Refrigerator Stopped working then started again Question

[larry_stewart]

I have a spare fridge I keep in the garage for excess cold storage.
Its not the greatest quality fridge, but it serves its purpose.
Its under 5 years old, and hasn't given me a problem.

This past winter , which was a very cold and long winter, we noticed that the stuff in the freezer was not getting as frozen as it used to be.
Ice cream was a little soft, and stuff you would expect to be frozen solid, was a little pliable.

This lasted for a few weeks during the heart of winter, and we assumed it was going bad, so we had expected to get a new fridge this spring.

As the outside temps are warming up, the fridge / freezer are now working as they once did, perfectly.

Our garage, although sheltered from the outside elements , is not heated.

Im not an expert on refrigerators, but Im guessing that the garage got so cold, that the sensors picked this up and decided to shut the system down ( assuming that it was cold enough). And the fridge, being an insulator, probably held the temp slightly warmer than it should. And now that the outside temp is much warmer than the preset temps, the fridge is kicking in again.

Does my theory make sense ? or am I way off??

Just curious

Larry

 

[Andy M.]

Actually, you're right on. A fridge needs a temperature differential to work properly.

 

[larry_stewart]

Actually, you're right on. A fridge needs a temperature differential to work properly.

Guess Im smarter than I thought

Glad I held out until the spring came. Save me a few hundred bucks.

 

[Roll_Bones]

We have discussed this recently and learned something I never knew before.
Did you know that you can buy freezers and refrigerators designed to operate in low ambient temperatures?
Ever wondered how those freezers located outside on ones porch in Alaska could continue to work?
There are classifications on these appliances and without double checking, NY would qualify as a cold place in the winter. LOL.

It is recommended that when you purchase a freezer or fridge, you check its rating to see if its designed for low ambient temps.
A fridge or freezer off the floor at Costco is not designed to operate in these cold environments.

On another note, cold temps could have adverse effects on the compressor and could shorten the life of the appliance.

 

[Roll_Bones]

Guess Im smarter than I thought

Glad I held out until the spring came. Save me a few hundred bucks.

You haven't corrected anything unless you plan to heat the garage.

 

[Cooking Goddess]

Mother Nature will probably correct it next winter, R_B, especially since larry said he had no problems before this winter. We had a record-breaking winter up here in the North Atlantic, resulting in very long stretches of below-normal cold. EVERY motor up here had to do extra work to perform - larry's garage fridge, my basement washing machine, my own body... T'wasn't a winter fit for man or machine.

 

[Roll_Bones]

Mother Nature will probably correct it next winter, R_B, especially since larry said he had no problems before this winter. We had a record-breaking winter up here in the North Atlantic, resulting in very long stretches of below-normal cold. EVERY motor up here had to do extra work to perform - larry's garage fridge, my basement washing machine, my own body... T'wasn't a winter fit for man or machine.

Yes, I do understand how cold it was last season as we were cold here in SC.
My point was many folks buy these types of appliances without a thought to ambient temps. I am guilty.
I do have a freezer in my basement that does just fine even though its not rated for the cold atmosphere down there.
The people that live in very, very cold weather like Alaska and other remote cold locations know this and buy accordingly.
Just a heads up for anyone wanting a freezer or fridge for use in cold temps. You can buy something designed for the application.

 

[Blackitty]

I woke up to a big puddle of water on the floor, fridge just wasn't running. As I was dumping everything down the drain, the thing kicked back on.

I called a repair guy and he said that a lot of times, that problem is a faulty thermostat, but my problem was...blah, blah, blah...gotta get a new fridge.

Just a little heads up. Might want to keep an eye on it.