_someone_ left the refrigerator doors open last night

[TN]

I think my chucklehead son left both doors of the fridge slightly open last night. Woke to a puddle in front of the freezer door and the fridge was running non-stop.

Problem is it seems even though the freezer is getting (very slowly) cold again, the cold air from the freezer isn't blowing in to the fridge side yet. Did we burn the thing out or is there something that governs when air gets pushed over to the fridge side?

I also pulled off the cover over the freezer coils/fins and they seemed hot, is that normal in this situation?

Thanks.

[bud--]

One possibility is the coils froze out the humidity into ice. With a constant supply of room air a lot of ice may have been created that blocked air passages. It might need a long defrost.

Wouldn't think so.

[TN]

So I take it the fridge is OK it is just going to take a long time to get cold again, yes?

[jamesgangnc]

Yes. It runs lots for years, the few extra hours it ran last night are insignificant.

[willshak]

TN wrote the following:

The air valve between the freezer and fridge side probably is frozen shut due to the constant running. Unplug the unit to let the valve thaw.

[Colbyt]

I would not have called an air valve but I agree that the passage from the freezer to fridge is frozen over. The fan can't move the air into the fridge.

A few hours of down time or bring the hair dyer down, turn of the unit and do a quick thaw. It most side by sides the cold air come in at the top. Common sense will help you figure it out for other combinations.

Colbyt

[willshak]

Colbyt wrote the following:

I should have said air control valve.

[bud--]

Depends on whether the are the evaporator coils or condenser coils, which the OP did not make clear.

[jamesgangnc]

Get serious. Either the compressor is working and the outside coils are hot. Or the compressor is not working. Since all we have is that someone left the door open there's not really much reason to think the thing is broken is there? And a whole lot of reason to think it's running a while to cool everything back down.

[bud--]

Get serious. If the OP is talking about the evaporator coils I "wouldn't think" they should be hot. I don't usually see a cover over condenser coils. Maybe if you read my last response...

If you read my original response it was that the refrigerator was running and iced up - also the opinion of 3 other people. Continuing to let it run, your advice, isn't likely to make the refrigerator cold since it won't get any cold air to the refrigerator through iced passages. Four of us think it should get defrosted.

[jamesgangnc]

No downside to defrosting it.