Food freezing in the refrigerator section, rather than just staying cold, usually means the control board or thermistor is telling the compressor to run colder than it should, or a damper is letting freezer-level cold air through.
Freezing, Frost & Defrost
Frost and defrost symptoms almost always trace back to the defrost heater, thermostat, or a door seal letting in humid air — components that fail predictably and are usually diagnosed quickly once someone's looking at the right ones.
Food freezing in the refrigerator section, rather than just staying cold, usually means the control board or thermistor is telling the compressor to run colder than it should, or a damper is letting freezer-level cold air through. The most common cause is a stuck-open air damper letting too much cold air into the refrigerator section.
Short-term yes, but frost buildup restricts airflow more over time, so don’t leave it too long before having it checked.
You can turn the unit off and let it defrost naturally as a temporary measure, but that doesn’t fix the underlying heater or thermostat issue.
Not always — it could be the heater, the bi-metal thermostat, or the wiring between them, which the diagnostic visit determines.
Once diagnosed, it’s usually a same-visit repair, though access can add time depending on the model.
No — chipping at ice risks damaging the coil or wiring underneath it, which turns a simple repair into a more expensive one.
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