Why is My Refrigerator Not Cooling?

There are a few reasons why a refrigerator is not cooling. If you want to spare yourself a little time and inconvenience, give Action Appliance Repair a call for refrigerator repair in Akron, OH. We’re happy to come out and troubleshoot the cooling problem as well as correct it for you.

When a refrigerator isn’t cold anymore, it is time to figure out what the problem could be. Most times it is something as common as a good coil cleaning. But, with modern refrigerators, they’re equipped with various sensors too.

Before we investigate further, we inspect the most common and common causes for this issue. Here are a couple of things that we have determined lead to a refrigerator not cooling:

Is the refrigerator plugged in? This may seem like it’s a silly question, but we’ve been called out to jobs that this was the issue. Somehow, it was unplugged. Maybe a a pet did it, or an electrician during a service visit. Whatever the case might be, make sure it’s plugged in.

Check the thermostat inside. This is a typical problem for families with small children in their home. After all, children like buttons and dials and so, without understanding they are doing anything wrong, they play with them. So, check that the thermostat setting is not the cause of the warm fridge.

Which Refrigerator Parts to Inspect?

Be sure each of the vents in the freezer are not blocked with containers or food. This is very common because frozen veggies get stuck in the back of the freezer. There might be food in the back of a freezer unit that has been forgotten.

Check that the refrigerator’s condenser cooling fan is clear and clean of debris. To be sure, unplug the refrigerator and slide it away from the wall. The fan for a lot of models is just at the bottom or somewhere in the back part of the freezer section. Many times, people don’t think about cleaning this area of the refrigerator. But, it’s very important to keep it clean. And, it fills up with dust and fuzz quickly, especially in houses that have pets. So, grab a clean rag and clean the collected dust out of the refrigerator coils and fan.

This is not recommended for refrigerators that have the rear coil system. Once everything is clean, plug it into the outlet and see if the cooling fan moves.

The Freezer is Cold but the Fridge is Not

There are several reasons for a refrigerator that won’t cool after these more common ones to take a look at if your freezer is cold but your fridge is not. The evaporator coils have frost on them. This happens when there is a failure in the defrost system. Or when the automatic defrost has a problem. The evaporator fan motor is another cause.

Every refrigerator has a set of evaporator coils. These coils are what cool and the fan moves the cool air around inside the appliance. The damper control assembly is not working the right way. The temperature control board that transports the electricity to the fan and compressor, this probably is not the issue but it is worth mentioning.

And, the thermistor might be defective, which is a tiny sensor within the unit that tells the temperature. Having one of our repairmen inspect it is the best option but these are some of the most common problems.

ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES

• Ice Maker Isn’t Working
• How Does a Refrigerator Work?
• Refrigerator is Noisy
• Refrigerator Water Dispenser Not Working