Early 90's Whirlpool top freezer getting way too cold!

[dustin92]

We are moving into a house which we are buying from family, and the refrigerator is a (early?) 90's Whirlpool top freezer. The problem is the freezer is getting way too cold! Frozen foods are ok, they are thawed before being eaten (meats,veggies etc.) However we have had ice cream and popsicles in the freezer a couple different times, and the ice cream is so hard it is impossible to scoop, it has to be chiseled out of the carton! The popsicles freeze to your mouth. I have gradually turned the freezer to the warmest setting and it is still way too cold. What could be wrong with this freezer? Our chest freezer doesn't even get this cold!

 

[Whirlypoolie]

Let's start with the 'easy' thing first...

Did you try to set the temperature control in the refrigerator down and note what happens?

(My thought here: The freezer control might only control a baffle that directs cold air into the freezer, a common setup. If the refrigerator's cold control is set 'too cold', the freezer will stay 'too cold'.)

 

[dustin92]

I will try that, I will turn the fridge temp a notch warmer and see what happens.

 

[DADoES]

 
Typical "normal" setting for refrigerator controls is mid-position of the given range.

 

[frigilux]

Don't guess. Buy a refrigerator/freezer thermometer to make sure the freezer is at 0 degrees and the refrigerator is between 34-38 degrees. Bacteria grow the fastest between 40 and 140 degrees. Don't let your fridge get warmer than 38 degrees.

 

[dustin92]

Ok, the refrigerator is set at 4 out of 8, and the freezer is on the warmest setting. The ice cream is still like hardened concrete. I don't have a fridge/ freezer thermometer, and at this point, am not in a position to get one.

 

[rp2813]

We have a 2008 KA side-by-side with temp display and it maintains a steady 37 in the fresh food section and 0 in the freezer.  That's still too cold for ice cream to be easily scooped, so I store it in the door shelves, which tend on most freezers to be the warmest zone (particularly near the bottom of the door on side-by-sides).  Ice cream scoops easily as a result. 

 

Additionally, with my '57 GE Combination, the freezer gets very cold -- sometimes below zero.  GE apparently knew that was too cold for ice cream and provided designated ice cream storage in the freezer door shelf.  You may find that storing ice cream there (or if the container is too large to fit, as close to the front of the freezer as possible) will result in a consistency you can scoop.

 

[tomturbomatic]

How far toward the warmest setting do you have to turn the cold controls to hear the compressor cycle off? If it does not cycle off, the thermostat is bad. Given the alternatives, it is better to have it very cold than not cooling at all, but it should be repaired.

Beautiful GE Ralph.

 

[dustin92]

With the refrigerator set at 4, it cycles on and off normally. The fridge seems to be operating fine.

 

[DADoES]

 
As Frigilux says ... it's all guesswork until you know what temps are being attained in each section.  The fresh food section apparently is not getting to freezing, you've not reported that as a symptom, and now say that the compressor is cycling so that infers the thermostat is at least working in that respect.

Assuming the thermostat is in the fresh food section and the freezer control is an air damper, then the way the unit works is that the compressor runs until the fresh food section is at the selected thermostat setting ... with the freezer temp moderated indirectly per how much airflow is directed to the fresh food section.  I.E. less air to the fresh food section (freezer control set colder) gives a longer run time for the fresh food section to reach the target temp, which in turn gives more run time to drop the freezer temp.  Freezer control set to the warmer temp, more air goes to the fresh food so it cools faster which gives less run time to drop the freezer temperature.  The fresh food and freezer section controls are adjusted together for the desired results.

Possibly the freezer control is broken, not moving the air damper?

Also check that the condensor (on the bottom behind a kick plate?) is clean.  Odd behavior can result when it's clogged with accumulated dust.

I've heard recommendation to keep the freezer temp at -5°F to avoid ice crystals forming on ice cream ... but I rarely buy ice cream so can't say from experience.

 

[dustin92]

Ok, still confused... its still not working properly. I had put the fridge temp down to #4 and the freezer seemed a little better. This morning I had a bowl of cereal and the milk wasn't even cold. Turned it to 6 and the fridge is a little cooler, seems normal, but noticed that a bottle of vodka that was in the freezer was FROZEN! If that gives any indication of the teperature. The coils underneath it were cleaned about a month ago, for maybe the first time since it was new.

 

[dustin92]

Ok update: there is definitely something going on here. The freezer continues to get colder as the fridge gets warmer. The fridge is barely even cool and it has been running since at least dinner time, and is making a rather loud whooshing type of sound. I turned it off and am going to wait until morning. Maybe something is just frosted up?

 

[rp2813]

It sounds like the air control is stuck and sending all of the cooled air to the freezer.  This is a mechanical component as opposed to an electronic one, and may be an easy fix.  That is damned cold if its freezing vodka.

 

[pdub]

I had a top freezer refrigerator that had similar symptoms you describe. I let it completely thaw for a day with the doors open and everything worked beautifully for about a week until I saw frost on the freezer coils through the back vent openings in the freezer. It turned out the defrost timer was no longer working and it would never defrost and so ice plugged the vent where cold air is supposed to flow into the refrigerator compartment. Thawing relieved this temporarily but after replacing the defrost timer, all was well.

Good Luck - Patrick

 

[dustin92]

The fridge thawed overnight, filling the drain pan. We leveled the fridge this morning and it is cooling again, the refrigerator is getting cold, and it sounds normal again.

 

[dustin92]

Yay! All seems to be well. The refrigerator is keeping things cold as set between 3 and 4, and the freezer is on C (A is coldest, D is warmest.) Everything seems perfectly frozen in the freezer as well.

 

[rp2813]

We had a '70 Whirlpool top freezer frost free model as our drinks/overflow fridge for 20 years until Andy snagged the '57 GE Combination for me about three years ago.   The Whirlpool was passed along to Dave's daughter and son-in-law where it's still going strong. 

 

It had similar issues to Dustin's when we first got it, but it wasn't because the defrost timer wasn't working.  The drain opening at the bottom of the evaporator kept freezing over and the water had no place to go.  I had read on line that wrapping a heavy gauge copper wire (like 10 or 12) around the bottom-most portion of the defrost heating element and directing the other end of it about an inch into the drain would keep the opening warm during the defrost cycle and prevent it from freezing up.  That did the trick and there hasn't been a problem with ice accumulation ever since.