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Hello,
Our fridge started freezing our milk with ice crystals. Then it started getting warm and not keeping cool. It seems to be nice and cold at the bottom sections but the top part is warmer. We have nothing blocking the vent area and we don't feel any cold air coming through even when the refrigerator is on. It also seems like the top part of our freezer area is not freezing the food but the middle section on down to the bottom is freezing beautifully. We have a Hotpoint side by side refrigerator. Any suggestions?:(
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Rank: Advanced Member
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Joined: 7/19/2007(UTC)
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Hi,
Pull the refrigerator out of the wall. Remove the bottom cover and clean the condenser coils. Make sure the fan next to the compressor is running.
Wait a few hours and measure temperatures in both compartments. Post the results.
Gene.
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Rank: Member
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We did clean the coils. the top shelf in the refrigerator registers 55+ and the bottom registers about 40-43.
You can hear it running, the fan works great, but up at the top where the vent is, you can see it open through the slats, but can't feel no cold air coming through.
It's just over 5 years old.
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Rank: Advanced Member
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Remove the rear panel in the freezer and check how the evaporator coils are covered with frost. Post the results.
Gene.
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Rank: Member
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We took the back panel off in the freezer and the coils were solid ice. Turned off the fridge for the night and this morning defrosted what was there.
Turned it back on this early afternoon and it's working beautifully. Cold air is coming through the vent into the refrigerator like it should.
In fact, I think it's quieter than it was before all this. LOL
Thank you for your time and the advice.
Wendell & Debbie:D
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Rank: Advanced Member
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You are welcome Wendell & Debbie. Very likely there is a problem with the defrost system and because it is not fixed yet, it will come back in a few days. You have to have a simple multimeter to perform the troubleshooting and fix that problem. Let us know when you will be ready and we will guide you through it. Gene.
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Rank: Member
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Hi Gene,
So the fridge has been working great since we last talked and I defrosted the coils.
Today we are having extremely warm weather. I noticed a slight hint of frost on the back wall of the freezer. Everything seems frozen, you can hear it running quietly but I think I am worried that it may freeze up again. Is this slight hint of frost a normal thing?
We do have a multimeter. Is there something we should do just in case? Don't want to lose any food. And fridge is only 6 years old.
debbie
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Rank: Advanced Member
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Hi Debbie, Sorry for the delay. Unplug the refrigerator and pull it out of the wall. Remove the wire from the terminal J9 at the main control board and measure the resistance between this wire and the wire connected to the J7-9 pin. If the reading is about 22 Ohms, replace the main control board. I would recommend to replace the evaporator thermistor (on top of the evaporator) at the same time. If the reading is less than 1 Ohm, remove the rear panel in the freezer and check the defrost heater for continuity. It there is no continuity (infinite reading) the defrost heater would need to be replaced. The new kit contains two heaters for better defrost and both of them must be installed. - The main control board Part number: WR55X10942
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Rank: Member
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Hi Gene,
So we checked the main board and all was fine. We pulled off the heater and it looked like the bulb was burnt out. You could tell even before we checked it that it was fried.
Our question is, ours is a Hotpoint and the part you have listed in your reply says GE. Will this work for our Hotpoint freezer?
We went ahead and ordered it seeing that they will accept returns for any reason. That gave us comfort in ordering the part. Thank you so much for your help.
Hopefully will be back in business.
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Hi Gene, thanks for the insight, this thread solved my problem as well! I was literally within 5 minutes of going out to buy a new fridge to replace my Hotpoint side by side that stopped cooling. I checked the condenser coil like you said and it was completely clogged with dust bunnies, I blew out the coils with keyboard dust destroyer and now the fridge is working great! Thanks again!
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