Fridge Too Cold

[tallyho8]

When the fridge goes to defrost mode the ice/water needs to drain to a pan on top of compressor where it evaporates. Many fridges have a nipple on drain hose that gets clogged and needs to be cut off.
Otherwise, melted defrosted ice just refreezes into an ice dam at coils.

You simply unclog the nipple. Don't cut it off allowing hot air from the compressor and insects to enter the freezer.

 

[tallyho8]

Back to about 5 below zero. Opened the freezer, moved some stuff around, opened the view port I had cut in the back panel years ago and found too much icing blocking stuff. It's been 90 plus with high humidity, so I'm not really surprised it hasn't been able to defrost properly.

Moved the stuff that needs to stay frozen over to the deep freezer. Going to try and let it defrost for an hour or two, then crank it back up and see what happens. Last service guy that was here to confirm the service warranty write off gassed it up one last time. Said he though the icing bit in that area indicated a slow freon leak. That top off has lasted 4 years or more, so it must be a very slow leak.

Any of you ever gas your own boxes? Some reading on the web seems to imply it really isn't difficult. The manifold set looks to be $100 or less and R134 is fairly cheap. I can post the model number and some pictures if it will help identify which ports to hook up to. LAST thing I want is a can popping open in my hand.

A heavily iced up evaporator coil will not defrost in a couple of hours unless the cover in the back of the freezer section is removed and the door left open until all the ice is melted. Otherwise only a little ice in the center of the coil will melt and the coils will just ice up again shortly.

The first thing that an untrained person will think if a refrigerator is not working properly is that it is low on "Freon". In 38 years of working in refrigeration, I have found that this is the case in less than 1 in 1000 frost free refrigerators because their sealed systems are so well built these days. An air conditioner will ice up if it is a little low on Freon because they are not designed for the evaporator coil to operate at below freezing temps so they do not have defrost systems but freezers are designed for the evaporator coils to operate at below freezing temps so are equipped with automatic defrost systems.

When there is heavy ice on the evaporator coil of a frost free refrigerator it means there is a defect in the defrost system. It could be a defective evaporator fan motor, timer, defrost heater, defrost thermostat, drain heater, plugged up drains, thermostat or simply leaving the door open for several hours.

I have been on over 100 service calls where the homeowner installed a tap valve (notorious for leaking) and added a shot of Freon, thinking that this was the problem, overloading and burning out the compressor. This is the very last thing an experienced technician would consider when working on a frost free refrigerator with frost on the evaporator coil.

 

[Diggin It]

A heavily iced up evaporator coil will not defrost in a couple of hours unless the cover in the back of the freezer section is removed and the door left open until all the ice is melted. Otherwise only a little ice in the center of the coil will melt and the coils will just ice up again shortly.

The first thing that an untrained person will think if a refrigerator is not working properly is that it is low on "Freon". In 38 years of working in refrigeration, I have found that this is the case in less than 1 in 1000 frost free refrigerators because their sealed systems are so well built these days.

When there is heavy ice on the evaporator coil of a frost free refrigerator it means there is a defect in the defrost system. It could be a defective evaporator fan motor, timer, defrost heater, defrost thermostat, drain heater, plugged up drains, thermostat or simply leaving the door open for several hours.

I have been on over 100 service calls where the homeowner installed a tap valve (notorious for leaking) and added a shot of Freon, thinking that this was the problem,

Ice was only at the right end (looking in from the front) around a t-stat type switch and another cylindrical component I can't identify. Only took a few minutes at 80 ambient air temp to thaw and clear.

No idea how qualified the tech was, but he said there were only two or three of them certified in coolant systems.

No aftermarket taps were installed. Whatever is there is Factory installed. I watched him connect the manifold and take readings (I know techs hate when homeowners watch, but still ... ) that showed low pressure and when he added the freon tank to 'top it off'. I just don't remember which hose he attached where and which is the high or low side.

 

[CobyRupert]

When there is heavy ice on the evaporator coil of a frost free refrigerator it means there is a defect in the defrost system. It could be a defective evaporator fan motor, timer, defrost heater, defrost thermostat, drain heater, plugged up drains, thermostat or simply leaving the door open for several hours.

Good info!
To expand on your causes, wouldn't a bad door seal, especially in very humid weather, also let moisture into the freezer where it can freeze at quantities more than the defrost system can handle?

 

[Diggin It]

Agree, and if you have an iced up evaporator coil, the fridge will end up running too warm.

Well, we know that ice and snow can insulate whatever they encapsulate (I hate those kinds of phrases) because snowbound people can bury themselves to survive and some farmers spray water to 'ice' things over during cold spells. With that in mind, I can see an iced/frosted over thermocouple being insulated against cold air, fooling it into thinking the box isn't cold enough keeping it from stopping the cooling.

That bunch of words may not make sense to anyone else.

 

[kenmac]

No aftermarket taps were installed. Whatever is there is Factory installed. I watched him connect the manifold and take readings (I know techs hate when homeowners watch, but still ... ) that showed low pressure and when he added the freon tank to 'top it off'. I just don't remember which hose he attached where and which is the high or low side.

would be the first one I have seen with factory installed schrader valves . I would never say never, just I haven't seen it
Unlike an HVAC system, the factory don't usually install valves on refrigerators

If you want to know high side and low side. I gave you the info how to find out, if you aren't able to just trace the lines to determine high and low side.

 

[Industrial Toys]

Fridges used to have no fans and run for fifty years. Now they have all those crazy fans and things to get filled with dirt. The insulation in the bottom of my GE had fallen down and I put chicken wire in there to keep it up and the air flow open. I have been meaning to take the whole fridge out on the porch and blow it out with compressed air.

 

[Diggin It]

think I would be looking at my defrost timer /board

I don't believe there are any boards in it from anything I've seen. All sensors and switches.

Those in the know can look it up if they wish: Whirlpool WRT1L1TZYW01

May also answer the question on ports/valves.

 

[kenmac]

Whirlpool Refrigerator: Model WRT1L1TZYW1 Parts and Repair Help

Perhaps the defrost is controlled through this board.. It would be an expensive part to try.

I would make sure the evap fan isn't having problems ie air flow restrictions, etc

 

[tallyho8]

Good info!
To expand on your causes, wouldn't a bad door seal, especially in very humid weather, also let moisture into the freezer where it can freeze at quantities more than the defrost system can handle?

Yes, if it was a very bad door seal with pieces missing and not one with just a very small leak that you have to check by putting a dollar bill in the door and sliding it around.

 

[tallyho8]

That model has a sealed system, ie: no service valves installed. He either installed a service valve or someone else did before you got the refrigerator. I hope it was not a defective one that was returned to the store and then you bought it as a new one.

According to your description, the evaporator is not iced up and with just the beginning of the evaporator having ice on it does indicate a loss of refrigerant or a stopped up filter drier being a less common problem. Vacuuming out the system and filling it with refrigerant by weight is the recommended way to do it but as you do not have the equipment to do so, adding some may solve your problem. If you have the right kind of gauges, they will have a temperature mark on them by the type of refrigerant you are using and the refrigerant should be added until you reach the 0 degree mark.

If the unit is stopped up this method would allow you to add too much refrigerant and burn out the compressor so be sure to stop after you have added a few ounces regardless of what the gauge says.

 

[Diggin It]

Thread reboot ....

Still working reasonably well. Freezer box gets to 0 or below ... fridge 30-40. Defrost cycle kicks in (Kill-A-Watt shows up to 400 watts while running/cooling watts are around 80) for a few minutes every few hours and the thermometer reads as high as 50 degrees before it kicks back to cooling.

But I still have the icing issue in the coil end/sensor area. I close the door with a 50w halogen light a few inches away from that point an it clears the ice in an hour or so. I don't remember the last time I did that, probably a couple of months.

I looked again and there IS a tap added to one of the coolant lines .... done by the last tech.

So, I still have to wonder about trying to charge it again.

 

[Diggin It]

Has anybody recharged their own?

As far as post 23 goes, I remembered later that the tech DID install a tap ... one of those two piece piercing type taps so he could connect the lines.

 

[jyoutz]

Back to about 5 below zero. Opened the freezer, moved some stuff around, opened the view port I had cut in the back panel years ago and found too much icing blocking stuff. It's been 90 plus with high humidity, so I'm not really surprised it hasn't been able to defrost properly.

Moved the stuff that needs to stay frozen over to the deep freezer. Going to try and let it defrost for an hour or two, then crank it back up and see what happens. Last service guy that was here to confirm the service warranty write off gassed it up one last time. Said he though the icing bit in that area indicated a slow freon leak. That top off has lasted 4 years or more, so it must be a very slow leak.

Any of you ever gas your own boxes? Some reading on the web seems to imply it really isn't difficult. The manifold set looks to be $100 or less and R134 is fairly cheap. I can post the model number and some pictures if it will help identify which ports to hook up to. LAST thing I want is a can popping open in my hand.

I have a small bar refrigerator that does this every few years. It’s always iced up internally. I empty it out and unplug it and let it sit in the garage for a couple of days to de-ice. The first time I was surprised how long it took to de-ice in summer temperatures. Once they ice up internally, the insulation keeps the ice a long time. After it eventually melts out and drys up, I plug it in and it works fine for a couple more years.

 

[LS Tractor Owner]

That drain tube for the evaporator tray is where I would start. We had a 27 cf french door refer that suddenly did the same.... just stopped cooling.

Had to dismantle the lower drawer and all the inside 'covering'. Solid block of ice. Spent 2 hours with a heat gun melting it. Cut the "crimped" end of the tube off, which allows mostly all of the condensation immediately drain. That was over 5 years ago.... the refer has been running great ever since.