Refrigerator not cold enough

Bill Newberry

• 93 Answers
• Posted on May 15, 2008

SOURCE: GE side by side Refrigerator approx. 8 years old. Fridge side barely cold.

With your fridge, does the light go out when you shut the refrigerator door?
That could be your issue, that light running inside will create Alot of heat.
Also check to see if there is air circulating from the freezer to the fridge side through the damper. The damper is on the Fridge side left wall up towards the top. That is where the cold air gets to the fridge side. If that damper doesn't open that will also cause your problem, Let me know how you make out.

Bill

SOURCE: refrigerator not cold enough

Hi Tin Man!
You may have identified the problem with the frosted over freezer coils... are they to the point of being ice encased? In addition to cooling the freezer, this is also the primary source for the refriferator cold air... I would try defrosting the unit again, with it disconnected from power, try and go longer this time, with the doors open.
When you power back up, reset both temp settings to mid-range (5) and let it run at least 8-12 hours to stabilize... try to avoid opening the doors too much while it cools down, and see how it does.
If it still doesn't cool down sufficiently, you may have damaged air control port flaps, not allowing the cold air introduction into the fridge compartment.
This could also be a control/sensor issue, i.e.: the setting knob is malfunctioning, or the temp sensor might be bad, as could the electronic controller.... in other words the info source and control system that directs how the flaps are opened and closed might be at fault.
Refrigerators have become much more sophisticated since the advent of the microchip, but the basics still apply... just try and use the process of elimination to isolate the problem.

Hope this helps and good luck!
-WB

SOURCE: Amana refrig

Check to see if there is any frost buildup in the back wall of the freezer. If so, it is not defrosting as it should.

• possible causes:

1. bad defrost timer
2. bad defrost heater (in freezer)
3. bad thermo switch in freezer

tom wright

• 219 Answers
• Posted on May 20, 2009

SOURCE: Refrigerator and Freezer are not cold enough

sounds like your fridge is iced up.To cheak this you will need to remove rear panel in freezer compartment and cheak if there is ice buld up.If so you may need a defrost timer or your drain tube may be plugged..If those are fine cheak if your defrost thermostat is ok and not split.Hope this helped:)

SOURCE: fridge-side not cold enough

A refrigerator or freezer that is cooling, but cooling poorly, may have a problem in one of several areas:

Evaporator coils
Condenser
Poor cooling is often the result of a heavy frost build-up on the evaporator coils or a condenser that is clogged with dust, lint, and dirt.

Evaporator coils Poor cooling is often the result of a heavy frost build-up on the evaporator coils. You can't see these coils without removing a panel on the inside of your freezer. A sure sign that there is a build-up is the presence of any frost or ice build-up on the inside walls, floor, or ceiling of the freezer. Such a frost build-up usually indicates a problem in the self-defrosting system or damaged door gaskets.

The refrigerator is supposed to self-defrost approximately four times in every 24 hour period. If one of the components in the self-defrosting system fails, the refrigerator continues to try to cool. Eventually, though, so much frost builds up on the evaporator coils that the circulating fan can't draw air over the coils. There may still be a small amount of cooling because the coils are icy, but with no air flow over the coils, cooling in the refrigerator compartment is quite limited.

Here's an inexpensive, though inconvenient, way to determine if the problem is with the self-defrosting system. Remove all of the perishable food from the refrigerator and freezer, turn the thermostat in the refrigerator to Off, and leave the doors open for 24 to 48 hours. (Be sure to have several towels ready in case the melting frost and ice causes the drip pan to overflow). This allows the refrigerator to defrost "manually." When the frost and ice build-up has completely melted away, turn the thermostat back to a normal setting. If the refrigerator then cools properly, it indicates a problem with one of three components in the self-defrosting system:

• The defrost timer
  
  
• The defrost thermostat (also called the bi-metal switch)
  
  
• The defrost heater