Temperature Control

Evaporator Coils and Fan

The evaporator coils absorb heat from the freezer section of your refrigerator. The evaporator fan moves the cold air around to both the freezer and refrigerator sections.

Freezer Control

Some of the freezing cold air from the freezer section is diverted down to the refrigerator section. The air diverter control is usually called the freezer temperature control. Warm air from the top of the refrigerator section is drawn into the evaporator coils by the evaporator fan, cooled down and a portion is pushed back down into the back of the refrigerator via the diverter control. Therefore the coldest spot in your refrigerator may be the top shelf, all the way to the back - good place to put the milk. The warmest spot is the top shelf in the door - good place for the butter or margarine.

Refrigerator Thermostat

The operating thermostat is the refrigerator temperature control which is always at the top and back of the refrigerator section. The compressor and fans run until the refrigerator thermostat is satisfied. If the freezer air diverter is set for a warmer freezer, the most air flows down to the refrigerator and satisfies the thermostat. If the freezer control is set for a colder freezer, only a trickle of cold air will be diverted to the refrigerator section where the thermostat is and the compressor will run a long time before enough cold air reaches the thermostat to satisfy it. In the meantime, the freezer section will be going way below zero before the compressor shuts off.

Balancing the Controls

The goal is to balance the freezer and refrigerator controls until the proper temperature range is reached in both sections. Most manufacturers recommend midrange settings for both controls. To precisely balance the temperatures, put an outdoor thermometer on the front of the top shelf in the refrigerator section. Adjust the thermostat (refrigerator control) until the temperature stabilizes between 45 and 55 degrees F. Now put the thermometer in the freezer and make sure the temperature is less than 10 degrees F. You are wasting energy if you keep the freezer less than 10 degrees below zero. Adjust the freezer control for a freezer temperature between 0 and 10 degrees F. Remember that the colder you set the freezer control, the longer the compressor will run until the refrigerator thermostat is satisfied.

Why does this refrigerator run all of the time?

The refrigerators of decades ago would fire up their compressors with a loud snarl and dimming of the lights. After running for a half an hour or so they would shut down and be noticeably quite only to repeat the whole scene in 10 or 20 minutes. This was the way refrigerators were supposed to run.

Now days our new refrigerators come on quietly but it seems like they are running all the time. Is there something wrong? No, the compressors are small, the coils are large and the Styrofoam insulation is thick so the machine is more efficient. When the compressor is running, the inside temperatures are not only constant - they are consistent throughout the refrigerator and freezer sections. So keep the condensor coils clean and don't worry about the refrigerator running all the time.