Freezer Not Freezing? When the Fridge Side Is Fine

If your freezer is not freezing but the fridge is still cold, the refrigerator is still making cold; something is keeping it out of the freezer or letting warm air in. The usual causes are a door that is not sealing, a freezer packed so tightly that the air cannot move, or frost starting to build on the cooling coil, and several of those you can fix tonight. If the fridge side is warm as well, start with our guide to a fridge that is not cooling instead.

First, check your food

Put an appliance thermometer in the freezer and keep the door shut as much as you can. According to USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service:

• Food kept constantly at 0°F will always be safe; only its quality suffers with long storage.
• If the freezer fails or the door is left ajar, the food may still be safe to use if ice crystals remain.
• Food that is partly frozen, still has ice crystals, or is as cold as if it were in a refrigerator (40°F) is safe to refreeze or use.
• Throw out food that has been warmer than 40°F for more than 2 hours, and anything contaminated by raw meat juices. Soft or melted ice cream should go for quality's sake.
• A full freezer usually keeps food about 2 days with the door shut, and a half-full one about a day. The freezer section of a refrigerator may not keep food frozen as long.

While you wait for a repair, group packages together so they hold the cold, and keep meat and poultry apart from other food so thawing juices cannot drip onto it.

Checks you can do yourself

1. Check the setting. The FDA says the freezer should be at 0°F. Frigidaire's suggested factory settings are 37°F for the fridge and 0°F for the freezer, and Samsung's default freezer setting is -2°F. If someone turned it warmer, set it back and give it 24 hours. On Samsung models, also make sure the display does not show OF OF or OFF, which means cooling has been switched off.
2. Make sure the door closes. An ice bin, a bag or a basket that is not pushed all the way in can hold the door open a fraction of an inch. Frigidaire's advice is to make sure nothing is blocking the door and that it closes properly.
3. Test the gasket. Close the freezer door on a dollar bill or a sheet of paper, all the way around, and tug it. If it slides out with no resistance, clean the gasket with warm soapy water, as Frigidaire suggests, and test again.
4. Unpack the vents. Whirlpool warns that overpacking can cover the evaporator fan and block the airflow, and Samsung recommends keeping food 2 inches clear of the vents. Remove a few items and clear a path to the back wall.
5. Look at the back wall. Pull out the baskets or shelves. Heavy or uneven frost on the back panel points to a defrost problem.
6. Listen for the freezer fan. With the door closed, you should hear air moving behind the back panel while the refrigerator runs. A fan that is silent, or one that whines, is a clue.
7. Clean the condenser coils. Unplug the refrigerator first. The coils are behind the kick plate or on the back, and Whirlpool notes that dust on them weakens the cooling.
8. Wait 24 hours. Frigidaire says the temperature needs 24 hours to stabilize after a change, a power outage or a new installation.

Freezer not cold but fridge is

In most refrigerators there is one cooling coil, behind the back wall of the freezer, and the fridge gets its cold air secondhand from the freezer. So when the freezer is warm and the fridge is fine, the cold is being made but is not staying in the freezer. For this case, Whirlpool points to frost buildup or clogged venting in the freezer, and door and gasket leaks belong on the list as well.

Some refrigerators, including Samsung models with Twin Cooling Plus, use two separate evaporators for the fridge and the freezer. On those, a freezer fan or defrost problem can leave the fridge side untouched.

Freezer not freezing but cold

A freezer can feel cold and still be too warm to freeze properly: ice cream turns soft, meat gives when you press it, and the thermometer sits well above 0°F. Work through checks 1 to 4 and 7 first. If it still will not reach 0°F a day later, a part is failing, most often the evaporator fan or the defrost system.

Why a freezer is not cold enough

The door seal, or a door left ajar

A torn, flattened or dirty seal, or a door that does not quite close, lets warm, humid Florida air in. The freezer warms, and the moisture turns into frost. Whirlpool also notes that a refrigerator warms when the door is opened often and for long periods.

Overpacking and blocked vents

The freezer fan pushes cold air out through vents. Bury them under bags of frozen vegetables and the cold stays near the coil while the food at the front warms.

The evaporator fan

Whirlpool notes that a faulty evaporator fan can make the freezer loudly click, buzz or hum, and that the freezer typically also struggles to stay cold. A fan slowed by a worn bearing may still turn but not move enough air. Our guide to fridge noises covers the sounds.

Early defrost problems

Every frost-free freezer melts the frost off its coil on a schedule. When a defrost heater, defrost thermostat, sensor or the control fails, frost keeps building. A defrost failure usually shows up first as a warm fridge, which we cover in refrigerator not cooling but freezer works, but it is better caught early: frost on the back wall, ice around the vents, or a freezer that keeps drifting above 0°F. Whirlpool notes that ice freezing against the evaporator coils obstructs airflow in the freezer, and that a freezer that ices up quickly should be checked by a professional. The same failure can freeze the drain and leave water in the fridge.

If you cannot get a technician right away, a manual defrost buys time: move the food, unplug the refrigerator, prop the doors open and lay towels down. Samsung's procedure runs until the towels stay dry or about 24 hours pass, and warns never to use a hair dryer or other heat source. The frost returns until the failed part is replaced.

Condenser coils

The condenser is where the refrigerator sheds its heat. Dusty coils or a failed condenser fan weaken the whole system, and on a hot day the freezer may stop holding 0°F.

When both the fridge and freezer are warm

If both sides are warming, the problem is the part that makes the cold: the compressor, its start relay, the condenser fan or the control. Our guide to a fridge that is not cooling covers that case. Refrigerators that are not cooling get priority scheduling, so tell us when you call.

What usually fails

• Evaporator fan motor. A warm freezer, often with a whine or a silent back panel.
• Defrost heater, thermostat or sensor. Frost building on the back wall.
• Door gasket. Frost near the door and a seal that fails the bill test.
• Condenser fan motor. A warm freezer and a compressor running hot.
• Thermistor or control. Temperatures that do not match the setting.
• Sealed system. The least common cause and the most expensive, and it must be handled by an EPA-certified technician.

What it costs in Jacksonville

The diagnostic visit is 79 (119 for built-in refrigerators), and it is waived when you approve the repair. Repairs start at 179 labor plus parts, quoted in writing before any work begins. Fans, gaskets and defrost parts sit at the lower end; sealed-system work costs the most, and you get an honest opinion from our repair-or-replace guide before anything is done. We carry common parts on the van, so most repairs are finished on the first visit, and every repair carries our 90-day parts-and-labor warranty. See our pricing.

Schedule refrigerator repair or call (904) 561-4790 for same-day service across Jacksonville & the First Coast.