Hi, In the past two years we had two episodes where my 2001 side-by-side Kenmore fridge-freezer worked fine, but the fridge warmed up. Both times were fixed by a hair dryer heating the cold air vent (blows cold air into the fridge and what I think is a return vent (on the lower side of the fridge) in the fridge. Can you tell me the most common causes and what I can do to prevent another reoccurrence?
Thanks, Marc
Water is freezing and preventing air flow through part of the system; blocking off the frig. I understand it can be three things. Something is physically blocking some of the air flow (like insulation out of place). It can also be a bad Freon charge, or it may be an air leak letting in too much air and the moisture with it or (bonus suggestions) a defrost cycle timer not working. I am sure there are a few other reasons as well.
Said to say I believe the Freon level problem is most common.
If the initial repairs were by Sears under warranty, I would call the salesman and tell them your problems and ask them to send their number one mechanic. The sales department will know who that is and call the service dept for you and get that done if its like the Sears near me. And tell them if it is not fixed this time you want the frige replaced.
It might be caused by excessive humidity in the compartments (door seals leaking, light staying on, etc.) or poor air flow (fan slowing, etc.). If it were caused by a defrost water drain problem, the condition would likely return much more frequently (like weekly).
Difficult to say without knowing which "Kenmore SxS refrigerator" model you have and how it was designed (they're not all the same nor even all made by the same manufacturer).
If you post the appliances's model number off its model and serial number tag, someone *may* be able to tell you if there is a particular area on your fridge's design which might need some investigation. You can find tips for locating the model and serial number tag on your appliances in the 'Repair Parts' section of my site linked below.
Dan O.
- Appliance411.com
Actually (depending on model) in side-by-side units it could be the damper that's sticking closed . On some models there is a damper that is automatically opened and closed to regulate the temp in the fridge section. Also a symptom of a low Freon charge would be a warmer (although still cold) freezer with possibly acceptable temperatures in the refrigerator.The defrost timer is a possibility as that would cause the evaporator to freeze up and restrict airflow to the refrigerator but a more common problem is the bimetal device that functions as a defrost terminator fails and even though the defrost timer energizes it will not allow the defrost heaters to come on.
Henry
Thanks for the advice. My model number is S2702100 Serial SL4148490 Sears, since now my fridge is "working", has offered me a service contract for $230. This includes annual maintenance visit and a warranty extension on the fridge for four years. From the possibilities of problems that I may be having, it sounds like this my be the best option.
Look closely at the evaporator side of your system,specifically the defrost timer,evap. coils/fins,evap moter,defrost heater elements. It sounds like it is not defrosting as it should
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