· Michael Blair
Refrigerator cooling problems have a wide range of causes and the symptom pattern narrows it considerably before anyone opens the machine.
Fridge warm, freezer cold
Almost always airflow. Most refrigerators cool the freezer and move air into the fridge compartment, so a blocked vent, a failed evaporator fan or a frosted-over evaporator stops that air moving.
A defrost system fault is the common underlying cause, and the ice builds gradually so the decline is slow.
Both warm
Start with the simple things — condenser coils choked with dust, a condenser fan not running, the unit too close to the wall, or door seals not closing.
Dusty coils are extremely common and are homeowner-fixable in twenty minutes.
- Fridge warm, freezer fine: airflow or defrost system
- Both warm: coils, condenser fan, seals, or sealed system
- Clean the condenser coils twice a year
- Check the door seal with a note of paper
- Running constantly and not cold suggests a sealed system fault
The seal test
Close the door on a piece of paper and pull. If it slides out easily, the seal is not compressing there. A failed seal makes the machine run constantly and never quite reach temperature.
Seals are replaceable and inexpensive relative to the running cost of a machine fighting one.
When it is the sealed system
Running continuously and not getting cold, with clean coils and working fans, points at the compressor or a refrigerant leak. That is the expensive repair.
On a machine past ten years old it usually tips toward replacement, and a diagnostic call gives you the actual figures.