Weak freezer door gasket

[szeik]

We have a GE Profile Model PSHS6RGXCDSS and I think the freezer door gasket needs to be replaced.

A few days ago I noticed all the ice pops were mushy so I looked at the tem perature and the freezer was up to 19 degrees F. I took all the food out a nd coincidentally we had a power outage and the freezer made it back down t o 6 degrees F so I reloaded it and it went back up to 11 degrees and overni ght it managed to get back down to 0 degrees. I thought we were back in bu siness.

I should mention that about a week ago someone left the freezer door open a ll night and there was lots of frost all over everything and I did read tha t the coils can become a block of ice when this happens and it might need a manual defrost.

Now I am noticing that during the day it goes back up to 6 degrees F and I am still seeing some mushy ice pops. In the morning it was at 0 degrees bu t it is already up to 4 degrees now at 8:30 a.m. I was opening the door a l ot earlier looking at the gasket but it should be able to get back down to

0 and it is not able to do this until it has the entire night to work.

I noticed that the freezer door bounces open a bit when I close the fridge. It is also noticeably easier to open the door than the fridge side. So I am thinking that our problems are due to a weak gasket. It definitely doe s not have a strong pull anymore.

I realize it could also be a defrost timer or some other problem.

Does this sound like a weak gasket problem?

The part is only $65 but after reading a few posts it seems like a job that would be better left to a repairman with experience. Probably about a $30

0 repair. Around here they charge $95 just to show up.

Thanks for any advice on this problem.

Steve

[DerbyDad03]

et needs to be replaced.

emperature and the freezer was up to 19 degrees F. I took all the food out and coincidentally we had a power outage and the freezer made it back down to 6 degrees F so I reloaded it and it went back up to 11 degrees and over night it managed to get back down to 0 degrees. I thought we were back in business.

all night and there was lots of frost all over everything and I did read t hat the coils can become a block of ice when this happens and it might need a manual defrost.

I am still seeing some mushy ice pops. In the morning it was at 0 degrees but it is already up to 4 degrees now at 8:30 a.m. I was opening the door a lot earlier looking at the gasket but it should be able to get back down t o 0 and it is not able to do this until it has the entire night to work.

e. It is also noticeably easier to open the door than the fridge side. So I am thinking that our problems are due to a weak gasket. It definitely d oes not have a strong pull anymore.

at would be better left to a repairman with experience. Probably about a $

300 repair. Around here they charge $95 just to show up.

You mentioned the "defrost cycle". I would not be concerned with a

4-6° temperature rise during the defrost cycle. The correct way to check/monitor the freezer temp is to put a thermometer in a liquid that won't freeze, such as vodka, and monitor that. If the change in the liquid's temperature doesn't vary as much as the air temperature, then it is not staying at the higher temp for long enough for it to be an issue. I've done this monitoring with an indoor-outdoor thermometer of the style where you hang a probe out of the window:

000P

Put the probe in the liquid and you're good to go.

You said: "it might need a manual defrost"

Have you done this? I sure would. It's free! In case there is a lot of ice built up, I'd suggest a few towels under the unit to catch the water.

Once this is done, if you still suspect the freezer door seal, you could securely tape or strap the freezer closed and then monitor the temp with the probe and see what you can determine.

I have also used an indoor-outdoor thermometer with the transmitter that records the min-max temps so I can see what happening at various times. In my case that only monitored the air temp.

I sure wouldn't pay anyone $300 to replace a door gasket. You can find a repair video here. The skill is listed as 1 out of 4 wrenches - Beginner.

While the part might be a little more expensive from that site than others, I would do the right thing: If the video saves you a $300 service call, spend the extra $12 and buy the part from them. I've used the videos and troubleshooting procedures found at repairclinic.com numerous times. I gladly pay a little extra for parts in order to keep the information available for free. It is not free for them to produce the "help" and I don't mind supporting their efforts.

[Stormin Mormon]

1) try manual defrost. 2) Top hinge some times can be loosened and adjusted. Relatively easy to try, and cheaper and totally easier than gasket replacement. 3) Danny D can tell you how to make a two week project, with pictures, out of a simple hinge adjustment.

[Ralph Mowery]

What do you call new refrigerators ? They have had magnetic seals for probably over 40 years, much longer than most of them in use now.

[szeik]

It passes the dollar bill test easily. It is still much easier to open tha n the fridge side and it bounces open a bit when the fridge is opened and c losed.

It seems to be on the mend. Yesterday it got up to 4 degrees during the da y and then was at 0 again this morning.

I am thinking that maybe there was a big ice build up from last week when t he door was left open over night and slowly but surely the freezer is defro sting itself over time and getting back to functioning properly. I can't b e sure of that but it seems like the temperature readings are going down on a daily basis and it is improving for some reason.

Maybe I can skip the repair. Fingers crossed. We are getting a big shipme nt of Omaha Steaks today so if it's going to break today would be the day a ccording to Murphy's law.

Thanks for all the feedback.

Steve

[Micky]

I've never heard of a weak gasket. The door stays closed because of magnets, and they are unaffected by power failures, warmth, or coldth. I think you had condensation and ice in your gasket and it's a bit swollen, and if you let it thaw and drain, you'll be back to normal.

The ice might just be on the outside of the gasket, maybe in the grooves in the top. That might not drain, you may have to soak most of it up.

[Micky]

Yeah, them there new ones, from 1970, when we got our first Hupmobile

So what keeps the door shut? They made latches illegal long ago because too many kids were dying, and they switched to magnets.

[DerbyDad03]

I'm not sure when (or even if) they specifically made latches illegal, but it was in 1956 in which they required that the refrigerator be "equipped with a device, enabling the door thereof to be opened from the inside...".

It's possible that '98 fridge had a latch as long as it could be opened from inside.

I have a basement fridge that has a latch. To be honest, I don't recall if it has a magnetic seal also; I'll try to remember to check tonight. However, I do recall that the latch is "internal", sort of like a cabinet latch. If a person was inside the fridge when it latched, all they would have to do is push it open. In other words, there is no lever on the outside that latches it, just a "pull handle" like on a cabinet, along with a spring loaded latch on the inside.

[Micky]

None of this is about a weak gasket. It's about a worn, cracked, or torn gasket.

This is the original post that you snipped entirely:

Nothing you posted has anything to do with the gasket holding or not holding the door shut as well as a theoretical "non-weak" gasket.