I emptied my fridge, unplugged it, and went on vacation for 6 weeks. when i returned it would not work. when i plugged it in, the inside light turned on but that's it. eventually, i found an small orange dial (inset so not to be readily seen) on the top of the inside of the fridge that is not well in sight. i managed to turn it w/a screw driver and the fridge came on. but, now it turns off and doesn't work unless i turn that orangeish screw from time to time. suggestions? was a knob once attached to that screw?

Hold down "Energy Saving" and "Lighting" buttons simultaneously for 10 seconds (or top left & right buttons). Display panel returns immediately. Or try pressing the power freeze and vacation buttons for about 3 secs and it worked great.

Okay, When going away most people empty the tank completely. When returning you must start it as if brand new out of the box. Follow the MFR's instructions for an initial fill and heating.
Some don't empty but just unplug just as you did. Places like Arizona with very low humidity can dry out or lower the tank water where the heating element is not in water. This element will overheat and trip out the thermal fuse.
**Another scenario is the empty unit was plugged in and heating while someone was going to get the water. Over heat then blows fuse.
** The "Vacation" switch is very visible so you probably have tried it already and you have already checked the outlet and breakers. Still looks like a thermal fuse problem.
** Switches do go bad as they are turned on and off daily. Possible yours was bad before but never noticed as it was never turned off till on vacation.
** There are other possible scenarios but all point to a thermal fuse, thermal limit, blown fuse, switch, Heater element, or cut wire (Mice). All are electrical problems and require a MFR tech. Contact your vendor or MFR for service.
*Have a safe New Year, Aloha! ukeboy57

You got suckered by the sounds of it.... if your freezer is working your fridge is fine as far as gas charge goes.... thermostat MAY have been faulty but I doubt it.... Your problem probably started a couple weeks ago when the drain that allows defrosted ice (water) to drain into the drain pan at the base of your fridge became plugged for some reason. Then everytime the fridge went on defrost more water melted but did not drain which in turn froze. Now ice has built up and caused the air that flows into the fridge to be blocked, causing a warm fridge.... my advice is to leave fridge unplugged for 48 hrs to thaw it and find the cause of the water not to drain... could be a corn niblet or pea from the freezer... the tube should be visible from the inside or the back

You refrigerator was made by Frigidaire Adaptive Defrost Controls Frigidaire Refrigerator Trouble Shooting and Diagnosing
On the initial plugin, or when power is restored to the fridge after a power outage:
If terminating thermostat is open, the fridge enters a compressor (cooling) cycle.
If the terminating thermostat is closed, the first defrost cycle occurs 1 hour
after initial plug-in.
Maximum defrost cycle time is 24 minutes.
Minimum time between defrost cycles is 6 hours. (compressor runtime)
Maximum normal clock time between defrost cycles is 12 hours.
Maximum time between defrost cycles (in "vacation" mode) is 72 hours.
Vacation mode is not entered unless the door has not been opened in at least 24 hours.
Note that the ADC will only enter the defrost mode if the terminating thermostat is closed. If the terminating thermostat is open when defrost is initiated, the ADC board will wait for six minutes and then return to the cooling mode.
ASSUMING that the fridge has been on and running,
and the terminating thermostat is closed,
defrost is initiated by pressing the door (light) switch
at least five times within six seconds.
The defrost heater should start heating up within 8 seconds.
If the above procedure caused the heater to heat up, the ADC board is probably bad; replace it.
If the defrost heater does not heat up, test the defrost heater, terminating thermostat and cold control for continuity as follows:
Unplug the fridge from the wall. Unplug the ADC board from its connector.
Test the connector for continuity between the following leads:
Defrost Heater = DEF TERM (blue) to DEF OUT (brown).
Terminating Thermostat = DEF TERM (blue) to NEUTRAL (lt blue).
Cold Control = COLD CONTROL (orange) to L1 (black).
Replace the defective component.

have you checked to make sure there isn't a breach in the door seal anywhere. Even a slight breach could elevate temp.

shut it off 4 hours with both doors open, let it fully defrost, put your frozen stuff in a cooler, then re start it, the evaporator coils make be frozen up

replace the ptc overload relay on the compressor,it merely unplugs,it supplies start and run power to the compressor and if its bad it will allow the compressor to operate on the start windings too,and draw a lot of current

This is not good. Was your tv unplugged or just power button off when you left for vacation. PlasmaTvs are highly susceptible to damage from power surges caused by lighting. Leave unplugged for at least five minutes then plug back in and see if this helps.

Try these solutions in these order:
1. Switch off the fridge and leave the door open overnight. Switch it back on in the morning.
Explanation: The sensor inside the fridge gets frozen and cannot control the temperature properly.
2. Switch off the fridge. Unplug it. At the back of the fridge (behind the unit, not inside) there is a large grid. Clean it with a hoover thoroughly. Open the fridge. Dry the back of the fridge if wet (inside the fridge). If frosted wait for it to defrost and then dry it. Plug in the fridge. Switch the fridge back on. This one worked for me.
Explanation: The dust in the grid deprives the fridge from cooling down and the unit can't control the temperature in the fridge section.
3. Switch off the fridge. -Unplug it. Empty it. Turn it upside down. Plug it in. Switch it on for 24 hours. Switch it off. Unplug, return to normal and switch on.
Explanation: This has to do with the pressure of the gas inside the compressor. I have not tried it but this advice as given to me by a qualified electrician when I commented the (in)famous F2 problem in Liebherr fridge/freezers.
Hope it helps. Regards. Albert

The most likely answer is a slow freon leak assuming it was getting to the right temperature before you went on vacation.