Freezer does not defrost it is amana modelDRB2201CW, ICE BUILD UP IN ONE WEEK AND NO COLD AIR FOR FRIDGE AREA BUT FREEZER PART IS WORKING, THOUGH NOT AS IT SHOULD

is the fridge going into defrost mode or is freezer building up with ice? may also want to check the cold control thermostat knob and the defrost timer and also check door seals

Since neither is getting cold enough, I would start by cleaning the condenser grill under you unit and making sure you have good air flow across it. Even if that is not the problem, this will help your unit work more effeciently, and allow the coolant heat to be disapated.
The most likely cause though is the defrost circuit. If you remove the inner back panel in the freezer section and find a lot of ice around the evaporator coils then that is the most likely cause. NOTE: If it is the defrost circuit, then manually defrosting the unit will get the unit working for about two weeks before the ice build up happens again.
The defrost circuit is made up of the defrost heater, defrost thermostat (both located in the freezer section close to the evaporator coils) and the defrost timer (newer units have incorporated it onto the control board) that is located either in the fresh food section or cabinet control area.

Hello Nicole,

Their are a few things that couldbe causing your refrig.troubles.

1) their is ice build up in the return air vents that is not allowing air to flow correctly
you can see the air vents under the crispers in the ref.floor and can see if they
blocked with ice.

2) the freezer fan is bad and not circulating cold air into and out of the ref.

3) In addation to the defrost timer,perhaps the deforst heater and defrost thermostat are bad and frost is building up in the freezer,Do ya see frost
build up in the freezer??


GENE

I would check the evaporator fan and make sure that is is turning to blow the cold air from the freezer section to the refrigerator section. With bottom mount freezer, that fan is very important since cold air drops.

If the fan is operational then you need to check out the defrost circuit (defrost heater, defrost thermostant, defrost timer) and make sure that is operating. If you take off the back panel (interior) of the freezer, and see a lot of ice build up then you will need to defrost the unit (a hair dryer will speed up the process) and then troubleshoot the defrost circuit and order the parts you will need to fix it. Once defrosted, the unit should work for a several days to a couple of weeks before the ice buildup affects the unit again, which will give you time to receive the parts you need.

NOTE: When you defrost the unit make sure you are ready to deal with all the water. Either spongs and a bucket or a wet/dry vacuum.

the freezer has ice build up which is blocking cold air from being blown into the fridge,defrost entire unit overnight and retry if good but fault returns then you have a defrost problem

Check that your condenser grill is clear and clean, to make sure you have the air circulation around it as required. If that isn't the problem, the next likely problem is that the frost free has stopped working and you have ice build up.

I would suggest you manually defrost the unit and see if it then will function. If it does, then you will need to order and install the defrost unit for your refrigerator. But you can use the refrigerator for several weeks before the ice build up does the same thing.

Check to see if there is ice build up in the connection from the freezer to the fridge. The fridge part gets the cold air from the freezer. If area is blocked, cold air is not coming down.
You will have to defrost the fridge to remove the blockage. Place all the contents into another refrigerator. Unplug the fridge and allow it to defrost for 48 hrs. Make sure you have towels to collect the moisture from the freezer.

It sounds like the condenser coil might be freezing up. This happened to me on my bottom freezer. The cooling part of your fridge is only in the back of the freezer compartment. The cold air from the freezer blows up through a vent in the back to the fridge and comes out at the top. If the coils do not defrost (which is what happened with mine) the air flow is blocked by the ice and can't get to the fridge compartment. Your freezer will still be cold but your fridge won't. If you pull the plug on it and time things right you can defrost the coils but this will only postpone the problem. Both will work for awhile again until the coils ice up again. You can also pull out the freezer drawere and try to defrost the coil with a blow dryer. You have to disconnect the icemaker and pull out the back panel behind the freezer to get to it though.

you may have ice build up at the freezer section. kindly look at the back side of the freezer if you have ice build up.

if you do then you have problem with defrosting.

tnx 4 using fixya,

drcool

too much ice bulid up will stop enough cold air being blown into the fridge.Try turning it off letting all ice melt then turn it back on again and set thermostat at a lower temp.There may be ice you can't see.