How to fix your refrigerator when it’s too cold

Is your refrigerator turning your groceries into an unexpected ice palace? An overly chilly fridge can lead to wasted food, ruined medications, and costly repairs. But fear not! We’ve got a comprehensive guide and an easy-to-follow how-to video below, designed to help you identify and fix the common culprits behind your fridge’s frosty behavior—all without the need for a professional technician.

Once you have identified the part needed for your fridge, search below using your specific refrigerator model number to identify the exact part needed:

An overly icy refrigerator may seem like more of an annoyance than a serious issue, but it can cause more problems than you might think. Though items may need to stay in a cold environment, unexpectedly frozen ingredients, prematurely spoiled food, ruined medications, water leaks, and greater damage can all result from a fresh food compartment that’s running too cold.

Luckily, you don’t need to hire a professional repair technician to look into the issue – with this guide, you can track down the source of the problem yourself! In this guide, we’re reviewing the five most common causes of a refrigerator’s temperature running too cold. Keep reading to learn how to test these components!

How cold is too cold?

Per FDA recommendations, your fridge’s fresh food compartment should be below 40°F (4°C) and above 35°F (1.6°C).

If your refrigerator is too warm (40°F or above), harmful bacteria can grow, causing your food to spoil prematurely or potentially making you sick. On the other hand, if your refrigerator is too cold (below 35°F), ice crystals can form on the items in your fresh food compartment, which can damage food or medications you may have stored. Read on to restore the interior of your fridge to the perfect cold environment.

Troubleshooting a too-cold fridge

This tutorial and the companion video will walk you through the most common causes of temperature issues for all major refrigerator brands, including GE, Frigidaire, Whirlpool, Maytag, LG, Kenmore/Sears, Samsung, and more. No matter the make and model of your fridge, this guide should help you to get the temperature back on track!

Before you begin, be sure to shut off power to the appliance by either unplugging it or flipping the circuit breaker. Also shut off the water supply via the valve beneath your kitchen sink.

What you need

While you won’t need all of these tools for every test, you should have these items on hand to do a full diagnostic:

• Your appliance manual – components like the control board and temperature sensors can be found mounted in different places depending on the make and model of your appliance, consult your manual to track down the location of a given component for testing.
• Thermometer
• Flathead & Phillips screwdrivers
• Needle-nose pliers
• Wire cutters
• You may also need wire nuts or butt connectors if you have to snip any wires for testing.

1. Temperature sensor

Your refrigerator has a number of temperature sensors used in managing the various functions of the appliance. For our purposes, we’re looking at the sensor that measures the temperature in the fresh food compartment. This component consists of a plastic sensor bulb connected to a wire harness. It reports temperature readings to the control board, which then triggers the compressor to run as needed if the interior of the fridge grows too warm.

If your refrigerator compartment is too cold, and particularly if it seems like the compressor is constantly running, it could be that the temperature sensor has failed and is either reporting the wrong temperature or is no longer reporting a temperature at all.

Temperature sensors can be found in a number of different places depending on your appliance’s brand, model, and style. Generally, you’ll find the fresh food compartment sensor behind a cover or panel, near a vent, on the back or ceiling of the compartment. Consult your manual to track the location of the part down.

You’ll need a few tools to test your temperature sensor, including a multimeter. Needle-nosed pliers and wire cutters may be necessary depending on the model of you appliance. Here’s how to test the sensor:

• Start by accessing the part. After locating it in your fresh food compartment, reaching it is usually as simple as removing a cover. Have a screwdriver handy for this step.
• Next, follow the sensor bulb’s wire harness to its nearest connection point. There’s a good chance it ends in a plug, which you can disconnect either by hand or with needle-nose pliers. If the wire does not end in a plug, you will need a pair of wire cutters to cut it out for testing.
• Now, use your thermometer to test the temperature near the sensor.
• Grab your appliance’s tech sheet and consult the temperature sensor table. It will list a number of temperatures and a corresponding Ohms value.
• Set your multimeter to Ohms, then touch the probes to the wiring harness pins or bare wires on the sensor. The Ohms reading you get should be close to the Ohms reading that corresponds with the current temperature in your refrigerator. If it’s way off or if you aren’t getting a reading at all, the temperature sensor is bad and must be replaced.
• If the sensor is in good shape, you can either plug it back in or reconnect it using butt connectors or wire nuts.

2. Cold control

A properly working cold control will allow you to set the temperature in your refrigerator via knob in the control panel.  Though the only part you’ll see is the knob, the component also consists of a long temperature sensor and a switch. This switch contains contacts that open and close depending on the temperature in the fresh food compartment, turning the condenser on and off.

If your refrigerator is way too cold, especially if it seems like the compressor is running constantly, the cold control might be causing your issues.

Here’s how to test it out:

1. Start with a simple test. While the fridge has power and the condenser is running, knock on the area around the cold control knob lightly to see if it jostles the contacts inside free. The condenser might turn off right after doing this. While it temporarily fixes your problem, this could still be a sign that your cold control is failing.
2. If you are doing further testing the cold control, be sure to unplug the refrigerator now. You should never work on an appliance that is receiving power.
3. Turn the cold control to the off position to start.
4. Remove the control panel and disconnect the wires from the cold control. You may also need to remove the knob and mounting screws to gain full access to the control’s switch.
5. Test the cold control with a multimeter set to continuity. Touch a probe to each of the metal terminals on the side of the cold control. It should not have continuity at this point.
6. Turn the cold control into an on position and test with the multimeter again. This time, it should have continuity. If not, the part needs to be replaced.
7. Check the sensor bulb for signs of damage, and the surrounding area for any oily residue from the bulb. If the sensor is leaking or has broken, the entire part will need to be replaced.

3. Control board

All of your refrigerator’s functions are managed by the control board, a circuit board typically found behind the cold control or on the back of the fridge, behind an access panel, depending on the model of your appliance. Typically, if your control board is failing, you’ll likely experience a number of your refrigerator’s features malfunctioning, some of which can cause the fresh food compartment to run too cold.

Because there are so many different refrigerator control board designs, you’ll need to consult your appliance’s manual and tech sheet to locate the component and find exact diagnostic instructions. Run the tests as outlined on the tech sheet to determine whether your refrigerator’s control board needs to be replaced.

4. Air damper

The air damper connects the fresh food compartment to the freezer, allowing cold air to circulate in the refrigerator – more efficiently cooling the fresh food compartment. While air damper styles can vary greatly, almost all of them rely on a door powered by a small motor. This door opens and closes, allowing cold air into the fresh food compartment or sealing it into the freezer.  Naturally, if any part of the damper fails while the door is open, this can leave your fresh food compartment unusually cold.

You’ll find the air damper on the wall shared by the freezer and fresh food compartment. Its mechanical parts are generally hidden behind a cover that you may need a Phillips or flathead screwdriver to remove. Once that cover is off, you can test the part:

• Start by checking for ice or blocked vents. Sometimes, the doorway can get stuck because of frost build up. Check around the fridge for other vents and make sure they aren’t blocked by food or iced over. These vents should have an inch or so of room for proper air flow.
• Next, remove the damper to check the door for damage. If the door is broken or cracked, the entire damper should be replaced.
• If everything looks okay, grab your multimeter and your refrigerator’s tech sheet to check for continuity! Because there are so many air damper designs, you’ll need to check that tech sheet for which circuits to test. Touch one probe to each of the appropriate circuits to test that the damper can carry a charge.
• You may also be able to run a diagnostic from your refrigerator’s control board. Again, you’ll need to check your appliance’s manual and tech sheet for specific instructions.

5. Temperature control board

Some refrigerators, particularly newer models, monitor and manage their internal temperature with a second, smaller control board, separate from the main board. These boards often feature a digital display, and are usually found in the dispenser assembly or behind the control panel inside the refrigerator.

Naturally, if the temperature control board fails, your refrigerator’s temperature is going to be off. LIke the main control board, though, entering diagnostic mode and testing this part will depend on the make and model of your appliance. Grab your manual and your tech sheet to track down specific steps for testing this part on your fridge.

Finding the right replacement part

After tracking down your troublemaking component, your next step is getting a compatible replacement part. To do that, you’ll need your refrigerator’s model number. Check on the body of your refrigerator for a sticker label with the appliance’s information.

Model number labels can usually be found:

• On the exterior door or sides of the appliance
• Inside the door or on the door frame
• On the interior ceiling of the freezer or refrigerator compartment
• On the inside wall of either compartment
• On the fridge floor, beneath the crisper drawers
• Behind the kickplate at the bottom of the appliance

Once you’ve got that model number, you can search for the right part online at AppliancePartsPros.com. Order online and have the part you need to your door in as little as two days!

More information

You’ve learned how to diagnose your frozen fresh food compartment, but AppliancePartsPros.com hasn’t finished helping you out just yet! Grab a genuine OEM replacement part from us and be sure to check out our blog and YouTube channel for more great guides to replacing specific refrigerator parts. If you’ve got more questions not answered by our tutorials and video walkthroughs, our friendly staff is on hand to help either by phone or on our website.

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