Please tell me my fridge is fixable (pleaseeeeee....)

[3Ddonut]

I got a lovely big fridge freezer last Sunday from my SIL, it's about 5yr old, it was brought round on it's side and dh plugged it in and filled it up, I said to him that it needed to stand. Dismissed was I with a wave of the hand 'it'll be fine' says he and FIL, guess what? It's not alright, it's not cold enough, freezer is fine, fridge is warm. do you think that it will right itself in time or do I need to call someone out or is it broke????

[chopster]

it's not an american one is it? Side by side type?

[scorpio1]

my side by side one had to saty upright switched off for 24 hrs until i was 'allowed' to turn it on.

[3Ddonut]

no it's not a side by side one, but usually you should leave fridges switched off for 24 hours upright, but of course, dh and fil know best and now it's not working properly......AARRRGGGHHHH.

Anyone remember that fast show sketch when a group of blokes are trying to solve a problem and the woman solves it and they carry on as though they haven't heard her? That's me, in my house!!! I told dh he was like a child the other day, he won't take advice from anyone, he has to learn for himself... brickwall???? banging head????

Sorry, rant over

[GeekBoy]

yep - all refrigeration stuff should be allowed to stand before being switched on - complete pain in the arse but necessary apparently.. ...on new stuff it always certainly used to invalidate the warranty if you didn't let them stand for the specified amount of time..

[3Ddonut]

too late geekboy it's on and it has been for nearly a week, it is warm on setting '1' and setting '5' but not too bad on setting '2' the question is: Is it fixable????

[opinionateddad]

... now... these types of things are either fixable with a £5 part or a £50 motor.. everything else is sealed and not really replacable...

Here is the problem as I see it... the unit was put on it's side... this is not the best thing to do as the condensor pump user a liquid that turns to gas at room temp.. if the unit is put on its side the liquid can move into an area of the system that only the gas is really allowed to go and now things get a little meesed up.. (this is a very simplified description of the problem)

Here is what I suggest... turn it off straght away.. if you are lucky the pump wont have burnt out due to lack of lubrication...unplug from the mains and leave the unit to stand for 3 days...

. if you are very lucky the oil will recondense and fall back into the pump.. if you are unlucky the pump would have already burnt out and you are screwed...

Good luck and fingers crossed

[3Ddonut]

oh dear, the fridge and freezer are full and there's nowhere to put all the stuff...... and it's already been on for a whole week...the freezer part is working fine and the fridge is coolish but not cold enough, if the pump has burnt out is it bin fodder???????

Thanks for your reply btw!

[opinionateddad]

not necessarily 'bin fodder' but an expensive repair...

Thing to know is that the coolant in a refrigerant system is also the lubricant and coolant for the pump... if the pump runs dry it gets real hot and eventually will start to scream and fail...

Just one other thing to ask.. is the unit touching a wall??.. some units need an air gap of a couple of inches at the back else this can also cause the symptoms you are describing..

I am afraid i think it is the issues behid door number one (never lay a fridge on its side) but it is worth a look behind door number two even tho I am sure this is not the problem

[3Ddonut]

it is against a wall but it's so bloomin' big that it doesn't get right next to the wall, I hope it's fixable, we had a take a unit out to fit it in!