We have a 2004 Maytag refrigerator that may well be at the end of its natural life. Several months ago, it was freezing up a lot (the freezer doors/panels were packed with ice) so we unplugged it and allowed it to melt. Not sure if that is what caused it but thought I'd mention.

Anywho, now both parts (freezer and fridge) are too warm. The freezer will barely freeze ice and the fridge struggles to stay below 40F. It runs normally, not loud, etc. But we noticed the bottom pan is filling with water and are wondering if the thermostat for defrost is somehow involved.

Online troubleshooting and reading has led to the natural place of testing the capacitor to see if it is faulty. That's all well and good and we have a multimeter. But the phrasing about "lethal charge" and "danger: make sure you discharge fully!" are giving us pause.


So, I suppose my question is two-fold:

1) does this sound like a capacitor issue? A thermostat issue? Something else?

2) Just how lethal are we talking? Should we be updating our life insurance policies before monkeying with this thing? And as a follow up, if it is indeed this deadly, how on earth would we go about replacing this part if it is indeed the culprit without, you know, dying?