Why is My Refrigerator Not Cooling?

refrigerator not cold

There are a lot of reasons for why a refrigerator isn’t cooling. If you would like to spare yourself a little time and burden, give S.O.S. Santa Barbara Appliance Repair a call for refrigerator repair in Santa Barbara, CA. We are eager to visit and troubleshoot the issue as well as correct it for you.

When your refrigerator is no longer cold anymore, it’s time to see what the issue is. Often times it’s something as common as a routine coil cleaning behind the refrigerator. However, with new refrigerators, they’re equipped with a variety of sensors too.

Before we look too deep, we monitor the most typical and common reasons for this problem. Here are a couple of things that we have determined can lead to a refrigerator that will not cool:

Is it plugged into an electrical outlet? This will seem like it is a odd question, but we have been called out to appointments that this was the issue. Somehow, the refrigerator was unplugged. it’s possible a child or pet did it, or an electrician during a project. Whatever the cause may be, make sure it’s plugged in.

Look at the thermostat inside. This is a very common problem for families with small children in the house. After all, children like buttons and dials and so, without knowing they’re doing anything wrong, they play with them. So, be sure that the thermostat temperature is not the reason for the warm refrigerator.

Which Refrigerator Parts to Inspect?

Check that the vents inside of the freezer aren’t blocked with boxes or food. This is very common because sometimes frozen vegetables get pushed in the back. There can be food in the back of a freezer unit that has been forgotten about.

Check that the condenser cooling fan is clean and clear of all debris. To check this, unplug the fridge and pull it away from the kitchen wall. The cooling fan for many models is right at the bottom of the appliance or in the back of the freezer unit. A lot of times, customers do not think about cleaning this section of the fridge. But, it’s important to keep it clean. And, it piles up with fuzz and dust quickly, especially with houses that have pets. So, grab a rag and get the dust out of the refrigerator coils and cooling fan.

This is not suggested for refrigerators that have the back coil system. Once all clean, plug it back into the wall and monitor if the fan spins.

The Freezer Unit is Cold but the Refrigerator is Not

There are many reasons for a refrigerator not cooling after these obvious ones to take a look at if your freezer is cool but the fridge is not. The evaporator coils have frost on them. This occurs if there is a failure in the defrost heating system. Or if the automatic defrost experiences an issue. The evaporator fan motor is another reason.

Every fridge has a set of evaporator coils. These coils are what gets cold and the fan circulates the cold air around inside the unit. The damper control assembly is not working correctly. The temperature control board carries the electricity to the compressor and fan, this probably is not the problem but it’s worth troubleshooting.

And, the thermistor might be malfunctioning, which is a tiny sensor inside the appliance that displays the temperature. Having one of our technicians inspect it is the best solution but these are some of the most typical problems.

ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES