Beko freezer not quite as cold as it should be - thermostat or failing compressor?

[cl]

We have a Beko TZDA661 freezer which is quite a few years old now. It's not quite as cold as it should be, even with the cold control set to maximum coldness.

Ice cream used to be rock hard even with the control on 2, now it's sort of just about hard enough with the control on 4.

Is this more likely to be a failing thermostat or a failing compressor (or something related in the cooling circuit)? I don't seem to have noticed it making more or longer noises than it used to but it's quite a quiet freezer anyway.

[Harry Bloomfield]

It happens that [e-mail] formulated :

You need to work out whether the motor is running constantly, or not, to decide whether its the cooling circuit (or failing insulation), or the stat.

[John Rumm]

Check for flames coming out of the back ;-))

Is this a frost free model?

One failure mode of these in general is that the timer that switches on the defrost heater can get stuck, and hence the main HE inside the fridge slowly ices up reducing the air flow through it to the point where the freezer temperature rises.

[RJH]

Change in ice cream ingredients?! I'd be a little more rigorous with the diagnosis. Try a thermometer with probe - about £3 delivered online. Had one lashed up to my Beko freezer, and records -18C +/- 0.5C with the setting at 2.

[cl]

No, none of those yet, I think it's pretty old actually before the self-igniting ones got to market. :-)

No its not.

[cl]

Yes, that's a good idea anyway, we have three freezers (and the Beko is the *newest one!) so a check on the temperature seems very sensible.

Thanks.

[John Rumm]

It may just need a good defrosting then...