A fridge is a vital household appliance that preserves food and chills drinks. A refrigerator makes it easy for you to stockpile food items for an extended period. Hence, it’s a bad sign when your fridge isn’t freezing.
This article will highlight the primary factors that can make your fridge stop freezing. We’ll also discuss what to do when your fridge isn’t freezing. Therefore, you’ll be able to prevent your ice box from becoming a coffin for your perishable food items.
How Does the Freezer of my Fridge Work?
Before we dive into the problems of your fridge not freezing properly, let’s cover the basic functionalities of a refrigerator. By understanding the way, the fridge works, you’ll have a better grasp of resolving any freezing issues.
Typically, a freezer works with a liquid coolant that runs through a cooling pipe. Other components that contribute to your fridge’s freezing ability include:
- The compressor, which pumps refrigerant gas into the freezer
- The condenser, which transforms gaseous refrigerant into liquid form
- The evaporator, which moves heat from the freezer to the condenser
- The accumulator, which stores reserve refrigerant to replace some of the lost ones
- The filter, which removes dirt and debris from the refrigerant
Any of these parts can cause your fridge not to freeze if faulty. Therefore, if your fridge isn’t freezing adequately, check for errors with these components first.
Why is My Fridge Not Freezing?
Your groceries and food items risk spoiling if your freezer struggles to stay frozen. Early detection of a problem can reduce your spending on fridge repair services.
With that in mind, here’s what to look for when your freezer stops working.
Frost Build-up
Frost in your freezer is good for keeping the atmosphere chilled. However, excess frost can be detrimental to the freezer. The accumulated ice can block the coils and vents that keep the freezer running smoothly.
If you’re wondering why your fridge isn’t freezing in excess frost, you know what the issue is. You can thaw out the extra ice by turning off the power to the refrigerator. Over time, the ice will slowly melt and become easy to remove.
Avoid using a sharp object to scrape the sides of the freezer as this can damage an essential component.
Related Article: How To Repair Fridge Making Loud Noises
Over Packing Food Items in the Freezer
Another reason for your fridge not freezing properly is overpacking. If your freezer is overpacked with food items, these items can block airflow from the evaporator.
The freezer can’t remove excess heat in the compartment due to a blocked evaporator. Consequently, the compartment won’t get frozen.
If your fridge isn’t freezing well, and you notice the clutter of food items in your freezer, we advise you to rearrange it. Take out the freezer shelves and rearrange food items in them neatly. Once you unblock the evaporator’s airflow path, the freezer should freeze adequately.
Broken Start Relay
A broken start relay can cause your fridge to work but not freeze properly. The start relay supplies power to the compressor, which pumps the refrigerant gas into the freezer.
A faulty start relay means the compressor can’t supply the freezer with refrigerant gas. The absence of refrigerant gas will lead to a poor freezing performance from the freezer.
A broken start relay might be challenging to spot. Call a fridge technician if you notice the fridge isn’t freezing well enough and can’t detect any physical problems. The appliance technician can quickly spot the problem and fix it.
Dirty Condenser Coils
Condenser coils are responsible for converting gaseous refrigerant into liquid form. If these condenser coils are dirty, they can misbehave and fail to cool the gas properly. Once this happens, the refrigerant won’t be enough to chill the freezer.
Dirty condenser coils are a leading cause of your fridge not freezing properly. We advise you occasionally clean out the condenser coils to prevent dirt build-up.
You don’t have to wait for the coils to get visibly filthy. Instead, use a duster to clean the coils regularly.
Broken Evaporator Fan Motor
The evaporator fan in your freezer keeps cold air swirling throughout the freezer’s interior. Therefore, a faulty evaporator fan will reduce the cold air in the freezer.
Here’s how to check whether the evaporator fan is defective:
- As a precaution, the evaporator fan will turn off when the fridge is open.
- To test the evaporator fan, open the freezer door and manually hold down the freezer door switch.
- The evaporator motor should start running as the freezer door switch is pressed.
- If the motor doesn’t run, it’s defective, and you may need fridge repair services to check it.
Poorly Sealed Freezer Door
The fridge’s door gasket is responsible for keeping warm air outside the fridge and keeping cold air within the refrigerator. That’s why inspecting your gasket is part of what to do when your fridge isn’t freezing.
If the freezer door isn’t shutting well due to a faulty gasket, cold air will leak out, and warm air will enter. This will increase your freezer’s internal temperature.
You’ll have to test the door gasket to spot the weak area. Here’s what you need to do.
- Place a piece of paper flat on the gasket and shut the freezer door.
- Pull at the piece of paper and check for any resistance.
- The gasket is loose and may need replacement if there’s little to no resistance.
Related Article: How to Repair Fridge Not Cooling Yourself If You Can
Final Thoughts
There are numerous reasons your fridge doesn’t freeze properly anymore. You can fix a faulty freezer door in a matter of minutes. But you may need professional help to fix a faulty start relay or evaporator fan motor.
This is where our same-day freezer repair and maintenance services will prove useful. Call 647-905-7364 today and Prime Appliance Repairs will send a technician to you the same day.
