Why is My Refrigerator Not Cooling?

refrigerator not cooling

There are many reasons a refrigerator won’t cool. If you would like to save yourself some time and inconvenience, give Dixon Appliance Repair a call for refrigerator repair in Flower Mound, TX. Our technicians are eager to come out and diagnose the cooling issue and repair it for you.

When your refrigerator is not cold anymore, it is time to see what the problem is. Most times it’s something as common as a routine coil cleaning behind the appliance. But, with latest fridges, they’re manufactured with a variety of sensors as well.

Before we investigate further, we inspect the most typical and simple causes for this problem. Here are a few of things that we have found can lead to a refrigerator that won’t cool:

Is the cord plugged into an electrical outlet? This may seem like a funny question, but we’ve been called out to jobs that this was the issue. For some reason, the refrigerator was not plugged in. it’s possible a child or pet unplugged it, or an electrician during a project. Whatever the reason might be, be sure the refrigerator is plugged in.

Look at the thermostat inside of the appliance. This is a very typical problem for families with children in their home. After all, kids like buttons and dials and so, without understanding they are doing something bad, they play with them. So, be sure that the thermostat temperature isn’t the reason for the warm fridge.

Refrigerator Parts to Inspect?

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

Be sure the condenser cooling fan is clean and clear of debris. To be sure, unplug the fridge and pull it away from the kitchen wall. The cooling fan for most models is just at the bottom or in the back part of the freezer portion. Often times, homeowner do not think about cleaning this section of the refrigerator. But, it is important to keep it clean. And, it builds up with dust and fuzz quickly, especially with houses that have pets. So, get a rag and clean the collected dust out of the coils and cooling fan.

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

The Freezer is Cold but the Refrigerator is Not

There are several causes for a refrigerator not cooling after these more common ones to take a look at if the freezer is cold but the fridge is not. The evaporator coils are frosted over. This occurs because there is a failure in the defrost 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 coils are what cool and then the fan circulates the cool air throughout the unit. The damper control assembly is not working properly. The temperature control board that provides the electricity to the fan and compressor, this is not likely the issue but it’s worth troubleshooting.

And, the thermistor might be malfunctioning, which is a tiny sensor inside the unit that displays the temperature. Having one of our repairmen look at it is the best solution but these are some of the most common problems.

ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES