Why is My Refrigerator Not Cooling?

refrigerator too warm

There are several reasons a refrigerator is not cooling. If you want to spare yourself a little time and hassle, give ASAP Scottsdale Appliance Repair a call for refrigerator repair in Scottsdale, AZ. Our technicians are happy to visit and troubleshoot the cooling issue as well as repair it for you.

When your refrigerator is no longer cold, it is time to determine what the issue could be. Most times it is something as common as a good coil cleaning behind the appliance. But, with new fridges, they’re equipped with various sensors as well.

Before we investigate further, we inspect the most typical and simple causes for this problem. Here are a couple of things that we have found can lead to a refrigerator that won’t cool:

Is the refrigerator plugged in? This might seem like it’s a odd question, but we have been called out to appointments that this was the reason for the problem. For some reason, the refrigerator was unplugged. Maybe a child or pet did it, or an electrician while doing a service visit. Whatever the reason may be, make sure the refrigerator is plugged in.

Check the thermostat inside of the unit. This is a very common issue for customers with children in their home. After all, kids love dials and buttons and so, without understanding they are doing something bad, they mess with them. So, be sure that the thermostat temperature is not the reason for the warm fridge.

Refrigerator Components to Troubleshoot?

Be sure each of the vents inside 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 can be food in the back of a freezer unit that has long been forgotten.

Be sure the refrigerator’s 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 many models is just at the bottom of the appliance or somewhere in the back part of the freezer section. A lot of times, customers do not think about cleaning this area of the appliance. But, it’s very important to keep it clean. And, it builds up with dust and fuzz quickly, especially with homes that have dogs and cats. So, find a clean rag and clean the built-up dust out of the refrigerator coils and fan.

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

The Freezer is Cold but the Fridge Isn’t

There are a few more reasons for a refrigerator not cooling after these more common ones to check if the freezer is cold but the fridge isn’t. The evaporator coils are frosted over. This happens because there is a failure in the defrost system. Or if the automatic defrost experiences a problem. The evaporator fan motor can be another cause.

Every fridge has a set of evaporator coils. These evaporator coils are what cool and the fan circulates the cool air throughout the appliance. The damper control assembly working the right way. The temperature control board provides the electricity to the fan and compressor, this is not likely the issue but it is worth mentioning.

And, the thermistor might be defective, which is a small sensor in the appliance that displays the temperature. Having one of our repairmen inspect it is the best course of action but these are a few of of the most typical problems.

ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES