FIXED Whirlpool Refrigerator WSF26C3EXF01 Freezer not cold enough

[CarNut84GTI]

Model Number

WSF26C3EXF01

Brand

Whirlpool

Age

More than 10 years

Whirlpool WSF26C3EXF01
Manufacture Date 6-11

Been trying to trouble shoot what's going on with the freezer. I haven't picked up a proper thermometer to stick in it, but it's definitely not as cold as it should be. Have had issues where certain items are thawing out, the ice in the ice maker is melting slightly, etc.

A bit of information
When this first happened, my first thought was to check the condensor coils. There was significant buildup of dust on the front, so vacuumed them off, the use compressed air to blow it all clear. This seemed to slightly improve the situation (ice in the ice maker had begun to melt significantly, and now it was filling up again) however some things in the freezer were not completely frozen (bag of frozen cat food, bag of chicken wings, etc). The top seems to be better at freezing than the bottom.

Went through the self diagnostic procedures through the front panel, everything that it could test on it's own checked out fine. (thermistors, heating circuit, etc),
Monitored the compressor and condenser fan, they seem to be cycling just fine.
The evaporator fan functions just fine, however it often doesn't seem to be blowing as cold as I'd expect it, and it seems to run quite a while without the compressor running (I know it should run for a while after the compressor shuts off, and I have not timed it exactly, but it seems to be running significantly longer)
Air Damper works correctly according to the self diagnostics (and verified that it was opening and closing)
Tonight I pulled everything out of the freezer, pulled the back panels off, and checked the evaporator coils. Unfortunately I did not take a picture to post, however based on other posts I've found on here, and google images, the coils appeared to have a proper frost pattern. While I was putting the panels back on, a defrost cycle started, and water was draining out the bottom correctly, so no issues there
I re-organized the freezer to allow better airflow, in the hopes that maybe this was the issue, but I'm not very hopeful
Using a cheap IR thermometer gun I have, the compressor was in the 120's F. Freezer seems to be in the mid to low 20's, and fridge in the low 40's.
Going to bring home some different tips for my DMM so I can check resistance values of the thermistors at the control board on the back, but they did check out via the self diagnostics.
Inspected the seal around the fridge and freezer, did not see any damage. I did notice a fair amount of heat where the seal touches the body between the fridge and freezer, but checking on google that seems to be fairly normal.

Would really prefer not to have to buy a new fridge right now, but running out of ideas.
Any help is appreciated

 

[CarNut84GTI]

So, I may have been a little premature on my post. Perhaps the freezer was simply packed too tightly. After re-organizing, I checked this morning, first thing I did was tap the ice paddle to cycle the door. Not a single drop of water came out (First time that's happened since this issue sprang up, it's been ranging from dumping a puddle of water, to a few drops), opened the freezer, and checked with the IR thermometer, it read 6 degree's. Everything (top and bottom) appeared frozen, and the ice was full and had no "melty" look. Feel like a bit of an idiot as I considered this at the very begining, but looked in the freezer and said "nah, there's enough circulation in there". I'll update tonight if things change, but it looks like that may have been the issue all along, lol.

 

[Jake]

Here's the parts diagram for your model:

WSF26C3EXF01 Whirlpool Refrigerator Parts & Free Repair Help - AppliancePartsPros

Original, high quality parts for Whirlpool WSF26C3EXF01 Refrigerator in stock and ready to ship today. 365 days to return any part.

click.linksynergy.com

opened the freezer, and checked with the IR thermometer, it read 6 degree's.

That's a good temperature, anywhere between 0 to 10 degrees F at all times is normal.

During the hot summer months with more traffic in and out, it will seem to work harder, that's why its very important to keep the condenser coil clean.

Yes, keep monitoring it.

Jake

 

[CarNut84GTI]

Looks like all it ended up being was a poorly organized freezer, temps have been at 0 or a couple degree's below, food is all nice and frozen, so I put it all back together and shoved it back into place. Guess I should have started with that, lol.

 

[Jake]

Ok sounds good, good find.

Thanks for the update!

Jake