my fridge feels cool but not cold, and the freezer seems weak too. temperatures are reading in the 50s.

— asked by Jamie

Quick answer: The cooling system is struggling, and the most common cause for this across-the-board weak cooling is dirty condenser coils. They’re probably coated in dust and pet hair, which acts like a blanket and traps heat.

Diagnosis

The cooling system is struggling, and the most common cause for this across-the-board weak cooling is dirty condenser coils. They’re probably coated in dust and pet hair, which acts like a blanket and traps heat.

How to Fix It

You need to clean those coils. 1) Unplug the fridge. 2) It’s a French door model, so the condenser coils are on the bottom, behind the front kickplate grill. 3) Gently pull the grill off—it usually snaps in or is held by a couple of screws. 4) You’ll see a black grid of coils and a fan. Use a vacuum cleaner with a brush attachment to thoroughly vacuum all the dust and debris off the coils and from around the fan. Be gentle. 5) For caked-on dirt, use a long-handled condenser coil brush. 6) Replace the grill, plug the fridge back in, and give it a good 24 hours to get back down to temperature. Set the controls to their default (usually 37°F fridge, 0°F freezer) and don’t open the doors too often.

If That Didn't Work

If cleaning the coils doesn’t help, the evaporator fan inside the freezer might have failed. Listen inside the freezer (when it’s quiet) for a humming or whirring sound. If you hear the compressor running but no fan noise in the freezer, that fan isn’t moving cold air into the fridge compartment. Replacing that fan is a more involved repair.

Heads Up

Clean those coils at least twice a year, more if you have pets or a dusty house. It’s the single best thing you can do for efficiency and to prevent a costly compressor failure down the line.

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