Freezer temperature v

Hello Danie;

My name is Peter. I am a retired field service refrigeration technician.

The normal setting for a freezer is -2 to +2 degrees F., and the normal setting for the fresh food section is +35 to +40 degrees F.

You only have one source of cooling and that is your freezer. With the settings that you have, you are asking your unit to do what it is not designed to do.

The ice maker is struggling because if it is a cast steel ice cube mold, the heater beneath it is not designed for the current to break the ice cubes free @ -18 degrees F., or if you have a plastic flex ice cube mold it is too ridged to flex enough to break the ice cubes free. Normally your ice maker should dump 8-10 times in a 24 hour period.

A note on food storage. Make sure you do not overload your freezer of fresh food section to the point where food product extends beyond the edge of the shelves.

If it's holding at 28 degrees, it's not the coils. See if dropping the temp does any thing to lower the temp. If it does, fine. If not, most likely just the control needs replaced or just cleaned.

Hello Friend, this is Z. Thank you for your post!

I interpret that you are having trouble with the freezer of your Frigidaire refrigerator not freezing ice cubes. It appears that your refrigerator is not properly cooling. Make sure that the temperature is 8 degrees Fahrenheit or lower. If the freezer is too warm, the ice maker won't cycle properly. Please allow 24 hours for temperature to stabilize. I ask that you please follow up with a comment on the post, at your convenience, to advise if further troubleshooting is needed or if your freezer status has changed successfully. Thank you!

Service engeener always checks the average temperature inside freezer or refrigerator compartment. When you turn on freezer, the compressor starts to circulate gas through the system and the temperature in the freezer is decreasing (go to minus). When inside of the freezer reaches the set temperature the compressor is switched off and temperature will increasing. What will be the difference of inside temperature depends on the type of refrigerator and type of thermostat or sensor and moves to max. 8-9 degrees. With the advent of new "No Frost" refrigerator, this difference was reduced to only a few degrees Celsius, thanks to the fan inside the refrigerator and NTC sensor.
So 29 + 14 = 43; 43/2 = 21.5 which means that your average temperature of -21.5 which is not too much deviation from the set temperature of -18 and I think that is ok.

Dado

Hi,

Let's start by diagnosing the freezer;

Fan problem is one of the most common reasons for the freezer to start failing, this is called "frost free failure." Ice can build up on the evaporator coils over time, and this ice builds up until it starts blocking the fan. The fan is responsible for circulating cold air throughout the freezer, so if it is blocked the freezer will not be able to freeze any food. You can usually check this by removing an access panel in the back of the freezer to inspect the coils. If ice is built up on the coils, a hairdryer can assist in defrosting them.

It's also possible that the fan is not running at all. If the fan is burned out or the motor isn't running, cold air can't circulate through the freezer and everything will melt. You can normally hear the fan motor switch on and off from time to time. Listen for it and if you can't hear it coming on for an extended period of time, the motor may need repair or replacement. The wires connecting to the fan may be the problem, preventing the fan from receiving electricity.

Several other problems could be keeping your freezer from freezing:

There could be leaks in one or several of the hoses in the refrigerator, which results in the cold air being lost instead of circulating properly throughout the fridge and freezer.

If you have the freezer so full that the cold air can't circulate, your food will thaw even though the freezer isn't malfunctioning. Always leave some space open in the freezer and try to not store food right up against the cooling vents.

The thermostat might have shorted out, which means the freezer can't accurately determine how cold it is. If this is the case, the refrigerator would probably not be working, either.

If your defrost drain becomes clogged, the water in the line will just refreeze over and over again, which could damage the lines as well as the fan. Always check the drain and make sure no sludge is building up in it if you have a self-defrosting refrigerator.

Always try to keep the freezer door closed for long periods of time. The more the door is opened, the more warm air is let in and cold air is released. If the door is opened frequently, the freezer could be warming faster than the fridge can cool it, which will thaw your food

As for the fridge, the same solution but for more details. If refrigerator is not cooling properly can be due to a defrost timer, which is causing the fridge to go into defrost cycle. Usually it takes 45-60 minutes for refrigerator to come out of defrost cycle. If the timer goes bad then it will not come out of defrost cycle and can result in this kind of issues. It can also occur due to defrost thermostat, it allows current to pass through it at temperatures of 20 to 30 degrees Fahrenheit and prevents current from passing through it at 40 to 60 degrees. This is difficult to test, though, because it takes a prolonged, very-cold temperature to turn it on. The defrost thermostat is snapped onto the top portion of the evaporator. The thermostat sends temperature information to the processor. The defrost heater must be replaced when replacing the thermostat.

1. Remove the lower fan duct work from the evaporator cover.
2. Remove the 1/4-in. evaporator cover screws and remove the evaporator cover.
3. Disconnect the defrost thermostat wiring connector.
4. Remove the defrost thermostat from the evaporator.

I hope the above helps.......

Regards.

Good day,
Manufacturers of freezers do not give the option of running the machine much above that temperature. Normal operating temperature for a freezer is about -2 to about 8 above F.
Otherwise people could accidentally set the temp too warm and cause a loss of food.
Some appliance parts houses carry universal thermostats that could possibly cover the temperature range your looking for, but 30 degrees is far to warm to preserve frozen food safely.

When you say "The items in the freezer are cold with some ice on them. I have tried emptying the ice tray, but that does not help." Is there literally ice from the ice bucket dripping on the food and refreezing, or is there a layer of frost on the food? the noise you are hearing is most likely due to the evaporator fan motor running at alternating low and high speeds. This is a variable speed motor, but there could be quite a few reasons why the motor is not rotating at regulated speeds. the fan motor itself, a faulty thermistor, you could also have an issue with your main control board, or least of all a wiring issue.
You would be wise to have it inspected by a reliable refrigerator repair service, to at least determine what the problem is for certain.

From your description you have a bad fan/light switch. Light stays on and fan will not run, hence the warm refrigerator/freezer.

Move the refrigerator to a room that is at least 50 degrees F.

Temps on most refrigerators are regulated by the fresh foods temp. If your garage is let's say 35 degrees, the fresh foods temp will most likely never raise enough to turn the refrigerator on. With the refrigerator never running, the freezer compartment will warm to 35 degrees, resulting in everything melting. Even if garage is a bit warmer, say 45, the refrig will not run long enough for the freezer to maintain a low enough temperture. If the garage temp falls to below freezing, say 20 degrees, the food in the fresh foods compartment will freeze. (outdoor beverage dispensers have internal heaters to prevent product from freezing !) Please don't rate this if not a Fix-Ya for you, as anything else lowers my score.

the harvest mode is started when the ice cube reaches around 14 degrees so lower the temp in the freezer or decrease the size of the cubes also make sure the fan vents in the freezer is unblocked. check the temp in the freezer should be around 0 degrees.