Hi, Peter here. I have a kelvinator n640 dual door fridge/freezer that the external cabinet condensation heater is getting very hot and would like to disconnect it. which wire do I disconnect please?

Hi,

I am going to assume you refer the housing as the cabinet. If this is hot to the touch the condenser is clogged and cause this heat. Remove the toe grill under the doors, and clean/vaccum out all the dust from under the unit. Once cleaned the cabinet temp should drop, if not the condenser fan could not be running causing this heat. Clean it first before replacing anything to save money.

Good Luck

I’m happy to help further over the phone at https://www.6ya.com/expert/gere_bf68e6055dd61249

is the condenser fan running back there?also did you clean out the condenser coil?usually when the middle strip gets hot the coil is filled with dust or the fan where the compressor is isn't running.the condenser fan keeps the compressor cool and all the heat from the machine escapes out through the condenser coil.check this,also the start device could be bad on the compressor,send model number next time you write so whoever helps you can look up your machine.hope this info helps you out.

Nearly all modern fridges are self defrosting. Additionally, some models offer the option to minimize moisture on the cabinet. To do both the defrosting and controlling moisture build up, small heaters are used. Defrost heaters are located in the freezer compartment.

Typically, the other heaters are installed in the frame on the front of the fridge cabinet, near the freezer opening. This is where sub-freezing cold air would escape and contact the warmer (room temperature) outer cabinet. This causes condensation much the same way a glass of cold water "sweats" sitting on a counter or table. The warmer and more humid the room is, the more quickly the condensation will form. The heater is used to quickly evaporate any moisture that collects on the cabinet. This heater is operated at the same time as the defrost heater, and they are turned on by a timer, 2 or 3 times a day for about 20 to 30 minutes each time. When they are powered, it is expected that the cabinet will be warm to the touch. You may smell plastic, as the door seals adjacent to and in contact with the heated parts of the freezer opening are warmed, and is normal - particularly if new. The heaters should never be hot to the touch nor should smoke be seen.

I hope this helps!

That heat that you feel is part of the design of all refrigerators. Those heaters are there to keep water from condensing on the outside of the cabinet around the freezer door. Just like water condenses on a cup of Ice water. It will do the same on a refrigerator. If those small heaters were not there. The water would cause the paint to rust badly. There are various arrangements of heaters used on Freezers and refrigerators around the doors. Particularly the Freezer door.
As long as the fridge is cooling properly it is fine.
If the fridge fails to get cold, the outside of the cabinet will actually get quite hot.
Hope this helps,
Best, Mark

Hi,
You will be okay as long as the garage does not go below freezing. If the fridge gets that cold it could start to have problems.

heatman101

that is ok these fridges have the condencer lines within the walls of the fridge or some have heaters this is for condensate not to form on the fridge it keeps the fridge dry on the outside

This is normal. Modern frost free fridges have heaters built into the front edge of the cabinet to help keep the accumulation of surface condensation and excessive ice build up on the door edges inside the freezer and fridge.

It is nothing to worry about, but you might have an energy saver switch inside the fridge section that you can turn "on" to turn OFF the heaters (energy saver means the power using heaters would be OFF when the energy saver is "on", turning it "off" means the heaters are ON.

But not all fridges have a switch to turn off the heaters, so don't worry, just accept it and don't buy a new fridge until you need to.

Hope that helps, best regards!

The cold air escaping from any gaps in the door seal is likely causing the condensation build up on the exterior of the fridge. You'll need to see if you can get the door seal (it's magnetic) to lay properly against the cabinet all around the door.

Sometimes a dirty seal will cause very small gaps that will let cold air escape, so give the seal and cabinet edge a good cleaning, making sure that the surfaces are clean and dry when done. Also, check to see if the seal is tight by using a dollar bill placed between the door seal and cabinet, all around the door. Any areas that you can easily pull the bill out should be checked for tears and/or cracks in the seal.

You might have to buy a nes seal if your's is badly damaged, but usually you can restore it to working shape with some patience and a good cleaning..

The other thing to check, since you didn't provide a model number and approximate age of the fridge, is to see if you have a "energy saver" switch inside the fridge section. This will allow you to turn on edge heaters to keep the condensation from forming on the exterior of the fridge. With the energy saver "on", the heaters are turned OFF, with the energy saver switch "off" the heaters are turned on. Heaters draw more power when turned on, hence the term "energy saver" being turned on, saves you money if you don't have condensation buildup on the exterior.

This is typical for frost-free refridgerators/freezers. In order to keep ice from buiding up on the interior walls of the freezer section, the manufacturer installs electric defrosting elements and extra "warming" elements in the outer edges of the cabinet, normally around the door openings to help mitigate any frost/ice build up and surface condensation that typically occurs on the exterior surfaces as the doors are opened and closed frequently.

These edge warmers stay very warm to keep ice and condensation from accumulating and will become VERY very warm (hot) when the fridge/freezer is in the once a day defrost cycle.

Unless you have an energy saver switch (GE trademark) inside the fridge section, which you can turn off, there is no way to disable these added elements. If you find that you're getting ice building up in the freezer, you'll need to turn off the energy saver switch to resolve that issue.

Energy Saver switch "ON" means these elements are off, while having the ES switch "OFF" means those heaters are running all the time and costing you more in energy consumption

It is quite normal for fridge freezers to have what is called a door heater circuit around the freezer compartment to prevent any unwanted ice build ups ( a practice used in commercial systems). I would expect a certain amount of heat in the section described as it normally is the first part of the condenser (hot bit) circuit. As for burning the house down I have only heard of two cabinets (both in labs) that have done this and they were due to what was put in the fridges. If you are concerned though I would suggest you get a tech to check it. Hope this helps.