Refrigerator Not cooling — Causes, Fixes & Repair Costs

Brand-specific patterns we see

• Whirlpool: On Whirlpool-built fridges (incl. Maytag, Amana, Inglis badges) the most frequent "not cooling" root is the defrost circuit on the rear evaporator — bimetal thermostat or heater — followed by adaptive-defrost control faults on electronic models.
• LG: On LG fridges built roughly 2014–2018 the dominant "stopped cooling" cause is the linear compressor. A US class settlement (approved 2020) covered units manufactured Jan 2014–Dec 2017, and LG extended compressor coverage — current terms run up to 10 years on the compressor part. Always decode the serial before quoting: a covered compressor means the customer pays labour, not the part.
• GE: On GE fridges (incl. Profile, Café, Hotpoint badges) two clusters dominate: main-board failures on the 2002–2009 side-by-side era (the famous WR55X10942 board, often after power events) and defrost-drain icing on bottom-freezer models that ends as water under the floor — fixed properly with the OEM drain-heater kit.
• Maytag: Maytag fridges are two different machines wearing one badge: pre-~2007 Maytag-built units (Newton/Amana heritage) and post-acquisition Whirlpool platforms (an MFI/MFF French door is a Whirlpool WRF underneath — same defrost parts, same fixes). The era decides the parts list, and one era carries a real recall.
• Amana: On Whirlpool-built fridges (incl. Maytag, Amana, Inglis badges) the most frequent "not cooling" root is the defrost circuit on the rear evaporator — bimetal thermostat or heater — followed by adaptive-defrost control faults on electronic models.
• Frigidaire: Frigidaire (Electrolux) fridges are the GTA's budget-volume workhorse, and their service profile is distinct: Gallery French-door ice makers in the fresh-food section are a chronic complaint, and the electronic models throw readable SY-codes — SY EF (evaporator fan) is the classic "freezer fine, fridge warm" verdict.
• Kenmore: "Kenmore" is a Sears retail badge, not a manufacturer — every Kenmore fridge is built by another maker, and the FIRST THREE DIGITS of the model number on the inside-wall sticker decode whose. The dominant refrigerator donors are 106./110./198. = Whirlpool-built (defrost-circuit profile), 596. = Amana (a Whirlpool brand, same W10 parts book), 795. = LG-built (linear-compressor era and its extended compressor coverage apply), 253. = Frigidaire-built Gallery (electronic-display platform, readable SY-codes), 970. = Frigidaire-built basic top-mount (no Gallery display), 363. = GE-built, and 401. = Samsung-built (ice-room icing profile). We decode the full model AND serial before the visit and load the real maker's platform parts — there is no such thing as a "Kenmore" part number; it IS the donor's number.
• Inglis: On Whirlpool-built fridges (incl. Maytag, Amana, Inglis badges) the most frequent "not cooling" root is the defrost circuit on the rear evaporator — bimetal thermostat or heater — followed by adaptive-defrost control faults on electronic models.
• KitchenAid: KitchenAid refrigeration splits in two: freestanding French-door/counter-depth units that are premium-trim Whirlpool platforms (same defrost and fan faults, same W10 parts), and the 42–48" built-in line (KSSC/KBSD/KBBL) whose mid-2000s generation is notorious for main-control-board failure — the W10219463 board that became scarce enough that board-rebuild services exist.
• JennAir: KitchenAid refrigeration splits in two: freestanding French-door/counter-depth units that are premium-trim Whirlpool platforms (same defrost and fan faults, same W10 parts), and the 42–48" built-in line (KSSC/KBSD/KBBL) whose mid-2000s generation is notorious for main-control-board failure — the W10219463 board that became scarce enough that board-rebuild services exist.
• GE Profile: On GE fridges (incl. Profile, Café, Hotpoint badges) two clusters dominate: main-board failures on the 2002–2009 side-by-side era (the famous WR55X10942 board, often after power events) and defrost-drain icing on bottom-freezer models that ends as water under the floor — fixed properly with the OEM drain-heater kit.
• Bosch: Bosch counter-depth fridges (300/500/800 series, B36CT etc.) are a newer fleet in Canada: dual-compressor / dual-evaporator cooling on the 800-series French doors (B36CT/B36CL) and inverter-compressor cooling on the B22CS side-by-side line, VitaFresh drawers, and a service profile led by door-alignment/condensation complaints, slow in-door ice systems, and board-level faults that read out as E-codes on the display.
• Miele: Miele MasterCool built-in columns (K/KF) and KFN freestanding bottom-mounts are factory-network territory: sealed-system work and coded electronic boards route through Miele Canada, but the everyday faults independents actually fix are mechanical and sensor-level — magnetic door-seal/hinge wear that frosts the box, NTC temperature-sensor failures that throw F-codes and mistime cooling, and defrost-drain icing that ends as water under the drawers. The honest service line matters more than a deep parts table here: gaskets, fans, drains and out-of-warranty sensors are open-distributor parts; boards and sealed systems are the factory's call.
• Thermador: Thermador built-in refrigeration is the BSH Hausgerate platform shared with Bosch and Gaggenau — Freedom Collection panel-ready columns (T30IR fresh-food, T24IR/T18IR fresh-food columns, T18ID/T24ID/T18IF freezer columns) and built-in French-door bottom-freezers (T36IT/T36BT/T42BT-class). They speak the same Bosch E-code dialect (E01 fresh-food sensor, E02 freezer sensor, E10 main board, E15 ambient/display sensor) and carry the same 10-digit 00-prefix and 8-digit (11.../12...) part numbers, so a Thermador no-cooling call is diagnosed exactly like a Bosch one: confirm the evaporator fan is turning and the coil isn't iced before anyone touches the sealed system. The dominant failures are a stalled evaporator fan (00672636) starving the cabinet of cold air, a dead defrost circuit (heater 12023292 / evaporator thermistor 11030589) that ices the coil, and condenser-side over-run from a clogged coil plus a failing fan (00795952). Parts ride the BSH channel — common refrigeration parts (fans, defrost, filters, ice makers) are open via major distributors, but several modules are model-coded and dealer-ordered, so confirm by full model/serial before ordering. Sealed-system work is EPA 608 / TSSA-scope.
• Sub-Zero: Sub-Zero built-ins are dual-refrigeration machines — separate compressors and evaporators for the fridge and freezer — so "one side warm, one side perfect" is normal physics here, not a damper mystery. The single most preventable failure is a clogged lower-grille condenser, which Sub-Zero's own care guidance says to brush/vacuum every 3–6 months; when airflow starves the unit, SERVICE flashes with EC40/EC50, and unresolved over-run escalates to fan, thermistor, or sealed-system work (which requires EPA 608-certified service and R-134a-dedicated recovery/charging equipment).
• Viking: Viking refrigeration is the company's hardest service axis: 36" built-in bottom-freezer and side-by-side platforms (Greenwood, MS; Middleby-owned since 2013) whose pre-Middleby electronics are the weak point. Two clusters dominate — control-board failure on the two-board (power + low-voltage) architecture, where a dead power board reads as no compressor / no evap fan / no defrost, and defrost-circuit/sensor faults that warm the fresh-food side. The line also carries a real, unrepaired-unit-still-in-the-field door-detachment recall on the 36" built-ins that a tech must serial-check before any hinge work.

Brand-specific refrigerator repair