GE bottom freezer stopped cooling sporadically every 1-2 days then cools again with no intervention. Unit is 5 yrs old.

Hello;

My name is Peter. I am a retired field service refrigeration technician.

How do you know you fully defrosted the freezer? You have a defrost timer and heater to do that. Unplugging your unit for a few hours may not be enough.

You need to remove the lower back wall cover. There are several screws holding it on and the rubber molding around it easily pulls out.

Up plug your unit and remove the lower back cover.

1.) Frozen Drain - Your unit goes through a defrost cycle every 8-10 hours. During the time your freezer shuts down for 20-30 minutes except for your light. If you have a frozen drain, the condensate builds up behind the lower back wall until the cooling(evaporator) coils become plugged up and you do not get any air flow. You may even have a solid block of ice.
Repair: Using a hair dryer (DO NOT Use Metal Objects. You may damage the coils.) slowly defrost the coils. This will take 2-3 hours.

2.) Cooling (Evaporator) Fan Failure - Assume the coils are not iced up. Is your evaporator fan running?



Part #: 3-60336-001 Cost: $115.00
Check it out: With a multi-meter set to the lowest Ohms (Omega Symbol). Is the motor humming, Then it is bad and needs to get replaced.
Unplug the unit. Disconnect the motor. Put one meter lead in one connector socket and the other lead in the other motor sock. You should get a reading of "0" Ohms if the motor is good. Anything else the motor is bad and need to be replaced.

3.) Defrost Timer - Pull your unit out to access the lower back. With your unit plugged in, take a small flat head screw driver, insert it into the slot on the time. Turning clockwise one turn at a time, until the freezer shuts off. If you have turned one full cycle, then you have a bad timer.
Ok. The unit shut down except for the light. Observe the metal bar below your cooling coil. Is it hot? If not then you may have a bad defrost heater. Lets check it out - Unplug your unit. Once again with your multi-meter set on the lowest Ohms, disconnect each ends of the wire connectors. Be careful not to touch the fins on the cooling coil. They are razor sharp. The connector are hard to pull apart. Put one meter lead in one connector and the other meter lead into the other connector. If you do not get a Ohm reading between 50-250, then you have a bad defrost heater.

Substitution: 3-80405-003 Cost: $56.00
This is a glass tube with a spring in it. If it is burner or the spring is broken then you have a bad defrost heater.

4.) Refrigerant Leak or Obstruction - With the unit plugged in. Lay the lover cover the cooling coils. Close the door and wait 30 minutes. Remove the cover. Do all of the coils have a nice frost pattern? Is there a block of ice in the upper right hand corner of the cooling coil. If so you either have a refrigerant leak or an obstruction. In this case the repair will cost you $450.00-$500.00.

5.) If all of the above is good, then you may have a Bi-mel problem. In the upper right hand corner of your cooling coil there is a thermostat. This controls the temperature and compressor start-up. This may explode in the back. Check to see if it is intacted.

5.) Bad thermostat - These can not be checked for failure. If you have check all of the above this may be your problem.
Substitution: 4-83053-003 Cost: $68.00

The unit needs two fans running and good airflow, one fan outside cools the condensor coil and the other inside the unit blowing across the evaporator. The compressor must start up. The defrost timer stops everything and switches on a heating element to defrost the evaporator for several minutes. Please verify these conditions.

Hello Karen;



My name is Peter. I am a retired field service refrigeration technician.



The top half of your freezer is warm because your cooling (evaporator) coil is on the bottom.



With your unit there are generally two cooling problems:



1.) Frozen Drain - You freezer will go through a defrost cycle every 8-10 hours. When this occurs, everything shuts down with the exception of your lights. Your defrost heater turns on for about 20-30 minutes, defrost you cooling coil and them turns your unit back on.

Most common, is that you have a frozen drain. If you have a frozen drain, when your unit goes through the defrost cycle, if your drain is plugged then the condensate builds up on your cooling coil and restricts the air flow. Use a hair dryer and melt the ice.



2.) Freezer fan motor is bad - Your freezer fan motor may be bad. This is easily replaced.



Ok, Lets get it done. I have faith in you.

a.) Unplug your unit.

b.) With a screw driver remove the 6 screws holding the bottom cover. You control may be in the way.

c.) I know you can do this. Remove the back cover. Is you cooling coil blocked with Ice? Defrost with a hair dryer. Do not use metal tools, you may damage the cooling coil.



b.) After defrost, Is you cooling fan running. You can do this as well. There are only two contacts to remove and a ground wire. If it is not running purchase a new one.



I have faith in you Karen. Call me and I will walk you through this.

443-306-1362, Glen Burnie, Maryland, USA

Hi,

Many times a freezer and/or refrigeratordo not work right because of a dirty condenser coil...there are also many otherthings that can go wrong. If you are hearing a clicking or buzzing thencheck out the last two tips.

If your refrigerator is running but warm, then...

Check out these tips that I wrote about that... it is a great place to starttrouble shooting your unit...and something that you can do rather then callinga repair person to do a simple thing for you...

Refrigerator Condenser Coil Cleaning Refrigerator Repair

Refrigerator Troubleshooting Refrigerator Compressor

Refrigerator Compressor Start Capacitor and Start Relay
Refrigerator or Freezer not Cooling or Getting Cold

heatman101

Hi,

Many times a freezer and/or refrigeratordo not work right because of a dirty condenser coil...there are also many otherthings that can go wrong. If you are hearing a clicking or buzzing thencheck out the last two tips.

If your refrigerator is running but warm, then...

Check out these tips that I wrote about that... it is a great place to starttrouble shooting your unit...and something that you can do rather then callinga repair person to do a simple thing for you...

Refrigerator Condenser Coil Cleaning Refrigerator Repair

Refrigerator Troubleshooting Refrigerator Compressor

Refrigerator Compressor Start Capacitor and Start Relay
Refrigerator or Freezer not Cooling or Getting Cold

heatman101

Hi
I think the problem you are experiencing might be due to the temperature control.
1. Check if the temperature control is off if you dont hear the freezer operating.

2.If you do not see an interior light,when you open the door,then make sure the freezer is properly plugged into an electrical outlet.

3.Move the temperature level to a colder level if the freezer is not cold enough.Warm weather can also be a factor.

4.Find the condenser and check to see if it needs to be cleaned. The condenser is located behind the decorative paneling at the bottom of the freezer.

5.If it doesnt work still then contact a technician.
GOODLUCK

Most units now use condenser coils hidden inside the walls of the unit verses exposed in the back. If your unit does not have exposed coils or a forced air cooled condenser then they are most likely in the walls which would make what you are describing completely normal. Just make sure you allow 3 to 4 inches of room around them to let the system cool itself.

the problem is your tempertur sensors or your temp' control unit.

Please don't rate this solution, as anything but FixYa brings my rating down, but here's what you've got:
You have a refrigerant leak (commonly referred to a Freon, but these days usually R134A refrigerant). Some refrigerant has leaked, so you are still getting some cooling, but there is not enough refrigerant left to cool throughout the entire evaporator coils. This is NOT a repairable condition, as the coils are foamed in place and not accessable for leak repair. If this unit is under 5 years old (typical sealed system warranty) the manufacturer will most likely replace your freezer with a new one. If over 5 years, you are out of luck. Buy a replacement freezer.

Check condenser fan to see if it's working. It's the fan next to compressor