Why is My Refrigerator Not Cooling?

There are a lot of reasons a refrigerator won’t cool. If you would like to save yourself a little time and hassle, give Midwest Appliance Repair a call for refrigerator repair in Minnesota. We’re happy to visit and diagnose the cooling problem as well as fix it for you.

When your refrigerator is no longer cold, it’s time to see what the issue is. Most times it is something as basic as a good coil cleaning behind the refrigerator. However, with modern fridges, they’re equipped with a variety of sensors as well.

Before we investigate further, we look at the most common and easy causes for this problem. Here are a couple of issues that we have found lead to a refrigerator not cooling:

Is the refrigerator plugged into an electrical outlet? This may seem like it is a silly question, but we have been called out to appointments that this was the reason for the issue. For some reason, it was unplugged. Maybe a a pet did it, or an electrician during a project. Whatever the case may be, be sure the refrigerator is plugged in.

Check the thermostat inside of the refrigerator. This is a very typical problem for those with children in their house. After all, kids are fascinated with dials and buttons and so, without understanding they are doing anything wrong, they mess with them. So, check that the thermostat setting isn’t the reason for the warm fridge.

Refrigerator Parts to Troubleshoot?

Be sure all of the vents inside the freezer aren’t blocked with containers or food. This is common because frozen veggies get jammed in the back of the freezer. There could be food in the very back of a freezer that has been forgotten.

Check that the refrigerator’s condenser cooling fan is clear and clean of all debris. To be sure, unplug the refrigerator and slide it out from the kitchen wall. The cooling fan for a lot of models is right at the bottom or somewhere in the back of the freezer unit. A lot of times, homeowner don’t think about cleaning this area of the appliance. But, it’s very important to clean it. And, it piles up with fuzz and dust quickly, especially in houses that have dogs and cats. So, get a clean rag and get the dust out of the refrigerator coils and fan.

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

The Freezer Unit is Cold but the Refrigerator Isn’t

There are a few more causes for a refrigerator that won’t cool after these more common ones to take a look at if the freezer is cold but the fridge is not. The evaporator coils have frost on them. This happens if there’s a failure in the defrost heating system. Or 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 circulates the cool air throughout the unit. The damper control assembly working properly. The temperature control board which carries the electricity to the fan and compressor, this probably isn’t the problem but it is worth troubleshooting.

And, the thermistor might be defective, which is a small sensor in the unit that tells the temperature. Having one of our repairmen look at it is the best option but these are some of the most common issues.

ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES

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