GE Side by Side Freezer Problems

[Goldlexus]

Last night we noticed the Ice-cream from the freezer was soft. In further inspection we found the bread, OJ and few other things in the freezer also soft. The ice in the ice maker was also sticking together. The Freezer door is getting pushed open when the refrigerator side gets closed. So we push the freezer door closed but it doesn't seem take much effort to open when we go to open it again. I think the freezer itself is running fine. It is cold in there. We have it set to the highest setting (9)(turned it up last night from 7) and pushed the door closed last night before going to bed to see it the ice-cream, bread and oj would freeze back up. They were still soft this morning :( Will a bad gasket cause the thawing of these items? Even after pushing the door closed? What are some things we could do to 'test' it to make sure it is a gasket problem? If the gasket is bad would we feel cool air coming out from around the door? Cause we don't. The refrigerator is only 5 years old. We are hoping it is just a gasket and not failing freezer.

[Toller]

First of all, throw the thawed stuff out. Saving $10 isn't worth food poisoning. Now with the freezer largely empty, does it still open freely?

[Goldlexus]

The freezer is now mostly empty. It opens easier than the refrigerator side. There is some resistance but not much, in comparison to the refrig. side, the refrig. side needs a bit more tug to open it. The freezer side will pop open a slight bit when the refrig. side is closed normally. (normal around here is a slight slamming as oppose to gentle closing). I hear normal sounds in the freezer i.e. a fan running. I cleaned out behind it and under it. It wasn't too dirty since I do clean around it every few months or so. There is no water any where. There is naturally some condensation around the ice maker (well not naturally but being as we are having some thawing issues it is natural to have the condensation due to loss of cooling). What else could I try....To confirm or deny a bad gasket?

[Toller]

When you leave it alone for a while, what temperature does it reach? I doubt it is a bad gasket; it probably just isn't cooling adequately.

[dpb]

doesn't seem

Sounds like a door adjustment/alignment problem first. I would assume these are magnetic gaskets on a freezer as recent as that I don't think there were anything else still in use.

If the door is closed, to test if the gasket is sealing, take a piece of paper about and inch or two wide and try to slide it between the gasket and the face of the freezer/fridge. It you can, the gasket isn't sealing. Then you can investigate the "why". May be the hinges had worn letting the door sag or similar. Maybe there's something in the way keeping it from closing entirely. Could be ice built up or similar.

Are you sure you the setting went colder, not warmer? Some are easy to misread?

If not, you may have a seal problem, but unless it is really bad, would expect it means you have other problem(s) as well.

Have you pulled it and cleaned coils, swept underneath, made sure defrost cycle isn't running continuously, etc., etc., ...?

[Norminn]

We have an old GE side-by-side. If we open the doors at the same time, they will hit each other. They are also not straight and level...one a tad higher in center than other. The hinge thingy on top is adjustable, so perhaps that is what needs to be done. I believe we had the doors off to move ours in, but can't recall. Allegedly, a test of the seal is to close the door on a piece of paper and see if it is snug or slides out. Having a lot of stuff in the refrig. door also affects how ours closes. Time for a new one :o)

[Norminn]

P.S. There is no "just a gasket" .. they cost half as much as a new fridge.

[Goldlexus]

Your joking right? A door gasket is only about $50-$60 dollars, hardly half the cost of a new side by side.

[Warren Block]

All the cooling comes from the freezer, so if it's warming up, the refrigerator side is probably too warm. A refrigerator thermometer makes it a lot easier to see how cold it really is.

That's not unusual, but usually not a problem.

Bad sign. It's not cooling enough. Years back, I had a GE side-by-side that did the same thing, for no good reason. A repair place told me it was common, and often due to leaks in the cooling system. I replaced the GE, and that place spent a while trying unsuccessfully to repair it.

On another refrigerator, I've had the coils in the back of the freezer choke with ice due to a thermostat failure, which required a full defrost and a new thermostat.

It really doesn't sound like the gasket. Come to think of it, that GE refrigerator also had a problem with the light switch, which wouldn't turn off the light with the door closed. You could take out the bulb and see.

I would say that if you've got 5 years of use out of a GE appliance, you're doing better than average. Maybe just me.

[Gini]

"dpb" wrote ..................... Maybe there's something in the

That's what ours was--Ice built up on the floor/front of the freezer preventing the door from properly sealing. It came open every time the fridge door was closed. I cleared the drain tube and all is well.

[Goldlexus]

I have moved most all food to our freezer in the garage until we get this working as it should. There is nothing in the way of the door properly shutting. There wasn't before from what I could tell. No ice build up as far as I can see. Took the ice drawer out to make sure nothing was behind it, nothing was there. The Ice maker is making ice. I have a question about normal noises. As far as I can tell the refrigerator always has some kind of hum going, right? Also I checked the door light switch, it is turning off the light when the door is closed. I can see that when the door is just about closed all the way. I will have to pick up a thermometer to see what the actually temp is inside. I really don't want to call a technician to come out, especially if it is something we can fix.

[Gini]

"Goldlexus" wrote

== OK--But...when our ice was built up, we couldn't see it, either. I found it by running my hand over the bottom of the freezer compartment. Heh, hate to admit it, but the ice was clear and my eyes are kinda bad.

[Goldlexus]

[<kjpro]

No, take a dollar bill around the door with it closed and see if there&#39;s resistance on it all the way around. Make sure there&#39;s no obvious tears or cuts in the seal.

[Norminn]

clipped

I got 5 yrs and 2 mos out of a GE motor in a Sears fridge; it had a 5 year guarantee. This fridge is probably over 20 years, want it to die but it won&#39;t :o)

[Gini]

"Goldlexus" wrote

== No. I&#39;m suggesting you run your hand across the bottom of the inside of the freezer section to make sure there isn&#39;t a buildup of clear ice there that you can&#39;t easily see. Hope this helps.

[Goldlexus]

Oh okay than there is no ice. The Freezer seems to be doing it&#39;s job now. The OJ was frozen this morning. Got a temp gage and it is reading about 5 below zero at the moment, the fridge part is at about 47 degrees. I don&#39;t know what has changed. But one thing that is happening now is when we open the freezer and close it we hear a trickle/gurgle type of noise and sort of a draining sound. Any ideas what that is?

[<kjpro]

47 is not good!!!! 0-5 F for freezer 36-38 F for fresh food

[Gini]

"Goldlexus" wrote

== You might have a partially blocked drain tube. There is a panel in the lower rear of the freezer compartment wall that is held in place with screws. You can remove that panel and pour warm water in the drain hole to clear it. If water doesn&#39;t clear it, you can push a length of thin diameter aquarium tubing through the hole to remove a stubborn blockage. ==

[Goldlexus]

Sorry typo...it is 37 degrees in the fridge. So it is fine.