Refrigerator Repair – What to try before calling for service

If there was an award for the hardest working appliance in your home, I would have to give it to your refrigerator. Think about what it actually does, it works 24 hours a day, 365 days a year keeping your food cool and fresh. If the contents of your refrigerator seem to be warmer than usual and you are sure the door was not left open, your food might getting warm and starting to spoil. There are many problems that can occur with a refrigerator. The good news is that not all of them will require an expensive appliance service call. All it takes to fix them is a few simple observations and changes to your daily routine to hopefully resolve them. 

Refrigerator seems to be working hard and not cooling as it should. 

If you think your refrigerator is working harder than usual or not cooling like normal, you should check to see if the condenser coils are covered in dust. If you have pets in the house their hair might also likely be gathering up on the coils. Those coils are designed to cool off the heat that’s generated because of your refrigerators efforts. With all that dust building up and acting like insulation, your refrigerator has to work harder to do its job. You can simply remove that dust by using your home vacuum cleaners hose to suck it all off. An inexpensive coil brush can be purchased to help clean off the coils. To prevent this problem in the future try this trick – cover the vent panel with something similar to old pantyhose material. It keeps dust from covering the coils but still allows air to circulate and cool everything down as they should do. Of course if the coils are clean and the fridge still feels overheated.

Excessive ice build- up in the freezer

If your refrigerator is “frost free” and you notice there is an excessive amount of frost built up on the contents of the freeze you might have an issue. Frost build up around the contents of the freezer usually indicates that there is outside air intrusion. First, clean off the frost so you are sure that the problem was not something as simple as leaving the door open for a short period of time. If the frost reappears in a few days take a close look at the door seal. Grime could cause a poor seal and allow air to seep into the freezer. Clean the door seal as well as the area of the freezer that the door seal touches.

*Defrosting your freezer is also a good time to give it a deep clean, along with your fridge. Be sure to use a cleaning product that will disinfect the surfaces. However, since you don’t want to introduce any toxic chemicals to the space where you store the food you eat, choose a product that is safe for your family and the environment. One of the best products it Sol-U-Guard disinfecting spray from Melaleuca.

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