removing every third fin on the cooling coil
Does removing every third fin on the cooling coil in the refrigerator help the frig get colder or does it keep it from getting too cold?
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Hi,
Removing fins will slow down the dispersion of heat. The more fin 'area' the better the cooling release. The fridge will take longer to cool, therefore it will run for longer trying to get the temperature down.
Smarter people than us have worked out the amount of fin cooling area necessary for the efficient operation of a fridge.
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Jayeff,
Thanks, the reason I asked this was our refrigerator ( French door 2 years old )is not cooling but the freezer is working fine and that is what a service tech did to fix the problem ( didn't work )
Hi @goddrummer
What is the make and model number of your fridge?
Seems a very poor solution for a 'fix' to your problem. Usually fridges do not cool even though the freezer is OK is because of faulty thermostats, stuck damper doors faulty internal fans even control boards etc, not the number of cooling fins. If it was due to ice build up on the fins again this is no reason to remove them.
Also check the warranty on the fridge, a lot of them give more than 1 year. Was it repaired under a warranty provision? If so get back onto the authorized repairer and tell them what happened and that it didn't work.
If not under warranty then get back to us here. There are some good 'fridge' people who will help you find the cause.
Jayeff,
The fridg. Is a LG model # LFX31925ST it is supposedly covered under the Home Depot protection plan. We have been going around with them since August 8th of this year ( 2016 )
LG tech says 42-46 degrees is acceptable, but my years in the food service business, cold food has to be below 40 degrees
A third party from Home Depot replaced the freezer/defrost thermostat( Not the fridg.?) that did Not work, second tech replaced the defrost controller and removed every third fin on the coil. Same tech a couple weeks later replaced main PCB .
the fridg has got down to 37 but is at 44-48 most of the time and as high as 54 after not being open for four to six hours
THANKS FOR YOUR HELP !
Hi @goddrummer
Did they mention the Thermistor at any stage. It is the component that senses the temperature in the fridge. It's basically a resistor that alters its resistance due to temperature and since it is connected to the control board enables the control board to regulate the temperature. Thermostats are usually designed to get temp to a required setting so if thermostat has been changed then perhaps the thermistor is the problem.
Here is a link what it looks like, unfortunately at this stage I cannot find out exactly where it is located in your fridge.
Awesome, thanks for all the information
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The removal of the fins to the evap is 1 step of a repair bulletin LG posted. All French door w/duel evap models that have complaints of water under bins, fresh food section not cold enough, or, veges freezing are to perform repairs per LGs bulletin. In a nutshell, the evap was freezing up, the drain line would freeze, thus, improper air flow over evap coils = not cold enough complaint. Drain froze so water builds up under crisper. LGs fix included a new damper, seals, defrost controls, fin removal & pcb replaced. New pcb has extended defrost time. A lot of work, only to return in 2 wks w/same issue. The frost pattern on evap was heavy across the top an thinned closer to the bottom. I think LG thought it was an airflow design flaw & was redesign it in the field. I found that if you i increased defrost time by moving the defrost sensor away from the heater a little, then attach a drain clip to heater and insert in drain -problem solved! No returns, no expensive parts and it's quick n easy.
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2 Comments
Jayeff,
The refrigerator is a LG model# LFX31925ST French door , the fins that were removed are in the back of the refrigerator area.
That's what I thought also odd to remove the fins when coils were Not freezing up.
Thanks
by Brian brant
Never heard of any one removing fins from a coil to make it work better. The number, shape and spacing of fins is a science to get the correct delta tee across the coil.
by hvacjack