After a power surg my refrigerator will not cool like it should, we have reset it. the temp stays at 55 degrees for the refrigerator and 13 degrees for the side by side freezer. can you advise? we have had the repairman here before when that happened and he reset it somehow. we are on a fixed income and really need someone to tell us if we can do it ourselves. the model number is 4448 Kenmore side by side refrigerator.

Asked by E on 03/16/2014 1  Answer

ManualsOnline posted an answer 10 years, 8 months ago

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5 First we need to check condition of the evaporator. First unplug power to refrigerator. And verify that it has no power. put on safety glasses and a light pair of gloves. a lot of sharp edges. Inspect compressor area and clean condenser if needed. Very important On to The evaporator It is located in the freezer compartment. Behind the back panel. Remove shelves. Remove 1/4" drive screws holding panel in place. Manipulate panel out of compartment. Careful not to bend it. With rear panel out. Inspect evaporator. Its the thing that looks like a radiator. It should be free of any frost or ice. If it is frozen up. Or totally covered in frost. You need to melt the ice. You can use hot water to thaw and a shop vac to catch the flood. If you have a clean Hudson pump sprayer use it for dispensing hot water. This is the method I use. If no sprayer. Then just use a cup to pour water over frozen evaporator. Plug the water drain hole below evaporator. So as not to overfill condensate catch pan and flooding your floor. If Evaporator was frozen totally. This indicates a defrost failure. Or the evaporator fan has failed. To check fan simply plug it back in. Set thermostat to a middle setting. It should be running quietly. If not replace fan motor with an acceptable replacement. If fan was running. Then we go for defrost issues. Defrost controls can be complicated. On newer refrigerators. Defrost control is integrated into circuit board. Inspect board for burn or scorched marks. as well as installed circuit components and swollen or leaking capacitors. If board was found to have any defect such as described . Replace board. If board is in good physical shape. And no trouble code light are illuminated or flashing. We move to the next item. This will be the defrost terminator. A disc about the diameter of a quarter. will have 2 or three wires going to it. And is clipped to a section of metal tubing. This gizmo tells the control board that evaporator is free of ice. And cuts power to the defrost heater circuit. Check heater element to see if it has failed. It is encased in a glass tube. At the very bottom of evap coil. Check with meter or test with power externally. With meter check continuity. Hot to neutral with it disconnected. If no resistance is indicated it has a cross connection and needs to be replaced. Back to terminator. This is all done by a rise in temp of the evaporator. When temp is reached. The refrigerator should go back into cooling mode and compressor and condenser fan will be energized. A high limit thermostat may also be in circuit it has only 2 wires and looks similar to terminator. And located near terminator. To test it needs to be removed . And tested for continuity. if continuity is present it is good. If not we found the issue. Or at least one of them. Recap: Check Board, Terminator, High limit T-stat, Heater and fan motor. Evaporator only partially frozen. If not fully. Then it is partial. If while refrigerator is running (compressor and fan) And a hissing sound is coming from the metal tubing and evaporator. And is partially frozen. This indicates a low on freon or a restriction situation. In either case. If you lack the knowledge for this repair. Don't DIY. Call in a repairman.
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