Whirlpool Refrigerator WRX735SDBM00 fridge warm freezer cold

[jay31k]

Model Number

WRX735SDBM00

Brand

Whirlpool

Age

6-10 years

Fridge: Whirlpool WRX735SDBM00 french door model
Noticed Fridge only gets to about 50 degrees and freezer cold as normal. Feel cool air coming from the freezer box area but nothing strong (never noticed if it was stronger before). Air vent in freezer section strong and really cold.
Took freezer panel apart. Noticed it was iced up in the top right pretty bad. Used a warm hair dryer to melt it over 30 minutes.
Put everything back together. Noticed freezer fan does work and rear fan behind unit works. Heard compressor kick on.

3 hours later, temps of fridge are still in the 50s. I found the service mode options on here and ran through them and nothing reported a failure. I did notice when running icebox test, it starts with an odd clicking noise and then you can hear the fan and feel the air going into the fridge compartment. It just doesn't feel like the air coming out into the fridge is really cold.

Do I just need to give it several more hours for the fridge to cool back down after manually defrosting the coils? Is there also something I should test if the coils freeze up. I noticed originally the coils under the fridge were completely coated in cat fur. I'm guessing they haven't been cleaned in 2 years. I'm assuming that is what started the whole issue.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[jay31k]

After 24 hours, the fridge gets to about 40-45 depending on the shelf. I have the setting set to 35 to see if it would drop it colder. I thought about checking the freezer box area but didn't know if anyone had any suggestions.

Thanks in advance.

 

[jay31k]

Pulled apart icebox and tested the fan and that works fine. Is it possible it isn't defrosting? I wouldn't have thought the coils would have frosted over in 12 hours where the fridge wouldn't get colder but I'm not the expert obviously.

Any suggestions on what to test?

 

[Jake]

It looks like you have a sealed system/compressor problem per your photo above.

Normal freezer temperature would be 0 degrees F.

What I do is remove the back panel inside the freezer(which you did) and look at the evaporator coil frost pattern. Normal would be a thin layer of frost on ALL the coils from TOP to BOTTOM.

Look at the very bottom photo below where it says NORMAL FROST PATTERN.

 

[jay31k]

It looked like the sealed one but it did have more ice over the other areas but definitely not like the normal frost pattern. It also had that large block of ice in the top corner.

Could the excess lint/cat fur have caused compressor to leak or another issue? I noticed the fan is more audible now after ripping the freezer box apart and feel a stronger flow. I read that repairing a sealed system may not even be worth the cost compared to buying a new one. Should I wait a few days and remove the panel and see what it is doing again?

Really appreciate the help.

 

[Jake]

Could the excess lint/cat fur have caused compressor to leak or another issue?

Yes, it can damage the compressor in the long run with overheating.

I read that repairing a sealed system may not even be worth the cost compared to buying a new one.

That is true.

Should I wait a few days and remove the panel and see what it is doing again?

Yes, you can if you like.

 

[jay31k]

I've been monitoring the fridge and it is at 38. I tried changing the setting from 33 to 35 and it doesn't budge. I'm going to try to remove the freezer panel and see if its iced up this weekend. I do notice the icemaker was working again which has been sporadic. All of a sudden today, it stopped again. Starting to hate this fridge . Would be a good idea to go ahead and replace the icemaker unit?

 

[Jake]

Would be a good idea to go ahead and replace the icemaker unit?

No, because it has to be 10 degrees F or lower, in the ice maker compartment, at all times for the ice maker to work continually.

If you have a sealed system problem a new ice maker will do you no good, see what I mean?

 

[jay31k]

I didn't realize that it had to be 10 degrees in the icemaker. I pulled it out and see ice in the slots but the temp is around 18 degrees in there with the infrared thermometer. Guessing this has been a long term issue since ice stopped so long ago. It is odd how it started back up but maybe it was due to the fridge being more empty and easier to cool down.

 

[Jake]

Did you take the freezer temperature as well yet? That needs to be 0 to 10 degrees F at all times too.