Why is My Refrigerator Not Cooling?

refrigerator not cooling

There are several reasons why a refrigerator will not cool. If you would like to save yourself a little time and hassle, give Spring Appliance Repair NOW a call for refrigerator repair in Spring, TX. Our technicians are eager to visit and diagnose the problem and repair it for you.

When a refrigerator isn’t cold anymore, it is time to see what the problem could be. Most times it is something as basic as a routine coil cleaning. However, with new fridges, they’re manufactured with various sensors as well.

Before we investigate further, we inspect the most typical and simple causes for this issue. Here are a few of things that we have determined lead to a refrigerator not cooling:

Is the refrigerator plugged in? This may seem like a silly question, but we have been hired for jobs that this was the reason for the problem. Somehow, it was not plugged in. it’s possible a kid unplugged it, or an electrician during a service visit. Whatever the cause might be, be sure the refrigerator is plugged in.

Check the thermostat inside of the refrigerator. This is a common problem for families with children in their home. After all, kids are fascinated with buttons and dials and so, without knowing they are doing anything bad, they mess with them. So, be sure that the thermostat setting is not the reason for the warm refrigerator.

Refrigerator Parts to Troubleshoot?

Check that all of the vents inside of the freezer area are not blocked with food or boxes. This is very common because bags of frozen vegetables get pushed in the back of the freezer. There can be food in the very back of a freezer unit that has long been forgotten.

Be sure the refrigerator’s condenser cooling fan is clean and clear of all debris. To check this, unplug the refrigerator and pull it out from the wall. The fan for a lot of models is right at the bottom or in the back of the freezer portion. A lot of times, homeowner don’t think about cleaning this area of the fridge. But, it is important to keep it clean. And, it clogs up with dust and fuzz quickly, especially in houses that have pets. So, find a clean rag and clean the collected dust out of the coils and fan.

This is not a suggestion for refrigerators that have a back coil system. Once everything is clean, plug it back into the outlet and notice if the fan moves.

The Freezer Unit is Cold but the Fridge is Not

There are a few more reasons for a refrigerator that won’t cool after these obvious ones to start to take a look at if the freezer is cool but your refrigerator isn’t. The evaporator coils have frost on them. This happens because there’s a failure in the defrost system. Or if the automatic defrost experiences an issue. The evaporator fan motor can be another reason.

Every refrigerator has a pair of evaporator coils. These evaporator coils are what gets cold and the fan pushes the cold air throughout the unit. The damper control assembly is not working the right way. The temperature control board provides the electricity to the compressor and fan, this isn’t likely the issue but it’s worth troubleshooting.

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

ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES