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Thread: Repair or Replace?

  1. #1
    Join Date
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    Repair or Replace?

    Our 12+ year old freezer is starting to leave ice cream soft. Put a thermometer in last night and the coldest it gets is 20ºF. A freezer should get colder than that.

    It is a Frigidaire model that can be configured for use as a refrigerator or a freezer.

    Most likely this will be replaced with another freezer but there isn't any brand loyalty.

    Any ideas on whether it is better to repair to see if a few more years can be coaxed out of the current unit or what brand would be better freezer?

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
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    San Antonio, TX
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    We regret replacing our refrigerator rather than doing one more repair.
    If it is cold but not cold enough, check to see if the coils have iced up. One of repairs on the old fridge was to replace the defrost heaters. Worst part was defrosting enough to disassemble to get the heater out.

    John

  3. #3
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    Lake Gaston, Henrico, NC
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    Did you vacuum out all around the compressor, and fan?

  4. #4
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    Mar 2018
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    Piercefield, NY
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    One of our chest freezers is over 20 years old and a few weeks ago it seemed to have stopped working, the bagels at the top were not frozen so I knew it had stopped, but everything below was still OK. I wiggled the temperature knob and it came back on, and I said if it went out again we should look at replacing it, but so far it has been good, staying around -10. Is there a temp knob you can adjust on yours? If so I would give it a try and see if turning it down lower helps.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Dec 2019
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    Nova Scotia, Canada
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    I’d check to see if the new model you like is available before making any decisions. Some appliances are is short supply lately. Or, at least they were.

  6. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by Tom M King View Post
    Did you vacuum out all around the compressor, and fan?

    Also check to see if baffles surrounding fan are still intact. Does fan motor work, both on condenser and in freezer compartment?

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Sep 2016
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    Modesto, CA, USA
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    Is it still true that new fridge will pay for itself in energy saving in just a few years. If then old one is over 10 years old or so.
    Bil lD

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Feb 2010
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    Mt Pleasant SC
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    Just like anything, google the make and model to see what other people are fixing on these. I do all of my appliance repairs and most of my own car repairs and get amazed at the essays people write on how to fix things.

  9. #9
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    Nov 2007
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    NW Indiana
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    My freezer is 20+ years old and still working. I bought a Acurite temperature monitor. The probe is in the freezer down stairs and the readout near my chair upstairs. It is -4 F in the freezer.

    Personally, I would try cleaning coils and deicing inside. If it makes no difference, get a new one.

  10. #10
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    Check that the hose directing defrost water to the evaporating pan at the bottom isn't clogged.
    NOW you tell me...

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Jan 2004
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    Fredericksburg, TX
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    I had problem with refrigerator a couple years back that was about 6 years old. It was almost impossible to find someone to work on it, and then it would be about 10 days for service. Home depot delivered a new one in 2 days and made living in home much happier than waiting. Your freezer might not be that urgent, but a consideration.

  12. #12
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    A few years ago my dryer stopped working, I called my repairman who also sold appliances. I had used him many times and trusted him. I suggested that maybe I should just get a new dryer. He said absolutely not, the newer ones quality was far below mine, remember he was recommending against my buying a new dryer from him. His last words were "keep fixing this until it can no longer be fixed". Now one problem with my suggestion is getting parts. We have been waiting 3 months for a part for our wine cooler which we really need since that's where we store all our bottled water☺
    Dennis

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Sep 2013
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    Wayland, MA
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    Is it self defrosting? (a truly horrible choice for longer term food storage, btw-- they temperature cycle on a daily basis dehydrating food something awful. Stuff will last in good condition 5-10 times longer in a manual defrost freezer. In the lab we showed how quickly they killed biological materials like enzymes; not pretty!)

    Anyway, a common failure in self defrosting units is the circuitry that does the temp cycling, the fan they usually incorporate, or drainage, any of which causes ice buildup on the coils and loss of cooling capacity. If you defrost the freezer and it has a miracle cure this area is probably where the problem is.

    Manual defrost freezers are extremely simple devices, assuming you've cleaned the coils the most common failure is loss of coolant, in which case you probably just need to buy a new freezer. AFAIK there's very little difference among manual defrost freezers. One with a better energy rating probably has more/better insulation, chances are the refrigeration pump is the same.

  14. #14
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    Went out shopping today. Very few freezers available. One from Mexico, most of the others were from China. The odd thing is many of them do not have reversible doors.

    Must be American factories that used to build appliances have all been dismantled. Otherwise some forward thinker could start up an assembly line and get rich.

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Oct 2019
    Location
    Maryland
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    336
    It seems some of the maytag freezers are "assembled" in the usa

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