20 Most Recent Frigidaire FRT21H8 Top Freezer Refrigerator - Page 2 Questions & Answers

Hello - To remove the toe grille you will need to have the doors of the refrigerator open, the grille simply snaps into place. Remove the right side first and then the left, as the water line is on that side. When replacing follow the steps in reverse.

The evaporator coils frost up in normal use and every eight hours or so the entire unit shuts down and the defrost heater comes on to melt the frost. This cycle last about 20 minutes. The melted frost drips into a drain pan and through a drain tube to the drain tray under the freezer/refrigerator where it's evaporated by the condenser fan.


Your drain tube may be stopped up with ice at the upper end because it drains too slow because it's stopped up at the lower end in the evaporator pan under the unit at the floor. It can get dust and mold in it. Once you get the ice out at the top a little pressure with a turkey baster will usually clear it out. Flushing it out with hot water and clorox may help.
Make sure it drains quick enough to prevent refreezing. . The drain should be located below the evaporator coils on the inside of the freezer at the bottom of the rear cover.

Number one when you can always provide model number and make...it helps enormously in troubleshooting otherwise you get these long detailed threads...from an anal tech like myself.

{Which you did provide...this is a plug-in thread I am putting in for you..Belanger...check your condenser...to see how clean it is..it sounds as if...the motor could be going out or not turning as fast an rpm as needed to remove the heat...(or it is dirty)...good luck...and always there is the compressor.}

Cold is a relative term....how cold...use a thermometer...and determine if the freezer...is at least..10-20 degrees or colder if not it is not cold enough...and here are some generic answers for that problem....I will list at the bottom of this thread...if it is

A. You will need to determine if you are getting air flow into the refrigerator side compartment..there is usually a baffle...that controls...the amount of air-flow into the frig side...it can be adjusted...if not it could be broken or have come loose...it is rare...

B. Is something blocking the baffle...as in food ...groceries...

C. The thermostat could be out of adjustment...and or going bad...(how old is the frig)..

D. Some newer units have a dual fan system..(but rare)..if the frig side fan is out...this could be the problem...

There are several reasons this can be happening...

1. The seal on the door may have a tear or may not be seating properly...this allows excess warm air into the freezer compartment and in its effort to remove the same ...frost appears.

2. There is something call a thermistor (which senses temp and ice build up) that is cycled on and off as needed to remove excess frost accumulation and or ice buildup on the evaporator (freezer) coils...it is a heat strip which actually defrost the frost/ice. If this is not working frost will accumulate and eventually it will become Ice......now the remarkable thing about Ice accumulation is that you would think everything would remain cold or get colder ..however in this case the opposite occurs...it insulates the coils and thereby increasing the temperature...put a thermometer...one that is calibrated properly...(calibration can be set by placing a thermometer into a glass of ice water...the temp of a glass of ice water..after a few minutes setting will be exactly 32 degrees)..if the temperature of your refrigerator is gradually rising over the period of a week...you will need to call a tech or replace the thermistor and or trouble shoot other problems that may have occur such as..

3. The evaporator fan may be going out although they usually make a high pitched whining noise of a whirring noise before they go out...not always and if they are intermittently cycling off then frost would build up...do you always here a fan running when you open the freezer and hold the button in above the door..(fan switch)...if so that is good...fan is working...but it may be cycling off at times when no one is aware.
P.S. the odds of it being due to overfilling are slim...I have been in the industry for 35 years and that is what freezers do...which a lot of people don't realize is that freezers don't actually cool anything ..they just remove heat and when you remove all the heat all that is left is cold (like in space) and when heat is removed quickly frost can appear like when you blow your breath on a freezing cold window..then right your name....but I digress...any way..if there was an excess of heat due to a lot of new food in the freezer it would correct itself by one of the processes i mentioned above..and it would never result in Ice..you probably have one or more of the problems I mentioned...evaluate how long its been going on...

4. Thermostat could be out of adjustment..and or not functioning
properly..which would delay or inhibit a defrost cycle..from occurring..unfortunately almost all of these problems require a tech...or a good handyman.

This should lead you in the right direction...if you need help in finding a reputable service company in your area let us know..I hope this has been helpful..if so PLEASE rate me....thank you... .......The Fang

I AM ALSO HAVING THIS PROBLEM. i HAVE LOOKED IN THE BACK FOR SOMETHING TO REMOVE AND CLEAN BUT EVERYTHING SEEMS VERY TIGHTLY ATTACHED.

there is a foam that is made to seal the water coming from the evaporator area that warps and creates a gap to the refrigerator section. if you are 100 percent sure that its not the drain then this is your problem. the foam is located at your timer and thermostat assy. housing there is four screw to removed seal that gap with permagum

I had the exact same problem with my Frigidare. The fan motor went out and cold air could not be forced into the refrigerator compartment. The fan is located in the back of the freezer compartment. Not too tough of a fix.

I want someone to unplug the refrigerator from its power source and have someone check continuity of both fresh food compartment and freezer light switches=> 240505801 Light SwitchIf that proves not to be the answer then we move on to the light bulb housing itself. I will be here to assist you all you need to do is ask or let me know if you have any questions rate this post, Thank You, Sea Breeze

Hi,
Here is a tip that I wrote about the reasons why the sides and/or seals couldbe getting hot on your refrigerator.

RefrigeratorTrouble The Outside of Refrigerator Hot
heatman101';
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The fan may have stopped working due to the build up of ice on the evaporator coil in the freezer. The most likely cause would either be a burnt out defrost heater or a bad defrost timer. Normally the defrost timer turns the heater on for about 30 minutes every 8 hours to melt the ice on the coil. If the timer fails it will either stay in cooling mode or defrost mode. The timer is usually located in the temperature control box in the refrigerator. It looks something like this:


On the side of the timer is a small cam that you can turn with a flat screwdriver. With the refrigerator plugged in, turn the cam until it clicks. When it clicks, it should be in defrost mode and the heater should start to get warm and melt the ice. You should be able to hear the ice crackling and hissing if the heater is working. If it does nothing then the problem is probally due to a burn out heater.

To get to the heater, you will need to remove the back panel from the freezer and the heater will be attached to the coil. You will need a hair dryer to melt the ice from the coil, to get to the heater. Parts can be found at your local appliance supply house or online at repairclinic.com. Hope this helps you.

Defrost water drain is plugged. find drain under evaporator in freezer **** out and pour hot water down it

Hi, There can be many reasons why your refrigerator is freezingyour food. To see what could be happening and to figure out how to possibly fixyour problem. Take a look at this tip which contains many of the causes andsolutions to fix the problems.

Refrigeratoris Too Cold and Freezing Food
heatman101

Yrur model number is missing the last three digits.... I will use FRT21H8CB1 as the example model number.
You need to do a total manual defrost with a catch basin and comprtment drain cleaning.
- Unplug the unit
- Remove fgreezer contents
- Direct an exteranl fan into the freezer compartment for just over 2 hours to ensure the compartment drain tube has defrosted.
- During the defrost period... open the fiberboard panel on the lower back of the refrigerator and clean out everything, Condensor coils, catch / drip pan (Called pan-defrost for parts), and the END of the compartment drain tube.
Model reference:
http://www.appliancepartspros.com/partsearch/model.aspx?model_id=5158190&diagram_id=1311449#d1311449

Defrost pan Item 26 of above link needs to be cleaned.
Coils Item 1 need to be cleaned
Fan blade Item 61 needs to be cleaned.

The evaporator trough, drain item 17 also should be clear. Here is what you can do without tearing everything in the back of the freezer apart. Once your sure the comprtment drain tube (no item number / bulk hose) is clean on the end. Use the exhaust of a Vacuum cleaner and the hose to force air UP through the drain hose and float out any debris from the trough drain. Have a 2nd person listen for air flow into the freezer compartment if possible. The biggest problems with freezer compartment drains is the END of the hose at the defrost pan underneath the unit clogs up and then the compartment drain hose just loads up with scum. Then the freezer stops draining and you have the symtom your describing.

After the manual defrost and cleaning return the unit to normal service.

Having said all of that... if the refrigerator then freezer starts warming up in 3 - 4 days... you may have an automatic defrost problem causing the icing. I.e it is not defrosting so the evaporator eventually ices over and forms an ice block in the back and bottom of the freezer compartment. Usually if there is an ice block that forms you wil hear the evaporator fan striking the ice build up.
If this is happening... for sure there is an automatic defrosting problem and your stuck doing a manual defrost ever 3 - 4 days until repairs are complete.

One more note.. if there is NOT any compartment drain tubing visible... your unit may port evaporator tray water down the back of the fresh food compartment to the defrost pan under the unit... just clean everything that serves as a drain function best you can during the manual defrost and cleaning process.

Thanks for choosing FixYa,
Kelly

Hi,

Check out these tips...they can help you figure out what is going wrong withyour refrigerator and why it is not cooling

Refrigeratornot Cooling or Fridge not Cooling

How to Defrost Refrigerator DefrostTimer Problem

WaterRunning in refrigerator from Freezer

Refrigeratoror Freezer not Cooling or Getting Cold
heatman101

If the ambient temp is below 52 degrees the unit will not work properly throught the cycles you will need to get what is call a garage kit to install in the unit.

it sounds like the compresor is coming apart inside it,,,have it checked out,,,it could also be the rubber mounts busted off

you could try packing out the hinges with thin washers,,,,the door has only plastic bearings on its hinges and that door is lumpy?

Hi,

Check out these tips...they can help you figure out what is going wrong withyour refrigerator and why it is not cooling

Refrigerator not Cooling or Fridge not Cooling

How to Defrost Refrigerator Defrost Timer Problem

Water Running in refrigerator from Freezer

Refrigerator or Freezer not Cooling or Getting Cold
heatman101

check the fan,when you open the freezer door do you hear the fan blowing,all the machine does is blow cold air from the freezer to the fridge side and then the air returns through vents.i've found some of the fan blades sliding back on the shaft so the motor is spinning but the blade isn't moving any air,also while you have the inside freezer back wall off check the coil to see if it's iced up,if so you have a defrost problem.let me know what you find

recharging is not somethig you do but a cert tech . the refergent is special and so are the valves and guages . if too much gas you damage compressor and too little your in the same boat . now at 3 years if you do need charging then you need to know where did the gas go . does it have a leak and if so it needs repair of new gas won't stay in system .. i would get a second opp as this is a new frig and too young to need gas . if you need more help pls tell me model # and brand . and the real problem your having . this is like starting over . mm