isolate the indoor unit. The valve should be fully reopened after. In this case, it was left partially closed - enough for the system to run, but not enough for proper refrigerant circulation. The compressor was fine. The cooling circuit was just blocked by a valve that was 2 turns short of fully open.
2 days
TIME SINCE SERVICE
Unit worked fine before
Major replacement suggested
INITIAL RECOMMENDATION
Compressor replacement
Open valve
ACTUAL FIX
No parts needed
6 months
RUNNING SINCE FIX
Zero issues
Fully reopen the valve, then verify if cooling returns. If cooling normalizes, no parts are needed. If not, continue diagnosis from there. Start with the simplest testable cause first.
Band-aid approach
Approach
Replace compressor
Timeline
3-5 days + parts lead time
Cost
High-cost repair path
Permanent fix
Approach
Check service valve position
Timeline
Fixed in 10 minutes
Cost
Low-cost corrective step after verification
We opened the valve fully. Within 5 minutes, the unit was blowing cold air. Temperature drop measured normal (10-12 C difference). Customer only needed the assessment and correction, not a major replacement. Unit has been running fine for 6 months since.
Friday
Routine servicing by previous contractor
Sunday
Unit stopped cooling completely
Monday
Customer called contractor - major replacement was suggested
Tuesday
Customer contacted Snowflake for second opinion
Tuesday (2 hours later)
Snowflake assessment: Found valve partially closed, opened fully, cooling restored
Present
6 months running cold, zero issues
When a working unit fails immediately after servicing, the service steps should be checked first. Jumping straight to compressor replacement skips basic verification. A quick valve check would likely have identified the issue early and avoided unnecessary work.
We look at the timeline. If something stops working right after service, we check what changed during that service first. We don't assume catastrophic failure when simple explanations haven't been ruled out. Assessment means asking 'what changed?' before assuming 'what broke?'. If you are unsure, send the service timeline on WhatsApp and we will advise one bounded next step.
Tell us what's happening. We'll assess your unit and give you one clear recommendation.
Get an Assessment