How to Diagnose Some Common Problems With Your Home's Freezer

Your home's freezer may run for years without ever acting up or outright failing, but once this happens, you will want to get this fixed immediately so that you don't lose money on spoiled food. It's also good to note some signs of when your home's freezer is about to fail, so you can address this problem before it shuts down completely. Note a few of those signs here so you can get these problems fixed as soon as possible and ensure your freezer is always functioning optimally.

1. The freezer runs all the time

Like the refrigerator or air conditioner, a freezer should cycle on and off in order to maintain proper temperature rather than running all the time. If the freezer does run all the time, this is usually a problem with the thermostat. To test this, move the thermostat dial to the lowest temperature and note if the freezer then shuts off. If not, this means that the motor and compressor are not getting signals from the thermostat, and it needs to be replaced.

2. The freezer is not actually freezing foods

If the foods you keep in the freezer are cool but not frozen, first make sure you have the thermostat dial set to a low temperature. If the thermostat is fine, foods that aren't frozen usually signal a problem with the condenser coils. These are located under or behind the unit and when they get dirty and dusty, they cannot condense the refrigerant and cause it to become cool. Clean these coils with a vacuum hose or soft rag. If this doesn't address the problem, have a technician check if the freezer needs a recharge of refrigerant.

3. Water puddles inside or outside the freezer

The freezer will drain condensation inside the unit through a tube or hose; this is why you don't need to defrost the freezer on your own. However, if this tube or hose is clogged with ice or other debris, condensation will back up into the freezer itself, or form at the bottom of the tube and spill on the floor.  A good fix is to fill a turkey baster with warm water and then gently push the water through that drain. This should melt any ice that has formed. If this doesn't fix the problem, have a freezer repair technician check to see if the hose is actually crimped or damaged and is allowing condensation and resultant puddles to form.

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