Fridge not cold enough- solution
If your fridge is suddenly not as cold as usual, the cause could be that the Freezer section is too full or partially blocking the airvent. I have had this happen twice on two different fridges. The contents of the freezer were semi blocking the airvent that pumps air to the fridge section.
How an average fridge works – The freezer section is where the cooling is done. There are no cooling elements around the fridge section.
Cold air from the freezer is pumped to the fridge section. Usually at the back of the fridge at the top you will see an airvent where the chilled air vents out and also a temperature control knob.
Obviously if your freezer is not cold then there is a more serious problem than my solution here.
The first thing to do is put your hand near the airvent in the fridge section and see if air is being pumped through. If yes, then the pump is working and it’s very likely that something in the freezer is the cause of your fridge not being cold enough.
At this stage I suggest you put a thermometer in the fridge, near the airvent, close the door and wait 10 minutes. Read the temperature and you will know what temperature your fridge is giving.
Ideal fridge temps near the vent should be close to ZERO degrees centigrade (32F). Temperatures elsewhere in your fridge should be somewhere between 1.7 to 3.3 C ( 35 and 38 degrees F)
Using a thermometer means you have an exact measurement of what is happening in your fridge. Leave the thermometer there and you will be able to tell accurately when you have fixed the problem and be less confused.
The next step is to open the freezer. Find the airvent at the back which is where air is sucked in and sent to the fridge.
The first time I had this problem there were a lot of plastic boxes near the airvent, but it didn’t look as if they were blocking the vent. I moved them and leaving a little more room near the vent solved my problem, the fridge returned immediately to 1-3 degrees C. I didn’t trust that I had fixed the problem and I monitored the temperatures for 3 days before I was convinced! That’s why I suggest leaving a thermometer in the fridge.
Recently another fridge began showing the same symptoms, the contents were cool but not cold as they should be. Everything was frozen in the freezer, but it was chock full and very close to the vent in the freezer was a ziplock bag- this time it was obvious that the plastic bag was the cause. I moved the bag and the temperatures in the fridge were soon back to normal.
If you find this info helpful, please post below to let me know.
I have a new fridge in the kitchen but it doesn’t seem to get as cold as I would like. I must check out the freezer now, I know it is pretty full.
Our old fridge in the garage does a sterling job but is too big for the kitchen space. It just chugs away. It is far better than the new one but I guess it costs a lot more to run.
Oh well I guess you can’t have it both ways.
Informative on how the air moves from freezer to refrigerator. I had a 4 inch by 2 in vent in the lower half of fridge that was frozen. Put hot water on it until it ran through to the bottom tray. I’ll wait to see if that was the problem.
Thanks