For a few weeks, I've been putting off dealing with a problem in my fridge. It's icing up in one corner behind the drawers. But yesterday I really needed a project to break up the day and give my head a break.
From what I could tell, the ice in one area meant that the system itself was probably fine, in terms of thermistors, fans, compressors and such. I found a diagnostic card online, and ran through the various functions by pushing weird key combinations on the freezer door. Everything returned normal. I could hear the fan whir up when it tested it, too. The Internets suggested that localized ice and good diagnostics likely mean long-term humidity exposure and possibly a door seal leak.
I busted out Diana's hair dryer and melted all of the ice after taking off a cover inside, and shop vac'd the water out. Everything was cooling as desired when I was done, and I took what seemed like a win. I guess I won't know until time passes.
It seems like appliance repair is so expensive that replacement is a better option, which I hate because things shouldn't be so disposable. Most appliances are pretty simple machines, and anyone can get parts on the Internet. I've replaced the ignitor on two gas ovens, the latter of which was only a year old. I've replaced the control board and gear box gasket on our KitchenAid stand mixer (leaking lube killed the board). Our LG clothes washer sprung a leak a few years ago, and I replaced the water valve assembly inexpensively. I wonder about the washer and dryer, which are now 15-years-old. Feel like I'm beating the odds.
I really value simplicity and serviceability in everything. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like many things are made that way anymore. Maybe they never have been during my lifetime.
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