The short answer
When a Black+Decker refrigerator does this, a trip on plug-in is a fault the protection device is reporting correctly, and it ends owner diagnosis immediately. Leave it unplugged. This one has no owner checks past confirming that the circuit itself is sound.
What you actually see
- A click every few minutes and no run — Click, silence, click is the overload cycling a compressor that will not start.
- The display lights but the compressor never starts — A live control with a dead load separates the panel from the machine behind it.
- It starts only when the plug is wiggled — A connection-sensitive start is the cord or the outlet, not the machine.
Causes, ranked for this refrigerator
- No power at the outlet — Leads the ranking — a compact unit is more often on an extension lead or a switched socket than a built-in appliance is, which raises this cause here specifically. Where this checks out clean, treat the next entry as the working theory rather than a possibility.
- Cord or plug damaged — Close behind — a cord crushed by the cabinet being pushed back is common on units that get moved, and the damage is at the back where nobody looks. A clean result here does not just remove one part; it removes everything that depends on it.
- Start relay failed — A step down — when it fails, everything else on the machine behaves normally, which is why the fault looks so total from the front. It is worth being sure about this one rather than half-sure, since everything after it assumes a verdict.
What to check, in order
- First — the outlet itself — Plug a lamp or a phone charger into the same outlet. Nothing there means the fault is upstream of the appliance.
- Second — the cord along its whole length — Look at the plug pins for discolouration. A browned pin is a poor connection making heat.
Checks an owner can do safely
- Step 1. Listen at the back for a click-and-pause pattern — Stand behind the unit for several minutes. Click, silence, click is the overload cycling and it is where owner checks stop.
Tools: noneAbout 15 min
- Step 2. Check how it was last moved — If the cabinet travelled on its side or back, stand it upright and leave it for several hours before plugging it in again.
Tools: noneAbout 5 min
- Step 3. Check the breaker and any protection device — Look at the panel and at any protection device on that circuit. Reset once. A device that trips again immediately is reporting a real fault.
Tools: noneAbout 10 min
Before you open anything
Safety
Power comes off first, every time: pull the plug, or switch the breaker for that outlet. A capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off. Keep the cord where you can see it so nobody plugs it back in while your hands are inside, and never operate the unit with its cover removed.
When this becomes a service call
The line is not about confidence, it is about what the next step needs. Anything that trips a breaker or an outlet protection device when the appliance is plugged in ends owner diagnosis on the spot. Leave it unplugged and have the circuit and the appliance checked.
Sources
General guidance- The Control of Hazardous Energy (Lockout/Tagout) — OSHA 1910.147 and manufacturer service manuals, fetched
- Article 210 — Branch Circuits — NFPA 70 (National Electrical Code), fetched
Nearest pages
What this page does not cover
Read this as generalized information. It is accurate across the Black+Decker refrigerator range, which is exactly why it stops short of the detail a single family or model deserves. If a family-level or model-level page exists for your unit, that page supersedes this one on wiring, part numbers and error-code meanings; the links under Related pages are where those pages live.
Related pages
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
