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My ~1 year old (edit: 1yr 3months, so past warranty) Whirlpool bottom freezer fridge has stopped cooling. These are the things I've checked...I let it warm up for a while and then ran it overnight.

  • Compressor is running (making sound/vibration), and after running overnight the body gets to about 130F, tubing to about 100F.
  • Evap and condensor fans both running
  • Evap and condensor coils are both at room temperature.

Since the compressor's "running" I thought that the problem would have to be be a freon leak, but with such a new fridge that seemed so unlikely? It hasn't been moved or messed with so no chance of accidentally puncturing something.

But then I read here that a normal temperature for a fridge compressor is 300F. If that's the case, is it possible that the compressor start relay is faulty and somehow the compressor is in the wrong "state?"

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    It's ~1year old - so call for service under warranty...not cooling is broken, and broken that young is usually a covered event.
    – Ecnerwal
    Commented Sep 23, 2019 at 15:29
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    Don't mess with it...... will void warranty.
    – JACK
    Commented Sep 23, 2019 at 15:31
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    @austin1howard, are you sure? In a lot of cases the majority of the fridge will have a short warranty, but the sealed compressor system can have a much longer one. Double check just to be sure. Also, I think that 300F number is inside the compressor housing. I don't think any "touchable" part ever gets quite that hot.
    – JPhi1618
    Commented Sep 23, 2019 at 16:06
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    The warranty page in my manual doesn't say anything about a separate sealed system warranty, just the 1 year limited warranty, but I'll contact Whirlpool directly and maybe it's covered, just not in my manual.
    – austin1howard
    Commented Sep 23, 2019 at 16:31
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    As @JPhi1618 states, since the coolant has environmental impact, it is likely that the sealed system is still under warranty by law (similar to the way emissions controls on vehicles have extensive warranties). It would be worth pushing that point with a Whirlpool rep, if your claim is initially denied!
    – DrMoishe Pippik
    Commented Sep 23, 2019 at 18:03

2 Answers 2

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Based on the information you provided: - Compressor is running - Freezer is not cooling - No freon loss - Condenser fan is working OK - Low compressor temperature - Condenser coils at room temperature

First of all, check the condenser coils and if they're dirty clean them as much as you can, THE CONDENSER COILS SHOULD BE WARM!!! . If that doesn't work, check the condenser and the evaporator fan motors.

If not, Could be an array of things related to the compressor and coolant: - faulty solenoid valve of the compressor. - blocked filter at the expansion valve - Evaporator inlet solenoid closed - Compressor capacity control faulty leading to less coolant effect across the thermostatic expansion valve.

The way fridges/freezers are built today if there's a problem with the compressor, a valve or something is wrong in the circuit, you should go for a new one.

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To me it sounds like a system that has lost its charge. The compressor is sealed and we do not work on them just replace them. New fridges have a very small charge. I just got one for free it had lost its charge the owner gave it to me. It was 2 or 3 years old it used 1.2 lbs of R134. I installed a service port on the low side of the compressor (the larger tube) and pulled a good vacuum. I could not find a leak but the system only had a few pounds of pressure at room temp it should have been at least 40psi, after pumping down I weighed in 1.2 lbs of 134a and it has been running fine. No Freon in the system would match both the evaporator and condenser being at room temp. The compressor temp at max ~140f when running. From the compressor the large tube should be cold the small tube hot if not there is no compressible gas left. I do suggest not just adding as you can sometimes find r134 and recharge but you take a chance that there is now moisture in the loop and this moisture when it mixes with the compressor oil will turn acidic and eat the varnish off the motor windings , at this point the heart of the fridge gives up and it is dead. This is why I pull a high vacuum below 500 millitorr to pull the moisture out. If I cannot find a leak I will add a UV dye and spot check with a black light for the leak. In the case of this fridge I haven’t seen the leak and may never find it but low Freon sounds like the issue. The compressor may be covered but a leak at the hermetically sealed case could be possible but I have not seen it on a system that had not been reworked. Also the epa requires a license to legally do this service.

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