Door panel is not working but inside lights is on. Cooling is also off. What is the problem and how to fix it?

There are a few possibilities. Freeze-ups are a result of the unit either not having sufficient airflow or the compressor running too long and too often. As you note the fan is good, chances are airflow is not the issue. There are a few quick items that you can check on:

1. Check door seals. Leaks will cause the interior to lose cooling faster and result in compressor overloading.
2. Do not overload the freezer. Too much inside the freezer will cause loss of airflow INSIDE the unit and can cause issues.
3. Avoid putting too much unfrozen material into the freezer at once. It takes a lot of work to remove all the heat from a large amount of material.
4. Avoid multiple opening and closing of the door. Upright freezers are inefficient as they lose all their cold air as soon as you open the door. Chest freezers do better if you must go into the unit often.

Lastly, undercharged refrigerant system can cause the same issue. If you don't have any of the other problems noted, have a serviceman check the refrigerant and fill the system as needed.

Hello Deena;

My name is Peter. I am a retired field service refrigeration technician.

There is no reset for the alarm. The alarm goes off when you are not maintaining temperature.

During the time the door was ajar, warm air got into the freezer either icing up and locking the cooling fan or forming a block of ice on the cooling coils (Restricting cooling air flow.)

The best thing you can do, unless you want a $300.00 plus service call to defrost everything, is to turn power off to the freezer. Open the freezer door. Have plenty of old towels to soak up the water in the bottom of the freezer as it defrost.

You did not provide a model number which is located on the inside wall of the freezer. Every 8-10 hours your freezer will completely shout down for 20-30 minutes where only the light works and the defrost heater turns on. The ice build up is too much for the defrost heater to handle.

In some freezers the defrost mode is in the control board, in others it is a separate component that you can repeat trip using a flat head screw drive.

usually means low freon... (of) and evaporator fan failure. can you hear the fan running in the freezer portion?...

pull the unit from the wall, remove the bottom back panel , see if the small fan is working ,if the fan is , there's probally alot of dust back there,unplug the fridg. and vacuum the area real good,use a flash light to make sure you get it all, if the fan is not working and the compressor is running the fan is the problem ,the fan keeps the compressor and coils cool so the freon can cool down so the unit works like it should,if the freon is hot ,the air the fridg.will be blowing will be hot. this should fix your problem, and YES its worth fixing.alittle p.m.saves alot of $$$$$$$$$

check your owners manual to ensure it is not in the sabbath mode. if this is ok their could be a low voltage board problem behind the display or high voltage board in the rear of the refrigerator. unplugged the refrigerator before proceeding to repair it.

Red light on for High Freezer Temperature Warning
or freezer not cooling, but fridge is and a lot of noise from compressor.
Also, fridge drain hole blocked, water in bottom of fridge.

This is a common fault in Hotpoint Fridge Freezers and can also happen if the door has been left open or has been a power cut.

1. Turn off fridge freezer, or at least turn down the freezer temp to minimum, though not ideal.
2. Open freezer door and remove all drawers.
3. Remove the back panel on the inside of the freezer. This is held in place with 4 screws, which might be 6mm hex head or star allen head. Pull the panel out.
4. Behind where the panel was, there is a cooling element for cooling, pipes, and below this a temperature sensor. If the fridge freezer is not switched off, then fold together a few layers of tinfoil and wrap around the sensor.
5. Use a hairdryer to slowly melt the ice. Melt it around areas where it appears to be hanging on, such as the corners of the cooling element or bolts, as well as any thin sections below the main block of ice around the cooling element, which will be supporting the main block. Use a plastic ice scraper to remove ice but not near pipes or sensor.
Warning: Be careful using electrics around water & melting ice & drips.
6. Below the cooling element, there is a drip channel & drain hole. If this hole is full of ice, pour a small amound of warm water down, leave for 10 seconds and pour a bit more until clear.
In the fridge, clear the drain hole in the same way.
Warning: Do not pour a lot of water down, as this water drains onto a tray above the hot compressor at the rear of the fridge freezer to be evaporated by the heat of the compressor and the tray will only hold a small amount.
7. When all ice is removed, dry all moisture. Put the shelves back. Close door. Turn on fridge freezer. Turn up the freezer temperature to your normal setting. Turn on fast freeze if available. After 1 hour, check with a thermometer. It should be cold enough after 1 or 2 hours.

Red light on for High Freezer Temperature Warning
or freezer not cooling, but fridge is and a lot of noise from compressor.
Also, fridge drain hole blocked, water in bottom of fridge.

This is a common fault in Hotpoint Fridge Freezers and can also happen if the door has been left open or has been a power cut.

1. Turn off fridge freezer, or at least turn down the freezer temp to minimum, though not ideal.
2. Open freezer door and remove all drawers.
3. Remove the back panel on the inside of the freezer. This is held in place with 4 screws, which might be 6mm hex head or star allen head. Pull the panel out.
4. Behind where the panel was, there is a cooling element for cooling, pipes, and below this a temperature sensor. If the fridge freezer is not switched off, then fold together a few layers of tinfoil and wrap around the sensor.
5. Use a hairdryer to slowly melt the ice. Melt it around areas where it appears to be hanging on, such as the corners of the cooling element or bolts, as well as any thin sections below the main block of ice around the cooling element, which will be supporting the main block. Use a plastic ice scraper to remove ice but not near pipes or sensor.
Warning: Be careful using electrics around water & melting ice & drips.
6. Below the cooling element, there is a drip channel & drain hole. If this hole is full of ice, pour a small amound of warm water down, leave for 10 seconds and pour a bit more until clear.
In the fridge, clear the drain hole in the same way.
Warning: Do not pour a lot of water down, as this water drains onto a tray above the hot compressor at the rear of the fridge freezer to be evaporated by the heat of the compressor and the tray will only hold a small amount.
7. When all ice is removed, dry all moisture. Put the shelves back. Close door. Turn on fridge freezer. Turn up the freezer temperature to your normal setting. Turn on fast freeze if available. After 1 hour, check with a thermometer. It should be cold enough after 1 or 2 hours.

It was the fan at the top of the freezer that had stopped working after 3 years, therefore the freezing air wasn't getting to the top of the freezer. From the inside, unscrew light unit and unclip, pop out two circular discs at top and unscrew one screw. Unscrew 2 more screws and prise the back panel off. (Arrows mark the clips). Pull off fan, take out motor, replace (keeping rubber bits) and push back fan with a bit of nail varnish on spindle. Put everything back together. Turn on, depress door light switch and after 30 seconds fan should rotate. You can buy a fan on eBay or from www.4daewoo.co.uk for about 40 pounds.

The air in the freezer is circulated by a fan, there are a number of possibilities
1. Is the internal fan running, this may be switched by the door opening, to test push the small switch on the door frame ( if fitted). If the fan is running go to
2. If the fan is running can you feel air coming out of the bottom of the duct inside at the bottom.
3. If there is no air coming out of the duct the duct is possibly blocked with ice, or the cooling coil at the top is iced up.
4. If there is no air flow then the best and quickest option is to empty the freezer, store your goods elsewhere, switch it off, use a wedge to keep the door partly open and leave off for at least 24 hours. You may find a large pool of water on the floor after this and you will also need to dry out the inside of the cabinet.

Icing of this type is caused by
1. Door not being closed properly, door misaligned or faulty door seals.
2. Putting "hot" product (over 2deg C / 34 deg f) into the freezer.
3. Not covering or sealing product being stored in the freezer.
4. Defrost timing not working (ask your service guy) for this and the rest I'm afraid
5. Defrost heater not working
6. Blocked condensate drain
7. Faulty thermostat, keeps on cooling

Hope this helps

look for the manual its usually underneath...remove the grille and look inside. sometimes its taped up

i can help you troubleshoot if you find!