I have a side-by-side refrigerator/freezer. The freezer seems to be working fine and consistently maintains sub-freezing temperatures. The refrigerator doesn't cool below 60(F). The condensor is clean, there is no frost in the back of the freezer on the evaporator and the vents are unobstructed in the freezer and the refrigerator compartments. I have adjusted the temperature control for the refrigerator, but the the compressor doesn't seem to start running. I can feel air blowing from the freezer vent which means that the evaporator fan is working, but I never feel any air circulating through the refrigerator vents.

Any help to identify the likely causes and troubleshooting suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

From other posts it seems like it could be a relay. Not sure if the refrigerator and freezer operate on separate relays. I did find a 3 in 1 START (Relay Overload Start Capacitor Combination) relay. Not sure if there is a fan that should circulate air between freezer and refrigerator. Is there a fan, other than the evaporator fan, that forces chilled air into the refrigerator compartment from the freezer? I guess I don't know how the refrigerator gets chilled...

Make: Kenmore
Model: Coldspot 106.59502992
Year: May 2000

What generates the air flow through the vents? Neither one seems to be obstructed. Are there any vent baffels that are opened and closed electrically? The baffels that are visible seem fixed and have no moving parts.

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Alright, I have learned that the evaporator fan pushes the air through some ducting into the refrigerator from the freezer. I noticed that the fan was noisy and discovered that the fan shaft extending from the motor wiggled side to side and vibrated significantly while it was running. Thinking that the worn motor might be producing insufficient air flow I opted to replace it.

I also discovered the importance of properly installing the shield that covers the evaporator. Don't be tempted into folding the flanges down near the top of the shield to simplify installation. Those flanges help direct the airflow through the proper ducting.

Unfortunately replacing the evaporator fan didn't solve the problem. The fan is now quiet but the refrigerator is still not cooling. Upon closer inspection I discovered that the vent at the top of the refrigerator, which is the cold air inlet from the freezer, actually has baffles in them. It was no surprise that there was no airflow when I saw that the baffles were closed even though the temperature in the refrigerator was at 65F.

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Alright, I'm a step closer. The vent with the baffles has a motor that opens and closes the vent. I noticed that the motor was engaging and closed the vent when I turned the refrigerator off. When I turned the refrigerator back on I could feel the motor engage but the vents weren't opening. After carfully taking the vent assembly apart I found that a portion of the vent slider was broken off. The side that was broken off was needed to allow the motor to open the vent. With a little bit of super glue I was able to fix the vent. The vent now opens and closes as it should. I should know by tomorrow if the thermostat is triggering the vents to open and close as necessary. With a little bit of luck the problem should be fixed.

- Mark001