We had a Kenmore Elite fridge and the ice maker stopped working. We moved that one into the garage and bought a new Frigidaire from Lowes.

Lowes installed it and the fridge defaulted to 37 degrees, the freezer to 0. Two days later the food in the fridge was frozen, so I bumped it up to 38 degrees. Next day, same thing, bumped to 39. And so on until I got to 41 degrees and that's when we left on vacation. Get home Sunday after being gone for 10 days, not only is the food frozen, but the water line to dispense water is frozen as well. Bumped it to 42 degrees, waited 24 hours, no change, called Frigidaire this morning. They have a tech scheduled for Wednesday.

I am guessing that either the digital display is not communicating with the rest of the fridge. Or, my understanding is that there is only one cooling unit, and the cold air from the freezer is vented into the fridge at the proper level to cool the fridge, and that the vent may not be moving correctly and may be stuck too open.

Any any case, I plan to let the guy come on Wednesday. But do I need to be concerned long term? I have a truck and trailer. I could theoretically load up the fridge, return it to Lowes and get a new one. But that is a major hassle which I would prefer not to do.

What say you? Let them fix it and forget about it? Or go through the hassle of getting a new one?

UPDATE - The service guy came out this morning. He confirmed that the vent allowing cold air to flow into the fridge is not closing as it should be. It's not blocked by anything I placed inside or any packing material, it just isn't working. He ordered the parts and the service will be Friday the 31st.

I have to clear out and unplug the fridge 48 hours before the service. This will allow everything to defrost. He has to replace the vent, the electronic panel inside and the water filter, since it cracked during the freeze.

So I thought to myself, "Well, maybe it'll be easier to return it to Lowes?" And then I checked out their return policy. The return policy on major appliances is 48 hours. I can return it beyond 48 hours with a RA # from the manufacturer. I could call Frigidaire again, but I was on hold over a hour when I called the first time. Then I would have to deliver the fridge to Lowes by myself. Then I would get a refund for this one, and buy a new one. And that is the last kicker, it was on sale when I bought it, so now I would have to pay $200 more for it than I did 3 weeks ago.

I guess I'll wait until the 31st to have it fixed.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: holdem,

Let them attempt to fix it


I would be curious about the actual temp and put a thermometer in there

Check for a leak in the door seal. This will fool the thermostat into running the compressor constantly resulting in ice formation in the fridge.

My understanding is that manufacturers make it the responsibility of the installer to ensure that the door is hung correctly so as to eliminate air intrusion, and that many installers fail to perform this procedure. This happened to me on a fairly recent Whilrpool purchase.

The other thing that happens with these designs where air is vented from the freezer to the fridge is that the vents get blocked from food being pushed back against them. You have to leave a 3-4" gap at the back of both compartments to allow for air to flow freely.

Hopefully they can get it fixed.

I also keep decent fridge thermometers in each side all the time so I know what the actual temps are on each side.

Having the same problem too but it is a 4-yr old GE Profile.
Cleaned the coils and turned it up a bit but it is still freezing (and ruining) veggies.

quote:

Originally posted by BigSwede:
Let them attempt to fix it


I would be curious about the actual temp and put a thermometer in there

Good question. I do not know if I have an actual thermometer to read that. Maybe I'll try my BBQ thermometer and see if goes that low.

I can tell you that it froze all the produce such as blueberries, apples, lettuce and peppers. It froze liquid drinks both in aluminum and plastic. It froze lunch meat and sliced and shredded cheese. It froze eggs. And probably some other stuff I am forgetting.

Got an inexpensive Whirlpool fridge that uses the “cold air from the freezer flows into the fridge” methodology and it took a while to get temps dialed in. I put a ThermoWorks dual sensor thermometer/alarm in to measure both fridge and freezer and found 37 deg would freeze parts of the fridge. Optimum ended up being 40 fridge, -10 freezer. Still have to watch it when adding or moving stuff around (mostly in the freezer) so I don’t block the airflow.

I got one of these - AcuRite Digital Wireless Fridge and Freezer Thermometer with Alarm, Max/Min Temperature for Home and Restaurants (00515M), after my LG fridge died and ruined food.
It will allow you to view the temperature from the outside , log max and min , and set alarms.
Put lithium batteries and they have lasted a couple of years.

New fridges have a lot of styrofoam and packing tape holding things together. Is it possible the installer missed some that’s holding the vent between the freezer and fridge open?

The service guy came out this morning. He confirmed that the vent allowing cold air to flow into the fridge is not closing as it should be. It's not blocked by anything I placed inside or any packing material, it just isn't working. He ordered the parts and the service will be Friday the 31st.

I have to clear out and unplug the fridge 48 hours before the service. This will allow everything to defrost. He has to replace the vent, the electronic panel inside and the water filter, since it cracked during the freeze.

So I thought to myself, "Well, maybe it'll be easier to return it to Lowes?" And then I checked out their return policy. The return policy on major appliances is 48 hours. I can return it beyond 48 hours with a RA # from the manufacturer. I could call Frigidaire again, but I was on hold over a hour when I called the first time. Then I would have to deliver the fridge to Lowes by myself. Then I would get a refund for this one, and buy a new one. And that is the last kicker, it was on sale when I bought it, so now I would have to pay $200 more for it than I did 3 weeks ago.

I guess I'll wait until the 31st to have it fixed.

Exact same thing happened to us with our new Frigidaire French door. The damper/flapper apparently allows cold air from the freezer into the refrigerator portion. Our food froze too. Reset thermostat, no joy. They fixed damper.

At that point we bought the extended warranty.

A few months later it stopped making ice. I reset the refrigerator by unplugging the entire unit and waiting 15 minutes. No joy.

They then came and installed two new boards and it’s working… for now.

Don’t make fridges like they used to.

Bummer that it wasn’t a simple fix and you have to wait to get a brand new appliance fixed.

My Kenmore Whirlpool is still working well after 21 years. Thanks to Appliance Brad for the parts to replace the icemaker and its control boards, and a new thermostat.

Mine is the freezer air going through a damper to cool the fridge, but it's the old mechanical type damper with a dial.

Simple is best. Until the thing leaks refrigerant or the compressor dies, I will keep replacing minor parts. This was the second thermostat most recently. Replaced first one in 2014.

Did it get fixed?

I’m having the opposite problem. New Whirlpool, freezer works fine, fridge is only getting to 50 degrees. On top of that, the contractor doing our remodeling took the old fridge when we specifically told him we wanted to keep it in the basement.

Deduct the cost of a replacement fridge for the one he absconded with from his bill for the remodeling.

quote:

Originally posted by trapper189:
Did it get fixed?

Yes. Frigidaire sent out a tech. He replaced the circuit / motherboard and it has cooled properly ever since.

However, about 2 weeks ago we stopped getting cubed ice, only crushed ice, regardless of the setting on the door. The tech came out on Tuesday. Now we are getting a new ice tray / dispenser for the door because something was wrong with it and it was not turning off the blade that crushed the ice.

Glad all is working now…like it should have been upon initial delivery.

JMHO, but it would seem just about EVERYTHING made these days is pure, 100%, bonafide, unadulterated, Grade-A CRAP!! I dread the time should I have to replace major appliances…

erj...you may want to go to the junk yard and get an old model.
My Hotpoint is an 1983 model that has had two thermostats replaced and is still going strong.

Our old garage fridge gave up the ghost a few weeks ago and we replaced it with a ‘basic’ 21.9 c.f. GE “garage-ready” freezer top model. It is running just fine right now.

I called a local and reputable appliance store to place an order for a similar Frigidaire that they had on sale and the salesperson steered me away from it ‘due to problems’ they are seeing with the brand. He recommended the GE for my purpose.

They sure don’t make them like they used to and I am hoping that the new fridge lasts at least five years.

My parents have a Cold-Spot standing freezer that is prolly close to 40 years old and it is working as it should.

Rob

quote:

Don’t make fridges like they used to.

Nope, they don't. back in the early '70's, I bought a used but refurnished GE refrigerator with the "lazy Susan" rotating shelves for around 90 bucks delivered from a dealer. It was several years old but worked great. I sold it 10 years later to a neighbor. Still worked great.

I see 40 year old Hotpoint Friges at Tucson apartments still working just fine.