A refrigerator provides necessary storage for the most perishable of foods. Cold cuts, dairy products, raw meat, and fresh produce may all be stored inside a refrigeration system. When power shortages occur, one of the first things that needs to be done is to find alternative storage for the food items that are usually kept in the refrigerator.
At any given time, a refrigerator stores hundreds to thousands of dollars worth of essential items including food, medical supplies, and much more. As such, a refrigerator in need of repair can result in great inconvenience and wasted resources. In order to prevent this, it’s recommended to monitor the functionality of your refrigerator so that any problems can be quickly addressed.
We often don’t think of refrigeration as a device that requires regular servicing. However, refrigeration repairs, servicing, and installation, particularly for businesses, are necessary in order to keep your supplies cool and fresh. We service our cars, so it isn’t a leap to assume that our fridges need maintenance too. Here are six common signs your refrigerator needs repair:
Condensation
When you open your refrigeration system and notice droplets of water on the system’s interior, this is one sign that your refrigerator needs repair. Condensation inside the system means that it’s not cooling down efficiently. One of the first things you should do if you notice this is to examine the rubber sealing around the fridge door. If the seal is wet or has signs of mildew or mold, the sealing itself is causing the condensation problem.
Failing to address this problem will only make matters worse over time, resulting in the possibility of supplies being ruined or reducing the shelf-life of perishable materials.
Over-heated motor
Every refrigeration system has a motor, and it’s not uncommon for a motor to be warm. However, if your business’s refrigerator motor appears to be excessively hot, this is a sign that your system needs repair. The motor itself could be overworked and/or overheated, but it could also be a sign that something else is wrong with your fridge and the motor is having to do more work to compensate for the flaws of other components. Whatever the case, an overheated motor needs to be addressed immediately, as it is the main working mechanism of the entire appliance. If the motor is left unaddressed, the entire system will likely need to be replaced. The motor of the fridge is like the engine of a car, so without it, even the most basic functions will be severely impaired or even non-existent.
Spoiling food
Even the most perishable foods like shellfish have a shelf-life printed on the packaging. If you notice that many of your perishable items are spoiling before their time—even foods that have a longer shelf life like vacuum-packed bacon—then there is something undoubtedly wrong with your fridge. No perishable food item should become inedible before their use-by date, so if you’re wasting money throwing food out that hasn’t yet reached their use-by, there’s a serious problem with your business’s refrigeration system.
Icy freezer
Freezers should be freezing, of course, but no freezer should have chunks of ice inside it. If your freezer is operating properly, you should rarely, if ever, have to defrost your system. This is particularly true for newer installations, many of which come with automatic defrosting functions. Defrosting a freezer is a messy job that can result in food waste and a major headache for your business or home.
If you find that your freezer is constantly icy, and you’re having to defrost it once every six months or more often, this is a sign that your refrigerator is in need of repair. If you only have to defrost it once a year or less often, this problem is not yet too serious but should still be seriously considered as a sign that you will need to have your system serviced or replaced in the next few years.
Buzzing sound
All refrigerators make a certain amount of noise, but if your fridge sounds excessively noisy it may be in need of repair. The compressor and other components that are essential in the structure of your fridge create sound. A quietly whirring fridge is normal, whereas a persistently buzzing one is not. When you notice your fridge buzzing, there are a number of issues that could be the cause. For example, the compressor may be worn down and creating noise because it is slowly breaking down.
Alternatively, the cooling fan might be dirty and need cleaning. When it is dirty, the fan does not spin effortlessly, but instead chugs around, using a lot more energy to carry out its function. As such, a dirty cooling fan may be spinning around at the wrong angle, thereby creating a buzzing noise by bumping into other components while completing its spinning cycle. Pay particular attention to the noise your refrigeration system makes either when you’re in the same room with it or by opening its doors. An overly noisy system is a sure sign your refrigerator needs repair.
High energy bills
High energy bills may be a sign that there are inefficient appliances at your business or home, particularly if they rise drastically without changes in inventory or usage. Different types of refrigeration systems consume different amounts of energy. For example, having a freezer on the top of your fridge uses less energy than a freezer on the bottom. As a general rule, side-by-side fridges have a guarantee of approximately five years while the aforementioned styles usually last around seven years before needing repairs. Maintaining your refrigeration unit effectively will not only be kinder to the environment; it will also help you save on energy bills and ultimately, pad your bottom line.