refrigerator is 56 and freezer is fine it is zero

by Susan
(Greendale, WI)

What can i do to get my refrigerator back to 40 degrees? It is running just fine it feels cool but not cool enough. I had it turned all the way up to nine. I just read that might be to high. It has been warm for weeks weather wise and i have air on constantly. It is a Ge Eterna side by side Ess25XGMCWW i need help on what i can do to get it back to 40. Can you help?




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Answer

Hi Susan,

There are two things that will typically cause this problem on this model and they are door alignment and a defrost problem.

If the fresh food door is dropped down below the freezer door it may not be hitting the door switch properly. In this case the refrigerator will turn the fans on and close the damper because it “thinks” the door is open. The fresh food section will not get cold because the damper is closed. If this is the case adjust the door up and it should go back to work.

If there is a defrost problem the back wall of the freezer will be covered with heavy frost. If this is the case the defrost heater is most likely the problem but sometimes the thermistor attached to the coils will cause this. This page will help GE Refrigerator Not Cooling


The fan motors can also cause this problem this page will help GE Refrigerator Fan Motor Diagnostics


Thank you,
Shawn/admin

Comments for refrigerator is 56 and freezer is fine it is zero

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help
by: Anonymous

Now the freezer and the fridge are warm and it was running when i came down freezer says 20 degrees and fridge is 6o it stopped running and i am awaiting to see if it will run again what can i do????
Me
by: Susan

It is running again i moved both controls to 5 as they say when you first start out. I have a side by side i am not sure i understand the fresh food door versus the freezer. I saw the freezer light glow orange and my book says it is in defrost mode. I dont have build up in the freezer it is light on the back of it. I will go and see what the temp is when it goes through this cycle. I do feel coolness when i open the door with it running. Could it be the condessor needs to be cleaned? Why all of a sudden does this do this?
RE
by: Shawn/admin

The fresh food door is the one on the right where fresh food goes most people call this the refrigerator side but technically the whole thing is the refrigerator.

The orange glow is the defrost heater.

The condenser on these models is a no-clean design which doesn’t mean that it will not get dirty only that when it is dirty it will not cause the refrigerator to stop cooling.

There is a fan in the freezer and a fan near the compressor, both have got to be running and if not take a look at the fan motor page.


Check the door alignment and if the fresh food door (right) is down lower than the freezer adjusts it up and it may go back to work.

After the defrost cycle is complete the orange glow should go away and the compressor should come on. Then the freezer should go back to normal temperature if not you have a totally different problem than what I been saying so let me know. Note that me max time that the orange glow should stay on is 45 minutes at a time and it shouldn’t come back on for at least 8 hours. If this is not the case the main board is bad.

i see
by: me

I did notice the door not being in line so we adjusted it it was down alot. The freezer is good and the fridge has many different temps in it the middle is 56 and the lower part now is 30. I am putting a thermometer on top to see what that it. There isnt alot of food in there as well. I read alot to see what it might be. I feel cool air when i open the doors so that is good. I think it could be cooler that doesnt move but i had it on 5 all day and now it is 6 in the morning i may go one up to see what it will do. I cleaned out in front of the fridge when i moved the door up. I suppose it may take a day or two to get to where it needs to be, temps outside have been humid and upper 80s for weeks too. So i have my air on for at least three weeks. Let me know what you think about different temps in fridge.
Door
by: Shawn/admin

Make sure the light in the fresh food section is turning off when the door is closed. If not adjust the door up more and if it is up all the way and still not turning the light off replace the switch.

Uneven temperature suggests poor airflow, which can be caused by everything I have been telling you (door aliment, defrost, fans). If the fresh food door was down and you adjusted it up it may go back to work and only time will tell but if it is going to work it will in 24 hours or less.

If it still doesn?t work?.

If the light is turning off, the fans are running (both the one in the freezer and the one next to the compressor) and there is not heavy frost on the freezer coils. Then you either have a refrigeration problem (which is not a do-it-yourself job), the main board is bad or the thermistors are bad. If you have a ohmmeter and know how to use it this page will help on testing the thermistors Testing A Refrigerator Thermistor On A GE Refrigerator

Note that you should test the one in the fresh food section, which on your model should be near the damper in the left hand back corner. Also don?t try to test the thermistors until you make sure the door switch is working. In fact make sure both door switches are working the freezer will hardly ever be faulty but if it was it would cause the same problem.
fridge
by: me

All seems real good now i have a thermometer in several places in the fridge and they are all on the same track cold yeah!! The light is out in the fridge with the door closed so this is wonderful. I moved the door up and it is aligned and will just keep an eye on it now. Who would of known that a lower door would do this! Thanks now i can rest.
locktight
by: Shawn/admin

One more thing you may what to do is buy some locktight thread locker and put a drop on the hinge adjustment bolt so that it will not work itself down again. What happens is, each time you open and close the door that bolt moves slightly and eventually the door is down so far it will no longer hit the door switch this does two things it leaves the light on in the fresh food section and the main board closes the damper (which blocks air coming into the frig). Putting the locktight on it should prevent this from happing again.
thanks
by: me

sounds like an idea!!! I have been watching on and off all day the fridge and freezer i have to just adjust the freezer now and all will be great.

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