Not too cool

Sometimes a lesson is just costly no matter how careful you are.

A week ago I went to the freezer to get some ice cubes and found that the ice cube bin was full of ice cubes but they all seemed to be stuck to each other. This has happened a few times in the past when we've left something that keeps the freezer door open just slightly or after a time when the freezer defrosts enough times that the cumulative thawing and freezing melts the cubes just enough that they become frozen to each other.

But this time when I dumped the bin to start over again, there was a solid block of ice about 1.5 inches thick at the bottom of the bin. I thought this curious but didn't think much else about it. I cleaned out the bin and stuck it back in the freezer. Within a couple of hours, I noticed new ice cubes at the bottom of the bin. Everything seemed to be working fine.

Two days later, we thought the refrigerator wasn't as cool as it should be. Carolyn opened the freezer to find 1.5 inches of water in the ice cube bin and all the frozen foot no longer frozen solid. In fact, most of it was completely thawed. Clearly, we had a problem.

The HELP number inside the refrigerator was answered promptly by a Sears customer service representative who quickly identified us (and the refrigerator) in her database. We were "not too late," she exclaimed, to sign up for the extended warranty so that any necessary repairs would be completely free - both parts and labor. And if Sears determined that the refrigerator couldn't be fixed (now or within the next 12 months) we would get a $500 credit on a new fridge. All for only $225. It was the usual gamble - two service calls would easily cost more but one would be less. We definitely needed one service call. We elected to buy the service contract and arranged for a service call the very next day. I thought maybe the defrost timer wasn't working. Carolyn though we maybe had plugged some air circulation vents by packing too much food in the freezer. We packed up all the newly thawed food and took it over to Ed and Tiffany's freezer. Miraculously, our fridge began working again.

A young, clean-cut looking Korean man showed up the next morning at the appointed time. He spoke well but apologized that he was still learning English as he had only been in the country for 3 years. I explained the symptoms and he nodded as if to say "thanks but I'd rather look at the fridge". The repairman, after looking things over, announced that "the coils were perfectly covered with dust" which probably caused the compressor to overheat and cut out with the safety switch. I think he meant 'completely'.

At any rate, he cleaned the coils, inspected all the moving parts, and pronounced the fridge repaired. Total cost for service call and repair: $160. Total charge (because we are now covered under the warranty plan): $0. It has been working for the past 24 hours, the ice cube bin is full, the fridge is at 38 degrees, the freezer at 4 degrees. And we have 12 months to see if we gambled correctly.