I am still trying to figure out why an appliance maker would make such a poor design for a refrigerator?

We were given an older refrigerator (purchased around 2000) by our in-laws as a basement fridge when they upgraded their kitchen and their current fridge became their basement fridge and we got the old one.

It ran fine for about two years but then this past summer it started running like 24/7/365 and I knew it was probably dirty coils. I got tired of it running like this and finally just unplugged it and emptied it around a month ago and it sat until today when I decided to try and clean them.

Well, the coils are on the very bottom of the refrigerator and I had to flip it down on its side and then unbelievably they are half hidden by a metal protective plate. That was a total PITA to remove, which was then attached to the compressor and fan.

The entire coil assembly was disgustingly dirty and thick with dust and grime, and I cleaned it off as best I could, but still couldn’t reach 1/3 of it as it seemed to be permanently attached to that plate.

Then the damn thing started leaking oil and I tried to put it back together and it just wasn’t happening and I gave up. So we are going to be buying a new one in the near future and junking this but I’m just frustrated that they would build something that is basically impossible to clean a crucial component to keep it running optimally.

Why would you do that? What happened to just putting the coils on the rear of the fridge? Then you pull it out from the wall and do your thing and push it back. Too easy.

The new one WILL have coils on the back or I’m not buying it.

^^^^^^^^^^^^
Planned obsolesense

quote:

Originally posted by PASig:
Well, the coils are on the very bottom of the refrigerator ...

Yeah, our current fridge is designed like that.

Only halfway reasonable way I can think of to kinda sorta more-or-less "clean" them is blow the area out with my air compressor.

Of course: Then all that crap will go flying all over the house.

quote:

Originally posted by ensigmatic:

quote:

Originally posted by PASig:
Well, the coils are on the very bottom of the refrigerator ...

Yeah, our current fridge is designed like that.

Only halfway reasonable way I can think of to kinda sorta more-or-less "clean" them is blow the area out with my air compressor.

Of course: Then all that crap will go flying all over the house.

My parents almost got divorced when my dad decided to bring the compressor in and blow out under the fridge after she had cleaned house, was cooking and had about thirty people coming for Thanksgiving.

quote:

Originally posted by MelissaDallas:
My parents almost got divorced when my dad decided to bring the compressor in and blow out under the fridge after she had cleaned house, was cooking and had about thirty people coming for Thanksgiving.

Having worked for Sears for nearly 5 years I can tell you the most basic answer…it’s all about capacity. Designers will run the coils all the way up the sides to add overall capacity.

They have no care, expectation, or desire for someone in today’s age to still want to (or even know how to) clean the coils.

Literally their only concern is…how many cubic feet can I add to the bottom drawer freezer.

My parents almost got divorced when my dad decided to bring the compressor in and blow out under the fridge after she had cleaned house, was cooking and had about thirty people coming for Thanksgiving.[/QUOTE]
I’ve done some stupid things in my time but damn!