Have you recently noticed your fridge or freezer not cold enough? Your freezer may need a little TLC. Usually, basic troubleshooting will illuminate the culprit causing a fridge or freezer warming issue. Hopefully, with a little know-how, you can fix the problem and have a cold refrigerator again within 24 hours.

#1 Freezer Not Cold Due to Dirty Condenser Coils

Is your fridge or freezer not cold enough? Try checking the condenser coils. The coils must dissipate heat for the freezer to stay cold. When they get dirty, the heat can no longer escape. This forces your refrigerator to work overtime and leads to a fridge freezer warm issue.

If the condenser coils are located behind or underneath the unit, they are exposed to dirt, dust, pet hair, and debris. For this reason, coils need to be cleaned to work properly and help your freezer maintain the optimal temperature setting.

Expert technicians and manufacturers recommend that homeowners clean condenser coils every 6-12 months as part of a regular maintenance routine. If you know it’s been longer than 6 months since the condenser coils have been cleaned, your refrigerator is overdue for some attention.

Once the condenser coils are clean, wait a full 24 hours for the refrigerator to return to the correct temperature.

#2 Freezer Temperature Not Low Enough

When you have a fridge or freezer not cold enough and you have already cleaned the condenser coils, you should check the temperature set point. Refer to your owner’s guide for the recommended temperature setting for your unit.

Another reason behind your fridge or freezer not cooling sufficiently can be a faulty temperature control thermostat. Rotate the thermostat from the lowest to the highest setting and listen for a “click.” If you do not hear the click, the thermostat may be defective and should be tested by a certified technician.

#3 Freezer Warm Because Evaporator Coils Frosted Over

A fridge or freezer not cold enough may be due to evaporator coils that have frosted over. The most likely cause for this problem is a failure to defrost system within the freezer. The defrost heater kicks on and off throughout the day to eliminate any frost that has accumulated on the coils. If the defrost system fails, the frost continues to build up and the coils will eventually frost over.

You can use a multimeter to test the defrost system for continuity. If the defrost heater does not have continuity, it needs to be replaced.