Why is My Refrigerator Not Cooling?

There are a variety of reasons a refrigerator won’t cool. If you would like to spare yourself a little time and burden, give Evans Appliance Repair a call for refrigerator repair in New Jersey. We’re happy to come out and troubleshoot the cooling issue as well as repair it for you.

When a refrigerator is no longer cold, it’s time to see what the issue could be. Most times it is something as simple as a routine coil cleaning behind the appliance. But, with these new refrigerators, they’re equipped with a variety of sensors too.

Before we look too deep, we inspect the most typical and easy reasons for this issue. Here are a couple of of the things that we’ve found lead to a refrigerator not cooling:

Is the cord plugged into an outlet? This will seem like it is a odd question, but we have been called out to jobs that this was the issue. Somehow, it was not plugged in. Maybe a a pet unplugged it, or an electrician during a service visit. Whatever the reason may be, make sure it is plugged in.

Look at the thermostat inside. This is a very common problem for anyone with children in the home. After all, kids are fascinated with buttons and dials and so, without understanding they’re doing something wrong, they play with them. So, check that the thermostat temperature isn’t the reason for the warm refrigerator.

Which Refrigerator Parts to Inspect?

Check that each of the vents inside of the freezer area aren’t blocked with containers or food. This is common since bags of frozen veggies get stuck in the back of the freezer. There might be food in the way back of a freezer that has long been forgotten about.

Be sure the condenser cooling fan is clear and clean of debris. To check this, unplug the fridge and pull it out from the wall. The cooling fan for a lot of models is right at the bottom of the appliance or in the back of the freezer portion. Many times, homeowner do not think about cleaning this section of the refrigerator. But, it is very important to keep it clean. And, it clogs up with fuzz and dust quickly, especially with homes that have dogs and cats. So, find a clean rag and clean the built-up dust out of the coils and cooling fan.

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

The Freezer Unit is Cold but the Fridge is Not

There are a few more reasons for a refrigerator not cooling after these obvious ones to start to check if your freezer is cool but your fridge is not. The evaporator coils are frosted over. This occurs because there’s a malfunction in the defrost heating system. Or if the automatic defrost experiences a problem. The evaporator fan motor can be another reason.

Every refrigerator has a set of evaporator coils. These coils are what cool and the fan moves the cold air around inside the appliance. The damper control assembly is not working correctly. The temperature control board which carries the electricity to the compressor and fan, this probably isn’t the problem but it is worth troubleshooting.

And, the thermistor might be defective, which is a small sensor within the unit that displays the temperature. Having one of our repairmen inspect it is the best solution but these are a few of 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