Fridge not cooling - Freezer ok

barry181091

I have a year old Indesit IBD5517 50/50 fridge/freezer. It is a bog standard model, not frost free and has no fans or vents. Having an issue now where the fridge is at 15-18c and the freezer is as cold as it should be. I defrosted it last night and removed all of the ice from the evap coils in the freezer. That didn't do the trick so I thought perhaps there were coils in the fridge back. This fridge is also rebranded as a Hotpoint and the parts pictures I have found indicate no coils in the fridge top. It is a very basic fridge with a single temperature control in the fridge itself. The compressor is running constantly but must be doing something if it is cooling the freezer.

29 below is the condenser on the outside of the fridge and 16 are the freezer shelves which are the evaporator coils themselves. Apart from that there is nothing to indicate any sort of coils in the fridge, which seems impossible as how does the fridge cool?

Any ideas would be great! Last thing I can try is a proper overnight defrost instead of just an hour or two.

Alun

I have what looks like the Hotpoint equivalent of that and it has a small switch under the temperature knob that turns on the "fast freeze" function. You say the compressor seems to be running full time so I wonder if that's been knocked to the on position by mistake. I'm guessing here that in such a case it might divert all the cooling to the freezer and not the fridge.

barry181091

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119480262#Comment_119480262

I noticed this too, its called "winter mode" on my model but they are the same thing. It has been off but to rule out stuck on switch I took off the plastic cover and disconnected the switch. This made no difference.

Alun

I reckon the cooling coils for the fridge part are behind the back wall of the fridge compartment as the back wall is cold to the touch, and there are frozen water drops on it from condensation.

lintdrummer

I've just had the exact same issue with a Beko. There's a thread on this forum. Engineer called out as as it's under warranty. The coolant pump is faulty so they're replacing the whole fridge.

barry181091

By coolant pump you mean compressor? So your freezer worked but not the fridge? What model was the beko could I ask?

Just read your thread. It sounds exactly the same as my problem! Thanks very much! These new appliances are absolute junk. A month after we got this fridge the freezer box handles just broke to bits.

The Red Ace

The problem with your FF is that it has leaked the refrigerant, it has only enough to to fill the evap coils in the freezer compartment no matter how long you leave it running it won’t reach temp in the fridge section and eventually it will defrost in the freezer box, get back to the retailer.

Sierra Oscar

I had a similar issue with a Samsung fridge last summer. Got a technician out to repair it under warranty. The flap that regulates the airflow between the freezer and the fridge compartments was broken and stuck in a semi-closed position. Fridge wasn't cooling correctly as a result. Took a few minutes to swap in a replacement part.

Not sure if it's the same setup with Indesit fridges, but the technician said it's a common fault across multiple brands. Flap is continuously opening and closing so is prone to failure with wear and tear.

barry181091

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119487454#Comment_119487454

I presume this alright. I just don't understand how it can leak a certain amount and then just stop so enough is left to cool the freezer?

barry181091

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119487491#Comment_119487491

That is a very common failure, easy to fix though. This indesit is a much more traditional design with no fans/flaps etc. Just a coil in the fridge/freezer and it naturally cools.

The Red Ace

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119487937#Comment_119487937

As I mentioned it will leak the rest of the coolant in time, simplest way of explaining it is compare it to a slow puncture in your car , and it is a waste of time and money recharging it unless you can find the leak, I have spent decades in this trade and rarely find the leak in the exposed pipework

barry181091

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119489331#Comment_119489331

Engineer came and thinks it could be a blockage perhaps. Anyway has to order a compressor to fit and regas. Probably won't work he thinks but has to try before a replacement is allowed!

The Red Ace

He shouldn’t be guessing, he should know how to test it., if it was a chest freezer full of meat I wonder what he would decide

barry181091

Just an update on this. As I was away for a week, the engineer could only come yesterday. He replaced the compressor a regassed the fridge. It took a solid two hours. In his own works, "this is a massive waste of time and has about a 10% chance of success". It's crazy as the price of the compressor and his time for two hours is surely worth more than this budget fridge.

Anyway, as expected it has not fixed the problem. It must be a blockage as the engineer thought. The fridge gets about a degree lower to 14c but that's about it. Now the whole rigmarole starts on Whirlpool/Hotpoint/Indesit giving us a new fridge.

Just for anyone that has to go through the warranty process with this companies, it takes time. Realistically you are talking about three/four days to initial visit, then probably the week after the repair and, if unsuccessful, a replacement at some point.

barry181091

Engineer has come and gone again. He has degassed and regassed system while also taking a picture of the gauges for head office. They were demanding this before any replacement. Unfortunately he said the gauges look fine so probably no blockage. I am stumped as to what it is so. I await Whirlpools contact!

At this stage it has been many weeks. Each time you need to get the engineer back its at least one week away. I wonder is this by design to get people to just go out and buy a new one. Can't say I recommend the Whirlpool family of companies due to the service delay. The other companies could be just as bad though.

barry181091

It has now been recommended to replace the unit. Success you say, unfortunately not so quick. I contacted support to confirm this and what were the next steps..

"I have escalated this,please allow up to 5 days for an update."

I 100% now believe this system is set up to frustrate customers into abandoning the warranty.

Girl Geraldine

If it is under warranty still, just get it replaced by whoever you bought it off of.

I'm surprised they would even get into the business of having someone go tinkering around with the workings of the fridge. I thought it would cost more that it is worth and if there was a problem with a fridge, they'd just scrap it and give a new one.

barry181091

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119616846#Comment_119616846

That company just booked a repair through Whirlpool. Unfortunately they are not compelled to replace, its always a repair first.

Whirlpool alone have spent far more than the cost of the fridge on the engineers hours and parts.

barry181091

The saga, hopefully, has ended. Last last week they finally decided a replacement was needed so that is booked in now. Unfortunately that won't come until the 27 so another delay. I probably would have bought a fridge at this stage if it was my own!

barry181091

The fridge has finally been replaced! The saga is over and the new unit cools properly, who knows for how long!

Brendan Bendar

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121310990#Comment_121310990

I have a Samsung fridge and freezer with the same problem.

Freezer fine but fridge not cooling.

Its only a ‘second unit’ for beer and stuff .

Once I turn it off for a few days and fire it up again it goes fine for about a month.

If that’s any help to anyone?