Hi,
In the past two years we had two episodes where my 2001 side-by-side Kenmore
fridge-freezer worked fine, but the fridge warmed up. Both times were fixed
by a hair dryer heating the cold air vent (blows cold air into the fridge
and what I think is a return vent (on the lower side of the fridge) in the
fridge. Can you tell me the most common causes and what I can do to prevent
another reoccurrence?

Thanks, Marc

Marc wrote:
Hi,
In the past two years we had two episodes where my 2001 side-by-side
Kenmore fridge-freezer worked fine, but the fridge warmed up. Both
times were fixed by a hair dryer heating the cold air vent (blows
cold air into the fridge and what I think is a return vent (on the
lower side of the fridge) in the fridge. Can you tell me the most
common causes and what I can do to prevent another reoccurrence?

Thanks, Marc

Water is freezing and preventing air flow through part of the system;
blocking off the frig. I understand it can be three things. Something is
physically blocking some of the air flow (like insulation out of place). It
can also be a bad Freon charge, or it may be an air leak letting in too much
air and the moisture with it or (bonus suggestions) a defrost cycle timer
not working. I am sure there are a few other reasons as well.

Said to say I believe the Freon level problem is most common.

--
Joseph E. Meehan

26 + 6 = 1 It's Irish Math

If the initial repairs were by Sears under warranty, I would call the
salesman and tell them your problems and ask them to send their number one
mechanic. The sales department will know who that is and call the service
dept for you and get that done if its like the Sears near me. And tell them
if it is not fixed this time you want the frige replaced.


"Marc" wrote in message
...
Hi,
In the past two years we had two episodes where my 2001 side-by-side
Kenmore
fridge-freezer worked fine, but the fridge warmed up. Both times were
fixed
by a hair dryer heating the cold air vent (blows cold air into the fridge
and what I think is a return vent (on the lower side of the fridge) in the
fridge. Can you tell me the most common causes and what I can do to
prevent
another reoccurrence?

Thanks, Marc

Marc wrote

In the past two years we had two episodes where my
2001 side-by-side Kenmore fridge - freezer worked
fine, but the fridge warmed up. Both times were fixed
by a hair dryer heating the cold air vent (blows cold air
into the fridge and what I think is a return vent (on the
lower side of the fridge) in the fridge.

Can you tell me the most common causes

It might be caused by excessive humidity in the compartments (door
seals leaking, light staying on, etc.) or poor air flow (fan slowing,
etc.). If it were caused by a defrost water drain problem, the
condition would likely return much more frequently (like weekly).

and what I can do to prevent another reoccurrence?

Difficult to say without knowing which "Kenmore SxS refrigerator"
model you have and how it was designed (they're not all the same nor
even all made by the same manufacturer).

If you post the appliances's model number off its model and serial
number tag, someone *may* be able to tell you if there is a particular
area on your fridge's design which might need some investigation. You
can find tips for locating the model and serial number tag on your
appliances in the 'Repair Parts' section of my site linked below.

Dan O.
-
Appliance411.com
http://ng.Appliance411.com/?ref411=Kenmore+fridge

=Ð~~~~~~

"Joseph Meehan" wrote in message
...
Marc wrote:
Hi,
In the past two years we had two episodes where my 2001 side-by-side
Kenmore fridge-freezer worked fine, but the fridge warmed up. Both
times were fixed by a hair dryer heating the cold air vent (blows
cold air into the fridge and what I think is a return vent (on the
lower side of the fridge) in the fridge. Can you tell me the most
common causes and what I can do to prevent another reoccurrence?

Thanks, Marc

Water is freezing and preventing air flow through part of the system;
blocking off the frig. I understand it can be three things. Something is
physically blocking some of the air flow (like insulation out of place).
It
can also be a bad Freon charge, or it may be an air leak letting in too
much
air and the moisture with it or (bonus suggestions) a defrost cycle timer
not working. I am sure there are a few other reasons as well.

Said to say I believe the Freon level problem is most common.


Actually (depending on model) in side-by-side units it could be the damper
that's sticking closed . On some models there is a damper that is
automatically opened and closed to regulate the temp in the fridge section.
Also a symptom of a low Freon charge would be a warmer (although still cold)
freezer with possibly acceptable temperatures in the refrigerator.The
defrost timer is a possibility as that would cause the evaporator to freeze
up and restrict airflow to the refrigerator but a more common problem is the
bimetal device that functions as a defrost terminator fails and even though
the defrost timer energizes it will not allow the defrost heaters to come
on.



Henry


--
Joseph E. Meehan

26 + 6 = 1 It's Irish Math





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Thanks for the advice. My model number is S2702100 Serial SL4148490 Sears,
since now my fridge is "working", has offered me a service contract for
$230. This includes annual maintenance visit and a warranty extension on
the fridge for four years. From the possibilities of problems that I may be
having, it sounds like this my be the best option.


"twiedeman" wrote in message
...
Look closely at the evaporator side of your system,specifically the
defrost
timer,evap. coils/fins,evap moter,defrost heater elements. It sounds like
it
is not defrosting as it should



"Marc" wrote in message
...
Hi,
In the past two years we had two episodes where my 2001 side-by-side
Kenmore
fridge-freezer worked fine, but the fridge warmed up. Both times were
fixed
by a hair dryer heating the cold air vent (blows cold air into the
fridge
and what I think is a return vent (on the lower side of the fridge) in
the
fridge. Can you tell me the most common causes and what I can do to
prevent
another reoccurrence?

Thanks, Marc

Look closely at the evaporator side of your system,specifically the defrost
timer,evap. coils/fins,evap moter,defrost heater elements. It sounds like it
is not defrosting as it should



"Marc" wrote in message
...
Hi,
In the past two years we had two episodes where my 2001 side-by-side
Kenmore
fridge-freezer worked fine, but the fridge warmed up. Both times were
fixed
by a hair dryer heating the cold air vent (blows cold air into the fridge
and what I think is a return vent (on the lower side of the fridge) in the
fridge. Can you tell me the most common causes and what I can do to
prevent
another reoccurrence?

Thanks, Marc