Refrigerator on GFCI is tripping other AFCI breakers in the house

Because it happens when you open the door, it is more than likely caused by the light.

There seems to be a known issue affecting your Whirlpool WRF736SDAM11 refrigerator.

Under limited, varying circumstances, the LED Driver Board may produce signal noise which can produce a false trip of an AFCI breaker.

Correction: After verifying the refrigerator is supplied by an AFCI breaker, order Service Kit #W10810444 and install in accordance with instructions supplied with kit. Note: AFCI breakers are different than GFCI breakers. GFCI breakers are not affected. AFCI breakers are typically labeled “Arc Fault” (Figure 1) or “AFCI” (Figure 2) on the breaker face and have a test button.

Service Pointer - W10806461 (Tripping of AFCI Breakers) (pdf)

As for the whereabouts of the mentioned Service Kit #W10810444 - I've not been able to find an image for what it actually is. It is described as CORD-POWER but it will need to be something more to actually solve your problem. (some ebay results are just a simple wire cord - don't buy that). here's a link to one for sale and another

Alternatively, you might be able to fix it by unplugging the LED in the fridge. This might not work - especially if the LED driver isn't actually on the same chip - but if it fixes your issue, you can be sure that your issue is related to the LED driver. If you are in a bind, you could just put a battery powered motion sensing light in the fridge to replace the built in one - not elegant but doable.

Noise from electronics tripping AFCI breakers is rather common. I visited the Square D (Schneider) facility ~6 years ago. They had a room full of household electrical loads (ceiling fans, sump pumps, TVs) to test their breakers with. They said they once went to a guy's house and bought the $5,000 TV from him that was tripping his breaker so they could fix the issue and test improvements to the breaker design.

That is to say one option is to replace the AFCI circuit breaker - they likely have a new and improved revision that won't be affected by the LED driver in your fridge. If you want, contact the manufacture of the breaker and inquire whether they can offer you a replacement, discount coupon or other resolution.

Use a Different AFCI

You can't use a different AFCI in the breaker panel. But you can use a dead front AFCI instead of the breaker. Get a different brand from the manufacturer of your "problem" breaker.

Then replace the breaker with an ordinary, not AFCI or GFCI, breaker. Put a simple box right next to the main panel and install the dead front AFCI in that box, with the line connection going to your replacement breaker and the load connection going to the original circuit.

For those wondering "why not simply use an AFCI near the refrigerator or some other convenient place":

• The AFCI, in this particular case, is not on the refrigerator circuit but on a different circuit. That circuit could go anywhere in the house, not necessarily near the refrigerator.
• AFCIs, in general, are to protect against wiring problems. That includes faulty backstabs, nails through wires, etc. Because of that, they normally need to be installed either in the breaker panel or very close to it. That is quite different from GFCIs which are about a life-safety issue where any place up to point-of-use will do just fine.

Not a cheap or trivial solution, but it may fix the problem. If your electrician is willing to do so, he could even wire this up as a test before installing the box.