Have you come down to the problem where your fridge stops working? Don’t worry your at the right place for it all. Your fridge being an essential daily household appliance, in this day and age, having a small breakdown of such appliances causes havoc within the house. And to add to the havoc is the professional help services that take time. But now with this article you will know what to do in the mean while or even help you fix the problem yourself. So don’t you worry you can have a sigh of relief.
Related: Best Fridge in UAE
How does your Fridge Actually Work?
The working of the fridge isn’t as complicated as it might seem. The most basic thing to know is that there is a refrigerant gas that helps the whole cooling process. This gas is actually in a liquid form that is converted into gas through the process of evaporation. This is how the fridge along with your food items is kept cool.
The evaporated refrigerant is released into a low-pressure space with the help of a capillary tube. The same as you would be spraying deodorant, which turns to gas when released into the air. The build-up of pressure and then the sudden loss of pressure is what turns the liquid refrigerants to gas. But once this is done there would be a point where the liquid refrigerant would be exhausted. To solve this problem the compressor is brought into play. Where it sucks and turns this gas back to its liquid state. By recompressing it with high pressure and heat. When you hear your fridge start is when the compressor is doing its magic.
From here the now almost liquid gas is cooled down while still being under pressure. Once cooled it turns completely into liquid and ready to re-circulate back into the fridge.
What can Possibly be the Problem?
For a fridge to be this big, there can be several things that can go wrong. As each part of the fridge work together to ensure that it does its job. And even one small issue can be the reason your fridge stops working. Therefore making it difficult to detect what can be the matter. The problem can be in the compressor, thermostats, timers, fans, and even the defrost heaters. If either of these elements fails your fridge will stop working properly.
Besides these, there are a few factors/ actions to be taken into consideration before assuming that the inner technology of the fridge is faulty. Take for example if you leave the fridge door open or if you keep opening the door. The refrigerant gas escapes away when the door is open thus not letting the fridge do its job. Therefore, you will need to check the seal against the door as well.
Furthermore, ensure that the condenser coil is cleaned and ensure that the cold control setting is set right and isn’t too low or too high. These factors too can be influencing the device as well and not just the interior mechanics. This is why you need to keep an eye out for all these small details that can impact the overall working of the fridge.
What to do When…
1) The motor has stopped but the lights still on
In such a case when your fridge stops working, you know that the appliance is getting power but there seems to be an issue with some other part of the fridge. Here there are a few test and steps for you to do:
- First, start by checking the freezer and fridge temperature setting. You can try turning down the freezer setting. Since most fridge cools down with the vents which come from the freezer.
- Secondly, check the placement of the fridge. This too can be the reason why your fridge might be causing problems for you. Therefore ensure that it has a 3 inches space gap on all sides including the back and top of the fridge. Even a minimum of 1 inch will work just fine for the top of the fridge. By doing this you are giving your appliance some space to release the heat from the coils and cool down. This also ensures that your compressor doesn’t overheat.
- If this doesn’t do the trick then you will need to do some cleaning. In this sense, you will need to clean out the exterior coils of the appliance and maintain it. To do this you will have instructions in your manufacturer’s manual.
- Lastly what you can do is check the compressor. For this, you will have to unplug the device and then let it cool down for around an hour or so. After that, you can try plugging and turning on the fridge. If this works it would mean that you have some problem which is causing the compressor to overheat.
- Once all this is done and none of these help, you can go ahead and contact a repair technician. Who can check and even fix any issues in the appliance.
2) You hear the motor but the fridge isn’t cooling
The humming sound would be the sound that the compressor is working. But then the fridge isn’t cool. This could mean a lot of things, lack of refrigerant, the passageway which delivers the gas are blocked or any other reason. That is why in such a case it would be best if you contact a professional to check out the problem or you can get in touch with the fridge manufacturers. When you do so, make sure to ask if it’s okay to leave your fridge running while help is on its way. Just in case, since you wouldn’t want to damage the fridge further.
3) If the motor isn’t working and the light is off
If you do not hear the motor at all for a very long time and neither is the appliance’s light lit means your fridge isn’t working entirely. The main reason for this is that it might not be receiving any power. In such a case what you must do is:
- Check your power supply circuit to the fridge. Ensure that the breaker is still on if not then you might need to replace the fuse in case of tripped lights.
- If the previous step doesn’t work, then you might need to check the power outlet of the fridge. You can either use a tester screwdriver if you have one or opt to connect a lamp or some other light electrical instrument onto the outlet.
- Finally, if the outlet too isn’t the problem you will have to check the cord of the refrigerator. Make sure that it is intact and has no damage to the same. Before you touch the cord take safety precautions by disconnecting the fridge from the outlet.
- If you still don’t see any fault in the cable as well your final step will be to call a professional to check the problem.
4) Fridge door doesn’t seem to close
When the door of your fridge remains open the cooling process doesn’t take place. This makes it a problem and nullifies the purpose of the fridge in the first place. This door problem of yours can be fixed easily. Since in such a scenario the hinge on the door is probably worn out. For this, you can first try adding a bit of a WD-40 or maybe some oil. But still, if this doesn’t work you will need to replace it. Which isn’t a big and difficult task.
If still, this doesn’t help you might just need to change the rubber gasket to the fridge. For this, you would need to peal out the rubber from the open door. To do this you might need to loosen a few screws. After this is done make sure to apply the new gasket from the side you removed the screws first and refasten them in place. Once all this is done your gasket will be in place. If you seem unsure to do this on your own you can call a professional to do it for you.
5) Any vibrating or leaking
Vibrating means there is something which is loose or the feet aren’t touching the floor evenly. In such a case adjust the feet if possible. And for the rattling, you will need to check the back of the fridge for anything that seems loose and tighten it. In case of a leakage especially under the fridge means that the freezer drain is clogged or that there is condensation that isn’t draining in the right place.
6) The light doesn’t shut off
The light of the fridge needs to shut off when you close the fridge. This is because the light bulb would emit heat into the fridge which will affect the effectiveness of the cooling refrigerant. You will normally be able to see if the bulb doesn’t switch off or you can feel the heat of the bulb if touched. In such a case the switch is defective and needs to be replaced. For this, you can simply order the right model switch online. And you should receive it with instructions to fix it.
Steps to Follow When your Fridge Stops Working
Now this is not related to fixing your fridge but just generals steps to take with regards to your what to do until the fridge is back to its job:
- Try to keep the fridge door close as much as possible. This is to ensure that the coolness stays inside and does not escape. If you do keep opening the fridge the coolness will be lost and along with that your food too might spoil.
- If it takes too long and your fridge can’t be fixed in more than a day. You might have to get out some coolers and ice buckets and try to save as many food items as possible.
Save a Little but Safety First
That being said, you have enough information that you need to know if in any case, you have such a problem. Don’t you worry if in any case, your fridge stops working you don’t need to panic. First things first follow the above instructions. But also do be aware these are the most common issues and problems faced when a fridge stops working. And fixing this yourself can be a good way to save on some of your dough. Although these aren’t the only problems so if something does go wrong make sure to take help from a professional. Either way, if you do want to purchase a new fridge then make sure to check out some of the best fridges in UAE.
