I need advice on refrigerator repair

I don't repair refrigerators for a living. But I think you are correct about the air flow. If you have not already allowed the frig to

I poured two cups of scalding hot water down the vent to the refrigerator. It all went through. Fortunately, I had catch bowls in the refrigerator to catch it all.

That does not mean I got it all.

I wouldn't advise this guy's methods - but his video shows why it might take quite a long while to completely thaw-out your unit ...

Could be the self defrost is not working and the coil froze up. You can verify if you can see the coil, otherwise, turn off, open door, use a hair dryer to get some hot air. Once done, it may be good for a few days to a week and will freeze again.

I just had the same issue with a friend's freezer. Ends up it was over-filled and could not "breathe" - like the one in the video. By enabling air flow it "allowed" the defrost to work and prevented re-freazing. It has been working effectively now for over a month (actually over 2 now). It took 2 applications of the hair drier to get the air moving and keep it moving - along with removing about 10 lbs of "frozen stuff" from the freezer compartment and moving things around in the fridge compartment.. This was in a bottom freezer unit. The warning sign here was the fan got noisy - then she realized her lettuce was frozen - along with other things in the refrigerator, while her ice cream was getting soft .

Hi Claire,

The freezer is getting super cold (-20F) and the refrigerator is getting hot. No air flow from the freezer. The fan in the freeze runs constantly. (That was some hard broccoli!)

I did empty and shut off the units and opened all the doors for half a day. The Freezer is now at +5F and seems to be staying there but it is reloaded with stuff that had warmed up a bit.

The refrigerator is sitting a +45F with a tons of ice blocks and blue ice in it.

There is still no air being blown into the refrigerator.

If I turn the freeze temperature control knob up, I can hear the click. The freeze still runs anyway.

I poured scalding hot water down the air hole from the freezer at the vents in the freezer. It all came right through.

-T

It went into a defrost cycle last night.

Maybe the [c] 9, 2179858 Damper, Air

is rusted in place of something?

The combination of an excessively cold freezer, a warm fresh-food compartment and no airflow through the refrigerator vent points more strongly to an airflow problem than to the refrigerator thermostat alone.

Water passing through the vent does not prove that the air damper is opening or that the complete air passage is clear. The main possibilities include a damper that is stuck closed, hidden ice around the evaporator or duct, or an evaporator fan that can be heard but is not producing normal airflow.

I would avoid pouring more hot water into the cabinet or using a hair dryer near plastic parts, wiring or insulation. Protect the food first, disconnect the refrigerator, and allow enough time for a complete model-appropriate defrost. Half a day may not melt ice hidden behind an evaporator cover. If airflow does not return afterward, the damper, fan and defrost system need model-specific diagnosis rather than parts replacement by guesswork.

Full disclosure: Errasift is my own website. I maintain the Whirlpool refrigerator error-code section here. If a display code appears during testing, preserve the exact characters before resetting it: