Posted on 02/17/2014 9:51:29 PM PST by djf
You say this is 6 months old. If so, this might still be covered by warranty. Older units defrost timer was just a clockwork motor and a switch, typically a 10 to 12 hour time cycle, and was relatively easy to replace if you were even just slightly useful with tools and weren't afraid of electrical stuff. The newer ones (probably yours) have a circuit board 'defrost control circuit' which not only is more expensive than the old clockwork timers, but often is located in obscure locations.
Even if packed, there still should be enough air circulation to allow it to function if it is defrosting properly (unless you really go to the extreme freezer packing school), but with no defrost, it will ice up even if loosely packed. Heavy packing just will accelerate the icing.
Watch this unit closely and if it ices up again you might want to have a talk with the warranty repair people, or if you are a do-it-yourselfer, your appliance repair parts place and googlebing a how-to video.. (especially if you never see any condensate in your drip tray..)
(Voice of experience ;-)
I hasten to add, IF it is still under warranty, DON’T take it apart yourself.. ;-)
That’s what I’m going to do, now that it seems to be ok and I’ve disassembled it, I’ll just watch the vents to see if they seem to be frosting up.
Didn’t see any parts inside that would be particularly hard to replace. But I do get a bit nervous working around cooling coils, the slightest breach and it’s junk!
Another note.. the fan itself sometimes fails, but that is a less likely scenario, and usually is preceded by it making a lot of noise (you know - the 'permanently lubed bearings' running out of permanent lube noise.. ;-)
The defrost timer/control is typically hidden in the dress panel inside that has the temp dial (if equipped) and the door light switch. Of course, if your temp control is digital - all bets are off and the price just went up ;-)
The old clockwork timers were easier because if they failed, you could remove the dress cover and manually spin the 'clock' until you heard a click (the switch making up to turn on the defrost tape) and then you could come back in an hour and spin it again to another click (which turned off the heat tape.) If you put things off like I do, you could keep it working for as long as you felt like doing that (which admittedly eventually causes you to break down, buy the part, and fix it correctly..)
The new ones with the solid state circuit are a bit more difficult to bypass and you'd better have a wiring diagram. ;-) Seriously though, check your drip pan once in a while for some water. Usually won't be much because the fan on the compressor is typically situated to blow air also over the pan to evaporate the condensate, but if you look often enough you should eventually catch some liquid in there. No condensate ever is a fairly good indicator of a defrost issue.
And remember, if it's still under warranty, be careful what you do because they just love telling you that you just voided the warranty by doing whatever it was you did.. (Else, use the Clinton defense - 'I don't recall..' or 'I never worked on this unit, not one time..')
Good luck ;-)
You should never have to have done this with a new fridge. What is to stop this from happening again?
My fridge never has to have this done. Over 20 years old.
I say you got a lemon.
Not yet.
But I replaced a thermostat/heat sensor on a dryer.
And I pulled apart a pump/motor on a dishwasher that was leaking and replaced the seal. That was interesting, because it’s a bi-directional pump. If the motor is turning one way, it pumps the water through the apparatus and onto the dishes.
If the motor/pump turns the other way, it is pumping the water out of the machine and into the wastewater connection.
And last night I pulled apart a 900WH UPS, because after a power failure, it kept tripping into “overload” mode.
Cleaned up all the connections, reset the batteries, blew out the dust, put it back together.
Working perfectly since then!
I use a remote reading thermometer and a hair dryer. I unplug the fridge and put the sending unit for the thermometer and the hair dryer in the fresh food compartment. I heat the inside to about 100 degrees, close it up, then let it sit for about 8-12 hours. When I open the door there is usually a pool of water in the bottom on the inside of the fridge. That means the coil drain thawed out and it is now draining properly.
A lot of refrigerators actually drain the coil into the inside in the fresh food compartment down the back wall into the bottom of the food bin where from there it drains into the drip pan.
The newer stuff is quite different from the old.
This one, for example, has no external coils.
I was surprised by that - on my old fridge, I kept a spray bottle full of water, and if it was hot or seemed the fridge was working too hard, I’d spray the coils.
Can’t do that with this one!
Had similar problems with our Kitchen Aid refrigerator. Had to open it up, remove most of the interior panels and defrost it to eliminate the ice that was blocking the duct that allowed cold air to get from the freezer compartment to the refrigerator compartment.
Yea my 20 year old Magic Chef fridge has both coils inside the cabinet. So does my new one. The old one is the one I used the method I’m talking about on. I use it now just for cokes keeping ice in the freezer part etc so if it fails no big deal. I bought a new Frigidare brand last fall for the food because I had the money to do so and I had gotten my moneys worth use from the old one.
Not enough freon.
You know, of course, the refrigerator was testing you. Your actions were documented and communicated back over WiFi to the corporate offices, which have now redirected their operational policies to rely on your efforts. It will now increase the freezer temp just to mess with you until you purchase their newly revised maintenance package.
The Coffee Maker has been watching and taking notes. All the appliances are jealous. <;^)
Lol!
Seriously, alot of Philip K. Dick’s novels had instances of appliances talking to owners and demanding payment...
The minute my door says “You’re behind in your payment. But I will open if you deposit $15.00 more this month...”
Thing the door doesn’t understand is I CAN BUILD a new door!!
;-)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.