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We have a 7-year-old KitchenAid (Model# KRSC503ES00) side by side refrigerator. The refrigerator section temperature fluctuates. It will be 50 degrees for a few days and then it returns to normal temperature in the mid 30s for a couple of days. The freezer section works fine.

We had a tech look at it and he gave up.

I have replaced the control board and both thermistors in the refrigerator section. This model has one compressor and condenser which provides cooling to the evaporator in the freezer section and the evaporator in the refrigerator section.

Any suggestions on what else to look at?

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  • the causes of modern refrigerator failures are legion. I would look for ice buildup on the 50 degree days. Maybe the defrost timer is off?
    – Tiger Guy
    Commented Feb 20 at 19:39

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Just a follow-up to my refrigerator not cooling consistently. I paid a visit to the Just Answer website. A tech there suggested that since the thermistors were replaced, the control board was replaced and the fan works, the only thing remaining was the solenoid valve. This valve provides coolant to either the refrigerator section or the freezer section (1 line in, 2 lines out).

I checked the part number with our local appliance parts store and they informed me that they had never sold one. I also talked to a local tech that has been repairing appliances for over 35 years. He never replaced one. So out of curiosity I decided to locate it and remove it. It was not that hard. I also disconnected the wiring connector. I re-installed it and the refrigerator has now been working for 4 days. Either the connector pins were corroded or there was dirt between the solenoid housing and mechanical valve housing. Success! (so far)

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  • Thanks for the update, and congratulations on fixing it! Be sure to Accept the answer that helped you the most (probably your own?) which officially closes the loop on the Question/Answer flow here.
    – Fredric Shope
    Commented Feb 26 at 16:33
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The fan/fan motor (W11396715) would be the most suspect (remaining) part on this model, to me, since the freezer and fridge evaporator sections are separate. If the fan fails to start sometimes, distribution of air in the refrigerator will suffer as it's designed for fan-forced flow.

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  • The fan works fine. The freezer and the refrigerator sections are isolated from each other. The only thing they have in common is the compressor and condenser. Each section has its own fan.
    – Gary
    Commented Feb 20 at 15:27
  • And if the refrigerator fan works fine, but only sometimes, it would expain your symptoms of the temperature being fine, but only sometimes.
    – Ecnerwal
    Commented Feb 20 at 15:31
  • The fan is not the issue. The fan works fine. The tech verified that.
    – Gary
    Commented Feb 20 at 17:13

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