My freezer has been gradually growing a sheet of ice along the bottom right side for the last month or so. There also seems to be a fair amount of water dripping into the fridge compartment (it’s a freezer on top model). I thought that part of the problem could be caused by an ice buildup in one of the internal parts: somehow water got where it wasn’t supposed to, froze, and is now blocking proper drainage. So yesterday I unplugged the thing and waited for all the ice to melt and then sopped up all the water.
This morning I check and while there isn’t an ice sheet yet, I do notice that one section has once again filled with ice. Here
is a picture of the freezer compartment. On the bottom shelf, the thing in the middle that juts out from the back has a moat running around it about a quarter inch wide and deep. That moat is completely filled with ice. I have a feeling it’s not supposed to be. I’m guessing it’s just a matter of time before I start having problems again.
Any ideas on what’s causing this problem and how I fix it? Thanks.
That ‘moat’ usually has a plastic tube connected to it that runs down to the evaporation pan under the fridge. The tube sometimes gets clogged with fungus and goo, which caused water to back up and freeze. Forcing some water through the tube should clean it out.
As Quink says, I’ve had this problem with my GE fridge. Stupid GE repairman couldn’t fix it ($75 service call) so I used my garden sprayer to force a jet of air through the tube. All the nasty stuff dropped like it should have into the evaporator tray underneath and it was fine. I took the added precaution of running bleach water down the drain several times over the course of an hour or two to ensure that whatever was in there wouldn’t re-reproduce.
I still have pooling problems, though. For some reason during defrost cycles water pools up underneath the fan that blows air into the refrigerator below. After multiple defrost cycles, the fan eventually gets frozen into the ice and then there’s no more refrigerator cooling. At least you get warning several cycles early, as the fan blades will provide audible feedback as they drag across the accumulating ice. I’ve replaced the fridge recently (kitchen project justified it), but it still irks me that I couldn’t find a solution. The drain is open, and it’s the only drain. There’s a path for the water to move from below the fan to the drain, but the water just doesn’t cross. I took the trouble to perfectly level the fridge and everything. ::shrug::
In addition to Squink’s suggestion, do a seal check with a dollar bill, or other denomination. Close the freezer door on a bill and then attempt to slide the bill around the perimeter of the door. It should encounter firm resistance everywhere. If you find a spot where the bill slips out easily, the seal might be deformed, allowing excess humidity to enter the freezer compartment.
I agree with the previous suggestions, but wanted to point out that you made me smile with the “Lean Cuisine” next to the mint chocolate chip ice cream.
^hehe. My freezer at home currently has a bottles of Belvedere, Grey Goose, Skyy, and Jagermeister. Other than that there is a ziplock bag of tomatoes and a couple boxes of vegie burgers.
I have a Whirlpool Refrigerator that looks like yours. It had an ice buildup problem similar to yours. I had the technicians come to look at it. They opened up the back and bottom of the freezer and cleaned out a lot of ice. They also replaced the icemaker unit and the problem quit.
It’s also possible that the defrost cycle timer has stopped…usually due to a lubrication failure IME. I’ve managed to free up several of these, and re-lubed with kerosine, they seem to run for many more years…they are not expensive, but the appliance parts place is not open on weekends when I have time to dig into a troublesome fridge, so I have had motivation to try to fix.
