Why is My Refrigerator Not Cooling?

There are many reasons a refrigerator isn’t cooling. If you would like to spare yourself some time and hassle, give La Mesa Appliance Repair a call for refrigerator repair in La Mesa, CA. We are happy to come out and troubleshoot the issue as well as fix it for you.

When your refrigerator has lost its cold, it’s time to see what the issue is. Often times it’s something as simple as a routine coil cleaning behind the refrigerator. But, with new models of refrigerators, they’re manufactured with various sensors too.

Before we look too deep, we look at the most typical and common reasons for this problem. Here are some things that we have determined lead to a refrigerator that won’t cool:

Is it plugged into an electrical outlet? This will seem like it is a funny question, but we’ve been called out to jobs that this was the problem. Somehow, it was not plugged in. Maybe a a pet did it, or an electrician while doing a project. Whatever the case might be, make sure the refrigerator is plugged in.

Check the thermostat inside. This is a very common issue for customers with children in the home. After all, children are fascinated with buttons and dials and so, without knowing they are doing anything wrong, they mess with them. So, check that the thermostat setting is not the reason for the warm refrigerator.

Which Refrigerator Components to Troubleshoot?

Be sure the vents in the freezer are not blocked with food or containers. This is very common because bags of frozen veggies get pushed in the back. There can be food in the way back of a freezer that has long been forgotten.

Be sure the refrigerator’s condenser cooling fan is clean and clear of all debris. To do this, unplug the fridge and slide it out from the kitchen wall. The cooling fan for several models is just at the bottom or somewhere in the back part of the freezer unit. Often times, customers don’t think to clean this section of the appliance. But, it is very important to clean it. And, it builds up with dust and fuzz quickly, especially in homes that have pets. So, get a clean rag and get the collected dust out of the refrigerator coils and fan.

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

The Freezer Unit is Cold but the Fridge Isn’t

There are several causes for a refrigerator that won’t cool after these more common ones to take a look at if your freezer is cool but the fridge is not. The evaporator coils have frost on them. This occurs if there’s a failure in the defrost heating system. Or if the automatic defrost experiences an issue. The evaporator fan motor is another cause.

Every fridge has a set of evaporator coils. These evaporator coils are what gets cold and the fan moves the cool air throughout the unit. The damper control assembly is not working properly. The temperature control board that transports the electricity to the compressor and fan, this probably isn’t the issue but it’s worth mentioning.

And, the thermistor could be defective, which is a small sensor inside the appliance that displays the temperature. Having one of our repairmen inspect it is the best solution but these are a few of 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