Why is My Refrigerator Not Cooling?

refrigerator too warm

There are a variety of reasons a refrigerator won’t cool. If you would like to spare yourself some time and burden, give Direct Denver Appliance Repair a call for refrigerator repair in Denver, CO. We are eager to come out and diagnose the problem and correct it for you.

When a refrigerator has lost its cold, it is time to figure out what the problem is. A lot of times it is something as simple as a good coil cleaning. But, with new refrigerators, they are manufactured with various sensors too.

Before we look too deep, we inspect the most common and common causes for this problem. Here are a few of things that we’ve found can lead to a refrigerator that will not cool:

Is the refrigerator plugged into an electrical outlet? This may seem like 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 did it, or an electrician during a service visit. Whatever the reason may be, make sure the refrigerator is plugged in.

Check the thermostat inside of the appliance. This is a typical problem for those with small children in the home. After all, children like dials and buttons and so, without understanding they are doing anything wrong, they mess with them. So, check that the thermostat temperature isn’t the reason for the warm refrigerator.

Which Refrigerator Components to Troubleshoot?

Check that each of the vents inside the freezer are not blocked with containers or food. This is common since frozen veggies get pushed in the back of the freezer. There can be food in the way back of a freezer unit that has long been forgotten.

Check that the refrigerator’s condenser cooling fan is clear and clean of debris. To be sure, unplug the refrigerator and slide it away from the kitchen wall. The cooling fan for a lot of models is right at the bottom or in the back part of the freezer unit. Often times, customers don’t think about cleaning this area of the fridge. But, it’s important to clean it. And, it fills up with dust and fuzz quickly, especially in homes that have pets. So, find a rag and clean the dust out of the coils and fan.

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

The Freezer Unit is Cold but the Refrigerator Isn’t

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

Every fridge has a set of evaporator coils. These evaporator coils are what cool and then the fan moves the cool air around inside the unit. The damper control assembly is not working properly. The temperature control board which carries the electricity to the compressor and fan, this isn’t likely the issue but it is worth mentioning.

And, the thermistor could be defective, which is a small sensor inside 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 typical problems.

ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES