Refrigerator Not Cooling: How to Fix Refrigerator Issues

Fridge non cooling? Here's how to ready a refrigeration and some refrigerator troubleshooting

Introduction

Here'due south how to troubleshoot a failing fridge that's lost its frosty feel. This step-by-step guide will prove you how to identify the problem and possibly fifty-fifty ready it yourself. Even if the repair requires a pro, yous will be able to show them the problem thus saving them fourth dimension and you money.

Tools Required

Materials Required

  • Evaporator fan and/or condenser fan

Problem: Fridge Not Cooling

There are several possible causes when a refrigerator doesn't keep your milk cold or your ice cream frozen. Before you attempt more than circuitous repairs, endeavor these elementary fixes if your refrigerator is non cooling and if your freezer is not working:

  • Be sure the refrigerator is plugged in and getting power. The light should come on when y'all open the door.
  • Check the thermostat to make certain it hasn't been turned way downwards by error. If your fridge/freezer thermostat isn't working, get these easy to install thermostats on Amazon.
  • Be sure the vents on the back of the freezer compartment aren't blocked past boxes of water ice cream or frozen vegetables—the vents have to exist clear for common cold air to circulate.
  • Vacuum the coils under or behind the fridge. Chock-full coils can cause poor cooling.
  • Check to make sure zilch is stuck in the condenser fan and that it spins freely (models with coils on the back won't have a fan). To do this, unplug the refrigerator and pull information technology out. Clean the fan blades and spin the fan by paw to see if it's stuck. Plug in the fridge and make sure the fan runs when the compressor is running. If the fan doesn't run, meet the directions beneath, which show how to supercede it.

In this video, we'll show yous some additional tips for troubleshooting refrigerator problems:

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Replace the Refrigerator Evaporator Fan

Here are some refrigerator troubleshooting tips to assist you nada in on the problem if you find your fridge not cooling. If you lot can hear the compressor running only the fridge isn't cooling, the problem is nearly likely either frost-chock-full evaporator coils or a stuck or cleaved evaporator fan. Evaporator fans often bleat or chirp when they start to go bad. You'll know it'southward the evaporator fan if the noise gets louder when you open the freezer door. The evaporator coils and fan are located backside a comprehend in the freezer compartment

Buy an evaporator fan kit on Amazon.

If you remove the encompass inside the freezer and find the coils completely filled with frost, take everything out of the freezer and fridge, unplug it and let it thaw for 24 to 48 hours. Keep a few towels handy to soak upwards water that may leak onto the floor. When all the frost is melted abroad, plug the refrigerator back in. If it works, the problem may be a defrost timer, defrost heater or defrost thermostat. Replacing these parts isn't difficult, just figuring out which is faulty requires troubleshooting that we won't comprehend here. Call a pro if yous suspect a problem with these parts.

Normally the refrigerator condenser fan and compressor, located near the flooring on the back of nearly refrigerators, come on when the thermostat calls for more cooling. If you don't hear the compressor running after the door has been left open up for a while, it could mean the condenser fan is stuck or worn out or that the relay or compressor is bad. Learn how to supervene upon the evaporator fan below.

Project step-by-step (vi)

Step i

Remove Cover

remove refrigerator cover

Remove the cover to inspect the refrigerator evaporator and to access the evaporator fan. The screws may exist covered with plastic plugs that y'all pry out.

Footstep 2

Remove Fan Embrace

Remove refrigerator Fan Cover

If your refrigerator has a fan cover, remove the screws that hold it in place. And so remove the cover to reach the fan.

Step 3

Remove Evaporator Fan

remove evaporator fan fridge freezer fan

Supercede the evaporator fan if it's noisy or doesn't spin. First, unplug the refrigerator. Then remove the screws that hold the fan to the wall of the freezer.

Step iv

Replace the Fan

replace and install freezer fridge condenser fan

Supplant the former fan with a new one. Remove the mounting bracket from the old fan and attach it to the new fan. Unplug the wires and switch them from the old fan to the new fan. Reinstall the fan and supersede the cover.

Step 5

Replace the Refrigerator Condenser Fan

Replace the Refrigerator Condenser Fan

Pull the fridge away from the wall, unplug it and remove the sparse panel on the back near the bottom to admission the compressor and condenser fan. Adjacent plug the refrigerator in and wait for the compressor to come on. The fan should also come on. If the compressor runs but the fan doesn't, or if the fan is noisy, you need a new fan. If neither runs and the compressor is hot, unplug the refrigerator and point a fan or a hair dryer set to "no oestrus" at the compressor. Wait for the compressor to cool and try again. If the compressor runs but the fan doesn't, the fan is bad. Unplug the refrigerator and replace the fan (project directions below). If neither runs, then you may need a new relay or compressor. Telephone call an appliance repair technician to find out.

When to Supersede Condenser Fan

Replace the condenser fan if it'south noisy or doesn't run. Depending on your fridge repair, you may have to remove the fan bracket offset, and and so unscrew the fan from the subclass.

Footstep half-dozen

Install the New Fan

install new refrigerator condenser fan

Cut the wires close to the onetime fan. Strip the wires and connect the new fan with wire connectors. Screw the new fan to the subclass and reinstall the fan and bracket in the fridge.

Check out how to finer clean a stinky fridge and freezer.

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Originally Published: December 17, 2018