Hi, my refridge side is not staying cool because my freeze side coil is icing up. when I defrost the freezer side it works for two weeks then freezes up again. I notice that when I take the panel off the freezer back, interior and expose the fan and coil and do not make ice it stays working for weeks but then when I turned the ice back on and out the ice bucket back in that catches the ice it starts freezing up again and the refridge looses it's Cold. there are not many parts in there except the white fan which seems to spin when it's defrosted a black and a white 2x3" or so small boxes that plug in and the coil grid. any ides ? Thanks.
What is the model number of the unit?
Richard, The model is KSSC48QMS01 - I read it could be the heat element or thermostat but I wouldn't even know where to find these ? Thanks for your help.
It is easy to replace the thermostat on that unit. First, here is the part you need to order.http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/clic... Below is a diagram of the freezer section. The thermostat is number 44. The video will walk you thru the repair process. The model in the video may be a little different but the process is the same. It is an easy job to complete. Let me know if you need further help in making the repair.
Richard, Thanks for the confidence in what you believe the problem to be. Just curious why did you go straight to the thermostat rather than considering the heating element of one of the other possible reasons. Why do you rule them out and go straight to thermostat. Thanks for helping me to understand. Michael.
I guess I should have told you to check the heater for continuity but as long as I have been in this business I have probably changed 2 heaters and thousands of thermostats. Go ahead and test the heater and let me know what you find. Sorry, I guess I should have been a little more thorough.
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SOURCE: Whirlpool not cooling properly
I would expect the defrost timer to stay in defrost 21 minutes. IT seems your timer is normal.
If turning the ref section temp colder made compressor come on, it could be that the thermostat is worn a little and just needs to stay on a little cooler setting. Check the freezer temp dial and It should be at just slightly more than 1/2 of available setting. If there is A B C you would want to be a little cooler than B about B and 1/4.
I hope this helps K S
SOURCE: Freezer and icemaker freezes, jams.
I have run into this before and found it very helpful to re-level the refrigerator. By leaning the fridge back toward the wall about an inch helped keep the water and ice in the tray. Remember to remove items that block air flow in the freezer. Remove the ice bin and clean it then start over with the fridge leaning back a little. Hope this helps.
SOURCE: GE side by side. The freezer will freeze up with
Try turning the defrost timer until it clicks if it advances and does not defrost the heater or the limit switch is bad if does defrost and the timer does not advance the timer is bad
SOURCE: I have a Jenn-Air side by side frig. The freezer
If the freezer is staying cold it sounds like a defrost system problem. A bad timer, heater or thermostat can cause frost to build up on the coils and block air flow to the refrig side. Check out ACMEHowTo.com for troubleshooting the defroster problem.
There is a small duct between the freezer and refrigerator side if this is blocked the frig side won't cool.
SOURCE: 48" ge monogram refrigerator not staying cold
Hi,
Many times a freezer and/or refrigeratordo not work right because of a dirty condenser coil...there are also many otherthings that can go wrong.
If you are hearing a clicking or buzzing then check out thelast two tips.
If your refrigerator is running but warm, then...
Check out this tip that I wrote about that... it is a great place to starttrouble shooting your unit...and something that you can do rather then callinga repair person to do a simple thing for you...
Refrigerator Condenser Coil Cleaning Refrigerator Repair
Refrigerator Troubleshooting Refrigerator Compressor
Refrigerator Compressor Start Capacitor and Start Relay
Refrigerator or Freezer not Cooling or Getting Cold
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Thanks Richard - is it easy for me to take the heater out ? I have the freezer defrosted and I have access to the coil grill and some small components. Thanks.
Yes, it is easy to to get the heater out but be careful, the fins on the coil are super sharp!
Is it behind the coils ? Should I remove the coils ? Do you have a picture of the heater ? I am attaching a picture of the parts in the freezer maybe you can point out the heater and thermostat ?
The picture is way to small for me to see anything. Look at this diagram, the heater iv number 17. You should be able to just unplug it and test it without having to remove it.
Here is a picture of it.
Richard, thanks the heater has continuity like you thought. I just want to ask if it makes sense that the refridge stays cool when I have the panel off the back of the freezer exposing the coil but once I turn the ice maker on in about a day or two the refridge loosing its temp. The thermostat would work ok until the ice maker starts making ice ? because the ice makes the temp in the freezer cooler ? Cause the frost on the coils get very bad when I turn the ice maker on. Thanks.
Does the fan seem to be running at a good speed in the freezer?
When the freezer was running without the ice maker the white plastic fan seemed to me to be running fine and the coils were frosted but not enough to make the refridge loose the cold. When I turn the ice maker on the coils frost up completely and I did not think the fan was running when the refridge got hot and the alarm went on. Should it have stopped at that point ?
Hi Richard, if it is normal for the fan to stop after the coils are frosted and the refridge alarms and warms up then I will order the part (theromostat) you suggested. Should I try this ?
The fan should stop when the compressor kicks off. The fan and the frosted coils have no bearing on each other. Also, the ice maker and the coils frosting up should not be related at all.
So what should I do ? Should I try testing something else ? Does the compressor turn off when the coils get too frosted and the refridge alarm goes off ? Cause then that is why the fan turned off I guess. There may be an association with the whole ice process. The water starts filling up the ice maker and the ice maker starts dumpiong ice into the bucket. When I have the ice maker off and the panel off exposing the coils then the coils do get a bit frosted but not enough to stop cooling the refridge. It worked for over a week until I put the ice maker on. I guess it may have been a coincident and when I turned the ice maker on the coils frosted and were ready to stop cooling the refridge. I'm not sure what to do unless I run it without the ice maker for a while and then turn it on and see if it alarms. But then if it does then somehow they are related ? Confused. Thanks. I'll just go with your opinion if you think I should change the thermostat.
See if this manual will help you troubleshoot your unit. The model is slightly different but the testing and component values should be about the same. In the meantime, I will look for the service manual for your particular model. Keep me posted!
Rich I want to thank you for your help. Although we did the due dilligence and check various components your very first recommendation was the correct fix and it works great.
I am so glad you are up and running again! If you should need anything in the future, please checkout my new appliance repair website. I have a repair forum, service manuals and lots of other information. The site is free but I take donations online to try and help to cover the cost of maintaining the web server and such. Please give it a look and let me know what you think about it. Any input would be great! Thanks in advance!
MCBR415SF is the model #
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