Dying Refrigerator? Advice Needed...

"Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing." (granfury)
07/29/2017 at 16:47 • Filed to: None

Food is warm, frozen items are thawing. Compressor cycling on and off (although it’s on for a loooong time), but I wonder if that’s due to overheating/timeout rather than it reaching a reasonable temp. No puddles on the floor, plenty of room in the back and below - nothing blocking airflow.

What could be failing? Anything I can look for to get it cooling properly?

DISCUSSION (10)

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
07/29/2017 at 16:51

My guess: compressor seals, loss of refrigerant. If that’s the case, not a whole lot you can do. Unless it’s a vintage fridge of some kind with value (unlikely), might be doomed.

If it were a controls problem, it could lead to not staying on *enough*, but if the compressor is running and no cold, I think it’s toast.

Quadradeuce > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
07/29/2017 at 16:58

Mine died recently because the compressor fan burned out. Without proper airflow, the compressor died. If I had caught it, I could have saved the compressor. Usually by the time you notice the issue, it’s too late.

I did get a screaming deal at Costco for a new fridge. Went as basic as we could while style getting a nice LG French door model. I was told by a salesman that fridges are designed to last about 8 years.

Toby F., Manager > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
07/29/2017 at 17:17

Something similar happened to ours. Check and/or replace the thermostat(s). Ours was acting up, which then led to the thermostat(s) freezing over and a build up of ice — which also prevented efficient cooling and flow.

Steve in Manhattan > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
07/29/2017 at 17:26

There are vents at the back of the freezer that can get clogged with ice - that happens to us sometimes. There is no such thing as a frost-free freezer.

Captain Brotatohead > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
07/29/2017 at 17:45

I have a side by side and once experienced a broken circulating fan. Basically the bottom half of the fridge would be frozen on both sides and the top would be warm. It was a relatively easy fix after finding an $80 part online. You might be able to troubleshoot the problem online and fix it yourself.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
08/01/2017 at 10:19

Budget? I bought a nice new fridge at Home Depot for under $400. A serviceable fridge could be had at a used appliance store for under $200, maybe even delivered at that price.

Punt, Yo.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
08/01/2017 at 11:35

I’m a renter right now so the fridge isn’t mine. The landlord looked at it on Sunday and was going to talk to his appliance guy. If he can fix it he will, and since it appears to be the internal fan I expect that he will, otherwise he’ll swap it out with a used one. In the meantime my ice cream is drinkable...

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
08/01/2017 at 12:26

Yeah. Hopefully, your LL is a good dude.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
08/01/2017 at 13:58

Pretty good guy. He let me slide a month on the rent when I was unemployed last year, and I just recently got caught up. I pay him every two weeks and he seems cool with that, so at least I don’t have to give him most of my paycheck at the beginning of the month. He hasn’t raised the rent in 5 years, and is probably just happy to have a stable, mature long-term tenant instead of the usual assortment of college kids that come and go.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
08/01/2017 at 14:47

That last part, I would have said.