Fridge Not cooling, Problem solving.....

[dishman]

Ok, my trust Samsung fridge/freezer is having a fridge temp issue,

It is a Samsung RL39WB. Here is the service manual.

SAMSUNG RL39WB SERVICE MANUAL Pdf Download

View and Download Samsung RL39WB service manual online. RL39WB refrigerator pdf manual download. Also for: Rl39eb, Rl36eb, Rl36sb, Rl39sb.

www.manualslib.com

Now, the fridge has run perfectly for years. But, last week I left the freezer door open for a few hours by accident.
After closing it, I noticed the fridge was no longer cooling.

Having repaired the fan before, I suspected the exchanger was all iced up at the back and I assumed to be impacting airflow.

And it was fairly compacted with ice, nothing extreme, but I defrosted it and put it back together but....no go. Still a warm fridge and a cold freezer.

I have since checked the fan, damper operation and fridge thermostat. All of which seem to be operating normally.

I get a multimeter resistance reading on the thermostat (6.5kohms?) which rises when I introduce something cold to the end.
I can see the damper spinning and being static when trying to regulate the two.
Fan spins normally and I can feel good airflow out of the vents in the freezer.

What I can't feel however is airflow into the fridge vents. Nothing at all. Even when the damper is open/spinning it seems.

So.....what am I left to consider?

Ice blockage in the fridge ducting?
(Would that not have eventually melted once back to normal operation with the door closed?).

Fan motor spinning....but not fast enough?

 

[big-all]

by default automatically go for defrost as the simple cheap option for 24hrs frost free or 2-6 hrs aided by warm water bowls to aid defrosting

 

[JohnD]

How long did you defrost it for? Both doors open?

 

[dishman]

I did not do a long slow defrost. Mainly because of limited time due to a full freezer.

I basically did a speed defrost with hairdryer assistance of the exchanger in the freezer section only.

But, I'm surprised if there is an ice block in the ducting as that section does not seem cold enough to maintain a block.

But....with the freezer section operating perfectly, it's now my only strong conclusion.

My only other theory is that the damper is not opening long enough to cool the fridge section. But, even when it is open, I really can't feel any airflow through the fridge vent, which would mean blockage or fan power.

 

[foxhole]

Did you notice any clicking when opening door ? When door is open the fan cuts out and if obstructed by ice can make a noise as it stops.

 

[dishman]

I can hear relays clicking when I open the door. The fan runs fine, no catching on ice. I can feel airflow in the freezer section. I can also see the damper rotating or staying in close and/or open position.

Freezer is staying perfectly cold. No over-icing/build-up.

It's looking like a slow defrost is needed to perhaps exclude the ducts to the fridge.

 

[ericmark]

I used a fridge/freezer for brewing beer, I would start in freezer compartment with an external thermostat which would keep the fermentor at 18ºC 40 pints takes some cooling and often it would go in at 20ºC so would take a few hours, air temp would drop to around 5ºC but the fridge never cooled, it seems there was some thing in the unit which prioritised the freezer, and until freezer was around the standard -18ºC the freezer simply did not work, this suited me, half way through fermenting I would transfer to fridge compartment as by that point only needed to heat.

I don't know if all fridge/freezers work that way, but if you have not got freezer down to -18ºC then very likely fridge will not cool.