Yesterday I decided to clean out my freezer as it was dripping water through the bottom of the door. I noticed that I had ice buildup on the bottom of the freezer side (side by side unit). I pulled the unit out of the cabinets, unplugged the unit, and emptied the freezer to clean. I had it unplugged approximately 1.5 hours. I finished and plugged the unit back in. It sounded like the compressor kicked in, so I pushed the unit back into the cabinet. The compressor then shut off immediately, so I pulled it back out, and unplugged the unit. After a few minutes, it started back up, so I left it out of the cabinet space, and checked on it an hour later. The freezer side appeared to be getting to the appropriate temp as the back wall in the unit had some frost on it, but it still felt warm. The frige side was still warm. The compressor was running. What could I have done to this unit? After 24 hours, the frige was still warm and the freezer was cool, say 50 degrees. Any suggestions? I did vac out the coil and compressor area which was fairly dirty.
— Begin quote from coolscheid;246577
Yesterday I decided to clean out my freezer as it was dripping water through the bottom of the door. I noticed that I had ice buildup on the bottom of the freezer side (side by side unit). I pulled the unit out of the cabinets, unplugged the unit, and emptied the freezer to clean. I had it unplugged approximately 1.5 hours. I finished and plugged the unit back in. It sounded like the compressor kicked in, so I pushed the unit back into the cabinet. The compressor then shut off immediately, so I pulled it back out, and unplugged the unit. After a few minutes, it started back up, so I left it out of the cabinet space, and checked on it an hour later. The freezer side appeared to be getting to the appropriate temp as the back wall in the unit had some frost on it, but it still felt warm. The frige side was still warm. The compressor was running. What could I have done to this unit? After 24 hours, the frige was still warm and the freezer was cool, say 50 degrees. Any suggestions? I did vac out the coil and compressor area which was fairly dirty.
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You probably had a pre existing defrost problem,water running out from bottom of door and ice build up in the bottom of the freezer.
Frost on the back wall is a very dependable indication of a defrost problem.
You will need to access the heater and thermostat assembly(by removing the back wall of the freezer compartment) and check for a closed circuit through the heaters and closed circuit through the thermostat when below 35 degrees.
Also check wiring for loose connections, of course you need to unplug the power cord from the outlet before you start.
This is the most common condition, for your description of the problem, there could be others, but I would start there.
Well, I looked at it again last night, and here the top shelf was interfering with the fan, preventing it from circulating the cold air throughout the freezer. The freezer now works just fine, however, the fridge side is still relatively warm, and will not chill down. I will have a look at the guts behind the panel in the freezer and check the components you mentioned. My wife has already picked out her dream fridge, and I don’t want to splurge. Here is a follow up question. Based on the energy consumption of a mid 80’s fridge vs a new energy efficient unit, should I abandon the effort to repair this and just bite the bullet and go for the more efficient unit? I am not trying to save the planet here, but want to understand the economics of what I am doing before I get too far into this. Any information is most appreciated. Thanks for your help so far.
The new refrigerators are about 50% more efficient than yours, would pay for itself in a few years.
— Begin quote from richappy;247188
The new refrigerators are about 50% more efficient than yours, would pay for itself in a few years.
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Thanks for the info.