OT: Refridgerator questions

[J Miller]

Our refrigerator is ailing. The freezer side is still working but the refrigerator side is doing all it can to hold 50°.

We know when it started doing this, but not what might have been damaged.
A couple days ago we woke up to find the fridge side open. Not sure how long it had been open or even how it got opened.

The freezer side fan is running, but there is no air flow in the fridge side. Don't know if it has it's own fan, or uses the freezer fan.

The compressor is running, but it don't sound like it used to. The condenser fan is also running.

Anybody got any ideas on what to look at?

This is a rental house and the fridge came with it. But as with most landlords we'll need an act of God before he'll do anything.
We've called him but I'm not holding my breath.

Joe

[geobru]

I'm no expert by any means, but since the freezer is cold, I would guess that the compressor is ok. If the freezer side is working, then the problem is most likely with the airflow from the freezer to the frig because the refrigerator side is usually cooled from air from the freezer.
I'd look for an ice build up on the freezer side or in the vents that might have blocked the flow of cool air to the refrigerator, or a defective fan that is supposed to move cool air to the refrigerator. Good luck!!

gb

[J Miller]

Landlord says they'll have a appliance fixer out tomorrow. Ha! I'll believe that when I see it.

Anyway wifie is getting enough ice to pull everything out of the freezer so we can pull the inner panel out and check the fan(s) and the ducking for blockage.

We'll see ....

Joe

[awp101]

SxS? What brand?

[Buffboy]

Joe, I've had this exact same experience so I been there, done this, put everything in coolers, turn it off and open it up. If the fan is working and the freezer is cold something is blocking the airflow necessarily to keep the fridge part cool. There is likely an ice jam between the freezer and the refrigerator parts. The easiest way to clear it is to thaw it out.

PS: taking the back off to access the fan in the freezer will hurry the process. What ever you do don't start getting forceful trying to clear it. Let it melt or you will punch a hole in something you don't want to.

[adirondakjack]

Yup, she's froze up (might be a motorized flapper that controls air from freezer to fridge iced up). Get ya a block of ice and a cooler or two for yer stuff, unload and unplug the beast and let her warm up until there is no ice and she's dry, then start er up.

[J Miller]

Thanks guys, that's pretty much what we'll do. It wouldn't surprise me if the things back up and running before the fix it guy shows up.

OBTW, this is exactly what I've been saying and the wife refuses to believe me. Maybe she'll believe you guys.

Joe

[iceman]

It is most probably iced up. If it is you have to find out why. Usually defrost timer is not working and it is not defrosting or drain is blocked and defrost water is not getting away and refreezes. If after you defrost it it works ok, it will probably do it again (at the worst time) if problem is not solved. Another possible problem could be the defrost heater. Good luck.

[kirkwood]

Having that door ajar is what made it ice up. I've had it happen before. You get a lot of condensation from moist air and it gets hit by the supercold air from the freezer side and turns to ice. The ice builds up fast if the air is very humid. Was there a lot of rain the day before this happened?

[J Miller]

Having that door ajar is what made it ice up. I've had it happen before. You get a lot of condensation from moist air and it gets hit by the supercold air from the freezer side and turns to ice. The ice builds up fast if the air is very humid. Was there a lot of rain the day before this happened?

Kirkwood,
Yes it was raining cats and dogs. Our basement leaked too.

Joe

[Pete44ru]

Joe: For future reference - Ya won't haveta keep opening the door, if ya install a beer tap onto the outside !

.

[J Miller]

Well nuts! The tech (refrigerator mechanic) just left. According to him it's DOA. Something about a constriction in the compressor or line.
Said it's not feasible to fix it.
Now he has to call the landlord and they have to get a new fridge. Meanwhile we've lost almost everything that was in the fridge side and are in the process of loosing everything that was in the freezer. We've put it all in the ice chests we have and iced it down, but that won't hold it.
Several hundred dollars worth of food will be in the trash tonight . We sure as hell didn't need this setback.

Wife has called the ins company to see if our renters covers this kind of thing. I hate to do that but .......

Joe

[Buck Elliott]

Does anybody sell dry ice in your neck of the woods...?

[J Miller]

Does anybody sell dry ice in your neck of the woods...?

Don't know. It's probably too late anyway. The chickens was thawing as we iced them down last night. Unless we could have one smoking BBQ right now I doubt they're savable.
Will text the wife about the dry ice, she might know of someone.

Joe

[wm]

I put myself through college repairing appliances and if it is your compressor line and the refrigerator is more than 5 years old it will be cheaper to replace than repair.

But I would still do what Buffboy suggested. I have seen a lot of DOA appliances resurrecteed by common sense. I recall delivering a new washer and dryer to a lady who had a repairman from another shop pronounce her appliances DOA.

When I went to pull them out I noticed some blackening on the outlet they were plugged into. A leak in the roof had traveled down the wall and shorted out the plug and blown the breaker. I had it fixed in 5 minutes after a quick run to the hardware store. I saved her about $600 but cost myself a sale.

If it is what I suspect it is you'll know when it is cleared out by the puddle under the appliance. If you have a wet/dry vac have it ready.

Believe it or not this is quite common.......

Wm

[Malamute]

I wouldnt write off food that has just begun to thaw, or has thawed and is still cold. Just because it thawed some, or even all, doesnt mean its bad. I've had meat thaw when transporting it cross country in a cooler, and refroze it or just cooked it within a few days and it was fine. I've done this many times. At refrigerated temps, (just thawed out) it should be fine for a few days if you can keep it cool. If it was mine, as long as it didnt truly warm up, I'd refreeze it and not be at all concerned unless you were going to eat it raw.

[J Miller]

Strange things here. Tech says it's DOA, but after he left I pulled the inner panel and looked at the condenser to verify there was no ice. All is clear. Air vents are free and clear and the flapper valve is also clear and functional.

I turned it back on with the freezer at level 2 and the refrigerator at D. Very low settings, and after about an hour and a half the refrigerator was down to 40° and the freezer was down to like 9°.

What is the proper temps for a side by side?

It still doesn't sound right, but I'm wondering if that fix-it wiz wasn't just trying to scam the landlord?

Joe

[iceman]

Refrigerator side should be around 36 to 38 to keep fresh food below 40 degrees. Freezer at least 0 colder the better at least -12 for ice cream storage colder if trying to refreeze it. If there is a restriction, you may get ok temperatures when empty, but once you put warm product in it it may not be able to handle the load.
Strange problem if it is true doesn't happen often.

[J Miller]

Refrigerator side should be around 36 to 38 to keep fresh food below 40 degrees. Freezer at least 0 colder the better at least -12 for ice cream storage colder if trying to refreeze it. If there is a restriction, you may get ok temperatures when empty, but once you put warm product in it it may not be able to handle the load.
Strange problem if it is true doesn't happen often.

Iceman,
You may well be right. After two hours it's down to only 42° in the fridge section and I've cranked the thermostat down two levels.
My wife has told me she had the freezer setting on coldest and the fridge on one short of coldest. It wouldn't keep our drinks good and cold and we had trouble with food spoilage. So most likely it's been going bad for a while.
Landlord called and said they'd be delivering a new one tomorrow. I hope it's similar to this one but I'll bet it's the cheapest top and bottom style they can find.
It wont matter though, by tomorrow the rest of the food will have spoiled and will be on it's way to the city dump.

Joe