Why is My Refrigerator Not Cooling?

refrigerator not cold

There are many reasons a refrigerator will not cool. If you want to spare yourself some time and inconvenience, give Legacy Lawrence Appliance Repair a call for refrigerator repair in Lawrence, KS. We are happy to visit and diagnose the issue and fix it for you.

When your refrigerator is not cold anymore, it is time to determine what the issue could be. A lot of times it’s something as simple as a good coil cleaning. But, with modern fridges, they’re equipped with various sensors too.

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

Is it plugged into an outlet? This may seem like it’s a funny question, but we have been called out to jobs that this was the reason for the issue. For some reason, the refrigerator was not plugged in. it’s possible a child or pet did it, or an electrician while doing a project. Whatever the cause may be, make sure the refrigerator is plugged in.

Look at the thermostat inside of the appliance. This is a very typical problem for customers with children in the house. After all, kids are fascinated with buttons and dials and so, without knowing they’re doing something wrong, they play with them. So, be sure that the thermostat temperature is not the reason for the warm refrigerator.

Which Refrigerator Components to Troubleshoot?

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

Check that the condenser cooling fan is clear and clean of all debris. To do this, unplug the refrigerator and slide it away from the wall. The fan for several models is right at the bottom of the appliance or in the back of the freezer unit. Many times, homeowner don’t think about cleaning this section of the appliance. But, it is important to keep it clean. And, it piles up with fuzz and dust quickly, especially with homes that have pets. So, get a rag and get the collected dust out of the coils and cooling fan.

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

The Freezer is Cold but the Fridge Isn’t

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

Every fridge has a pair of evaporator coils. These evaporator coils are what gets cold and then the fan pushes the cool air around inside the unit. The damper control assembly working the right way. The temperature control board which transports the electricity to the fan and compressor, this is not likely the problem but it’s worth troubleshooting.

And, the thermistor could be defective, which is a little sensor inside the appliance that displays the temperature. Having one of our technicians look at it is the best course of action but these are a few of of the most common issues.

ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES