The short answer
On the AMA refrigerators this complaint is far more often about air than about the cooling system: the compressor is still running, and something has stopped the cold reaching the food. On these models a stopped evaporator fan is the first thing this page would have you rule out. Every cause below can be checked by the owner, which is why the order matters more than the list.
What you observe on these models
- The freezer still works and the fresh-food side does not — A split like that points at air movement rather than at cooling.
- Frost has built across the freezer back wall — A sheet, rather than the usual light dusting.
- The back of the appliance is hot and the box is not cold — Heat is being made and it is not being rejected.
- NEAR MISS — the appliance is silent and nothing is cold — That is a no-power or start-circuit fault and it belongs on a different page.
Causes, most likely first on this family
- Evaporator fan motor stopped — With the fan stopped the evaporator still gets cold but nothing carries that cold into the compartments, so the freezer holds far better than the fresh-food side. It leads because it is the likeliest of the set on these cabinets. One design carries every cabinet size in this family, so it holds across the line.
- Condenser coil packed with dust or pet hair — This is the cause that gets worse with the season: a coil that coped through winter stops coping in the first warm week, and the complaint arrives suddenly. Second: common enough on these models to come before anything below it.
- Door gasket leaking warm, humid air — Gaskets take a set after a door has stood open or a bin has been overstuffed against the liner, and the leak is often only at one corner. Third on the list, where the likelihoods start to fall away.
- Cold control or thermistor reading wrong — A sensor reading colder than the cabinet really is lets the control stop calling for cooling long before the food is safe. Last of the set listed here, and the least likely of them on this family.
- Body: Because this family is one design at several capacities, the air path is the part that is worked hardest at the top of the ladder — which is what moves airflow causes above installation ones here.
Check in this order, and why
- Open the freezer and hold the door switch closed: a healthy evaporator fan is audible the moment the switch makes. — It comes first because it matches the cause ranked first above.
- Pull the appliance out, take off the lower rear cover or the toe grille and look at the coil for a felt of dust. — Next in order, following the ranking rather than convenience.
- Close the door on a strip of paper at several points round the frame and see whether it pulls out with no drag. — Last of the set, and only worth doing once the others are clean.
Before you take a panel off
Safety
Unplug the appliance or switch off its breaker before removing any panel — a capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off. Leave the door switch wired as it is: it cuts power to the evaporator fan for a reason. Keep the doors shut meanwhile and move perishables to a cooler: a refrigerator holds food safely at 40 °F (4 °C) or below, a freezer at 0 °F (−18 °C) or below.
Models in the AMA family
Reference| Model number | Family key |
|---|---|
| AMA27S1E | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA31** | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA31**A | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA31**E | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA31**Q | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA31**QA | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA31BKE | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA31S1E | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA31S3E | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA31S5E | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA35** | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA35**A | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA35**AQ | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA35**Q | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA35BE | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA35BK | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA35RD | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA35S1 | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA35S1Q | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA35S2 | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA35S3 | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA35S4 | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA35WE | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA43BKE | amana:refrigerator:ama |
| AMA43R**E | amana:refrigerator:ama |
When to call a technician
Call once the vents, the seal and the condenser are clean and the cabinet still will not hold temperature: past that the checks are behind a panel. Call at once for a burning smell, a tripping breaker, or oil at the compressor.
The other faults covered for this family
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
