OT Whirlpool refrigerator won't cool

Modelman · Nov 7, 2012

Hey guys, quick question. Dad's tenant just called, and the fridge in the house (Dad's house but my problem) isn't keeping things cold. He says the light works and the fan runs, so I know it's plugged in and the breaker isn't tripped. It's a 21 cu.ft. Whirlpool bought in the summer of '08, just over four years old. :angry:

Before I pay through the nose for a service guy, is there some known fault that always happens to this brand/model?

Dennis

310 Guy · Nov 7, 2012

First thing to do is clean out the lint and dirt from the condenser coils on the bottom of the unit. No airflow = no cooling.

3t3d · Nov 7, 2012

If the coils are clear, and you can hear the compressor running, then you may have a bad compressor, or a leak.
I was told that neither is repairable for less then a new unit.

Welcome to the world of cheap Chinese throw away junk.

atomarc · Nov 7, 2012

Often the defrost timer if kaput and the fridge is in 'terminal defrost'. The part is cheap and often a good first shot in the dark!

Stuart

Zonko · Nov 7, 2012

instead of shooting into the dark, why not just hardwire the compressor and see if it werks.....unless that one is runny anyways and the machine is leaky....

jhruska · Nov 7, 2012

Like Atomarc said, check the defrost timer first.
The timer can get stuck at a more than one position, like a clothes washer with the timer-function dial.
Second could be the temp-switch inside.

Modelman · Nov 7, 2012

Thanks, gives me some things to look at... I don't think it's a blocked coil, the guy is meticulous, and no dogs or cats to shed fur. I thought of thermostat / temp switch, didn't realize they had a "defrost timer."

Hope it's not the compressor :bawling:

Dennis

SBLatheman · Nov 7, 2012

I just went through a similar problem with my 4 year old Whirlpool. The freezer was cold but the refrigerator section was not...
Turns out it was the fan in the freezer section had gone bad. It is controlled by the thermostat in the refrigerator section and blows the cold air down into it.
Fan motor ~$50
Ted

vettepicking · Nov 7, 2012

circuit boards and fans . i had one problem where the freezer was cold but the fridge was not , turned out to be the door ajar switch was not hitting when the door was closed and the cold air flap between the freezer/fridge was not opening to cool the fridge side. adjusted the door up worked perfect. saved $450 service fee

adama · Nov 7, 2012

Thats one of the things i love about the EU. Currently due to nuts environmental regs were building up mountains of dead fridges and freezers. Disposal is becoming a nightmare. Yet no one can simply introduce a law requiring them to at least be partially repairable for minimal effort. No, they just plays games with the names of suitable refrigerants, not addressing the obvious solution, make the friking things so they can at least be repaired to some degree or make the suppliers make them to a designated minimum life span. Would be easy enough to simply force all the fridge and freezer makers to have a 5 year warranty! Instead they piss away there time on amount of banana bend!

RDL · Nov 7, 2012

What about a low level of Freon? Sometimes a recharge is required.

CMT John · Nov 7, 2012

If the compressor is running but it won't cool you may have a bad defrost heater. The ice builds up on the coils and blocks air flow. Try unplugging it and let it defrost. Just like Grandma did in the olden days.

John

Mike C. · Nov 7, 2012

Defroster element burned out on my GE. Iced up the freezer and no cooling (coils solid ice). Couldn't see the ice without puling the back out of the freezer. $50 fix.

On the other hand, my beer fridge out in the shop needs a new door gasket. 1942 model GE and still runs perfectly.

Bill D · Nov 7, 2012

If it is overloaded the cooling coil will ice over. Once it is iced the only real cure is a defrost. turn it off and give it time to defrost. Listen to see if the fan inside the cold section is turning. Ice can jam it. If it is iced up check to see the drain tube from the freezer is open. it can get iced up or plugged with algae. If it does not drain ice will build up. My need to run a wire or bleach to clear it.
Bill D.

El Mustachio · Nov 7, 2012

Bill D said:
If it is iced up check to see the drain tube from the freezer is open. it can get iced up or plugged with algae

... Or frozen peas. I've traced problems with my fridge / freezer twice due to some sort of obstuction in the drain tube in the freezer. Bit of a lengthy fix because you have to thoughoughly defrost the entire freezer, which means emptying the fridge too. Don't try to cheat by only partially defrosting, if its a clogged drain tube the obstruction will likely stay in place until any ice holding it in place is melted. Some drain tubes are a little work to get to. There may be a false back to the inside of the freezer that has to be removed in order to access the top end of the drain tube. Completely cost free cure if thats whats going on.

Mike C. · Nov 7, 2012

Oh yeah, if it is toast, put a light bulb in it and make a welding rod oven out of it!

Before I had any insulation in my shop condensation was a terrible problem with the high humidity and wild temp swings we get down here (81 degrees Sat afternoon, 30 this morning). I had a small dead fridge the owner left in my shop when I got here, so I put a bulb in it and stored all my micrometers, lathe tooling , mill tooling, cutters, etc... Had a little thermometer I kept in there and it stayed about 100 degreesF. Never had anything rust up.

jhruska · Nov 7, 2012

Thats a great idea Mike, just keep the peas out of the drain tube

John

oldbrock · Nov 8, 2012

Look at the back, there is a reset button on some fridges, mine quit and I was going out to buy a new one and a friend pulled it out and reset the button. been good ever since. That was four years ago. Peter

steve45 · Nov 8, 2012

No more Whirlpool refrigerators for me! I bought a used one 4 years ago and have spent more in repairs than I paid for it--and that's with my brother-in-law doing the work and wholesale prices for parts! Defrost thermostat (IIRC) failed, later the defrost heating element, then the compressor... And for the last month or two it hasn't been cooling right...

We still have a 1948 GE refrigerator that belonged to my parents. Had to replace the door gasket once.

Frederick Harvie · Nov 8, 2012

Check the obvious first. Is the thermostat controll set to a cold enough temp. On the fridge I own the controll dial is in a location that it sometimes gets bumped changing the setting . Several times in the last ten years I have discovered the fridge to warm and simply had to readjust the temperature dial

OT Whirlpool refrigerator won't cool

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