Clean and Maintain

Ice and frost buildup in a refrigerator or freezer

Water leaking from the front of the refrigerator or freezer

Loud grinding, rattle or banging sounds!

There are two types of ice buildup people often see in their refrigerators or freezers. One looks like snow, and one looks more like frozen water. Usually, snow is caused by warm air penetration. Check your gaskets and make sure nothing is preventing the door(s) from closing properly. The other is ice, Ice is usually caused by a clogged defrost drain. Water can not drain into the pan, so it pools under the crisper or freezer drawer and can then freeze. While in some cases it can be a defrost system issue and even refrigerant leaks, typically, all of this can be prevented and repaired with simple maintenance. 

This is almost always due to a lack of maintenance. Yes, there can be a leak in your water system, hoses or filter. But usually, defrost drains become clogged and the water must go somewhere! So, it will leak out inside the unit and eventually onto the floor. Which if you have wood floors, ain't good. On side-by-side models, it will form a sheet of ice under the bottom drawer in the freezer. If you see water, check here. On top mount units, people often see water dripping inside the fridge on the top shelf or even a lack of cooling in the refrigerator compartment. On bottom mount freezer models, you may see water and or ice under the crisper drawers in the refrigerator compartment. Or, a sheet of ice under the large bin in the pullout freezer. This is typically a sign you need maintenance.

Loud fan noises are a common call for us. There are a few possibilities for this problem. Sometimes the fan blade can over time work it's way down the shaft and come into contact with housings and covers. Sometimes it's a cover itself that's rattling. Sometimes it's two bottles of ketchup in the door. Ice can buildup around the fan if we have poor defrosting - yes. But mostly what we see is the drains are backed up, the defrost heater has ice around it because the pan is frozen due to poor drainage. Then, when the heater is activated, there is an excessive amount of moisture that then rises up and settles around the fan. Then, when the system goes back to cooling, the moisture freezes. Causing maddening noise. Yes, you guessed it, also a maintenance would  have prevented this.