Do I really need a small fan inside my fridge?

Question

I have a three years old fridge without "no-frost" or anything similar to avoid ice build up. Yet there's a fan in the main compartment - about 90 millimeters in diameter and running simultaneously with the fridge compressor. The salesperson couldn't explain why it is needed.

Now that fan started to produce knocking noise which made my almost silent fridge rather noisy. I detached the fan cover, found a neat connector and unplugged the fan and the noise went away.

Now I have two options - either I fix/replace the fan or just leave it disconnected (or maybe remove it).

Do I really need that fan for the fridge operation or is it just useless and can be left out?

Answer 1

It is a pretty strange design to have that fan inside the fridge. But it is needed to circulate the cold air properly within the compartments it self.. it helps avoid mould growth, humidity build up and other horrible things.

-- Fans go out sooner or later.. but they usually start to make horrible noises after 12 months.. I would suggest finding a replacement.. and order 2 or 3 because it will do it after 2-3 years again. That is just how it is

--You could try and source the same dimension fan and voltage from another supplier that is more expensive.. because they put real bearings in that should last 10 years... but it will be a mission.

I am sorry that there is no other real alternative unless you start to go into real DIY and start rearrange everything in the fridge.

Answer 2

You almost certainly need it, manufacturer cut costs everywhere they can, they wouldn't put an electrical device in if they didn't need to. The cheaper fridges I've had over the years share the cold between the freezer and fridge and had fans or blowers setup to move cold from the freezer into the fridge area. If you post the brand and model numbers you can find, someone here can probably point you to a direct replacement.

Answer 3

I think the model you have is bit old and what it dose it. Just cool the deep-freezer and pull the cooled air to second compartment. So if you remove it your normal cooling area will be less cooler.