Why is My Refrigerator Not Cooling?

There are many reasons why a refrigerator won’t cool. If you would like to spare yourself a little time and burden, give Direct Oceanside Appliance Repair a call for refrigerator repair in Oceanside, CA. We’re eager to come out and troubleshoot the cooling problem as well as fix it for you.

When a refrigerator isn’t cold anymore, it’s time to figure out what the problem might be. Often times it’s something as basic as a good coil cleaning. But, with latest refrigerators, they are equipped with various sensors too.

Before we look too deep, we inspect the most common and common causes for this problem. Here are some issues that we have determined can lead to a refrigerator not cooling:

Is the refrigerator plugged in? This may seem like it is a silly question, but we’ve been called out to appointments that this was the reason for the issue. For some reason, the refrigerator was not plugged in. Maybe a a pet did it, or an electrician while doing a service visit. Whatever the case may be, be sure it’s plugged in.

Check the thermostat inside of the refrigerator. This is a very typical issue for families with small children in the house. After all, kids like buttons and dials and so, without understanding they are doing something wrong, they mess with them. So, be sure that the thermostat temperature is not the cause of the warm refrigerator.

Which Refrigerator Components to Inspect?

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

Be sure the condenser cooling fan is clear and clean of all debris. To be sure, unplug the fridge and pull it out from the kitchen wall. The cooling fan for a lot of models is just at the bottom or in the back part of the freezer section. Often times, customers do not think about cleaning this section of the fridge. But, it’s very important to clean it. And, it fills up with fuzz and dust quickly, especially in houses that have dogs and cats. So, grab a clean rag and clean the collected dust out of the coils and cooling fan.

This is not suggested for refrigerators that have a back coil system. Once all clean, plug it back into the outlet and monitor if the fan spins.

The Freezer is Cold but the Refrigerator Isn’t

There are a few more reasons for a refrigerator that won’t cool after these obvious ones to check if the freezer is cold but your refrigerator isn’t. The evaporator coils have frost on them. This happens when there’s a failure in the defrost heating system. Or if the automatic defrost has a problem. The evaporator fan motor can be another reason.

Every fridge has a pair of evaporator coils. These coils are what cool and then the fan moves the cold air throughout the appliance. The damper control assembly isn’t working the right way. The temperature control board provides the electricity to the compressor and fan, this probably isn’t the issue but it is worth troubleshooting.

And, the thermistor might be defective, which is a tiny sensor within the appliance that displays the temperature. Having one of our technicians look at it is the best solution but these are a few of of the most typical problems.

ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES

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