The short answer
The first question is not what has failed but which compartment is warm. On a European two-door cabinet a single compressor serves both spaces, and the freezer governs when it runs, so a warm fridge with a working freezer is an airflow problem while both warm together is a refrigeration problem. Those two answers lead in completely different directions.
What you are seeing
- The fridge is warm and the freezer is still hard frozen — Note: Airflow or the damper between the two spaces. The refrigeration side is working.
- Both compartments are warm and the compressor runs constantly — Note: Capacity is being lost: frost on the plate, a starved condenser, or a leaking door.
- Both compartments are warm and nothing runs at all — Note: That is a starting problem rather than a cooling problem, and it has its own page.
- A thick blanket of frost on the plate at the back of the fridge liner — Note: On a direct-cool cabinet that frost is insulating the evaporator from the air it should be cooling.
- The rear freezer panel is solid ice on a frost-free model — Note: The defrost circuit has stopped clearing the evaporator. Cooling collapses from the freezer outward.
- Food at the front is fine and food at the back is freezing — Note: Not a failure. The cold source is at the back on this design, and loading has to allow for it.
Ranked causes on this brand
- Frost blanket on the static cold plate, on direct-cool cabinets — Why this rank: First because it is the commonest state on the direct-cool half of this platform: the plate is the evaporator, frost insulates it, and a cabinet that is never fully defrosted loses capacity steadily until it cannot hold temperature.
- Airflow or damper restriction between freezer and fridge — Why this rank: Second because it produces the very distinctive warm-fridge-cold-freezer pattern, and because a single compressor serving two spaces makes that split possible at all.
- Condenser starved by a housing with no ventilation path — Why this rank: Third: European cabinets are built into furniture runs that are supposed to have a defined gap and a duct, and that requirement is routinely lost in a refit.
- Door seal leaking, or a door reversed and not re-shimmed — Why this rank: Fourth because it steals capacity continuously and feeds the frost that ranks first, and because reversible hinges make a badly hung door common on this platform.
- Defrost circuit failure on frost-free models — Why this rank: Fifth: it is decisive when it happens, but it can only exist on the frost-free half of the platform and it announces itself with a solid ice sheet behind the rear freezer panel.
- Loss of refrigerant charge or a restriction in the circuit — Why this rank: Last because every cause above it is more common and can be ruled out without opening anything, and because this one is regulated work.
What to check, in order
- Put a thermometer in each compartment overnight and read them before opening the doors — Why: Which compartment is warm is the single most useful fact on this page and guesswork is not good enough.
- Look at the back wall of the fridge liner for a frosted plate, or at the rear freezer panel for a sheet of ice — Why: This tells you which half of the platform you have and which failure applies.
- Put a hand on the back or the sides of the cabinet after it has run a while — Why: Warm means the condenser is rejecting heat and the compressor is working, which eliminates a great deal.
- Check the ventilation path around and above the cabinet in its housing — Why: A built-in cabinet with no duct is starved regardless of what else is right.
- Close each door on a strip of paper at four points — Why: A leaking seal will keep a healthy cabinet from ever recovering, and it feeds the frost that ranks first.
Checks you can do safely
- Stand a thermometer in a glass of water on a middle fridge shelf and another in the freezer, leave both overnight, and read them before opening anything. — Tools: two thermometers — Time: overnight
- Empty the cabinet, unplug it and let it defrost completely with both doors open and towels underneath. Do not chip at any ice. — Tools: towels, shallow trays — Time: eight hours or overnight
- Pull the cabinet out of its housing, vacuum the condenser at the back, and confirm there is a clear ventilation path behind it and above it. — Tools: vacuum with a brush head — Time: half an hour
- Check nothing is packed against the back wall of the fridge liner or against the air outlets between the compartments. — Tools: none — Time: ten minutes
- Level the cabinet, then close each door on a strip of paper at four points on each side and note every point where the strip slides free. — Tools: spirit level, paper strip — Time: twenty minutes
- Set the control one step colder, close the doors and leave the cabinet undisturbed for a full day before reading the thermometers again. — Tools: none — Time: a full day
Before you open anything
Safety
Unplug the refrigerator before pulling it out of its housing or reaching behind it. The start relay and overload sit on the compressor pins at mains potential whenever the unit is plugged in, and a capacitor can hold a charge after the plug is out. The refrigerant circuit is sealed and must never be opened, cut or vented by an owner. Never chip frost off a cold plate or an evaporator with a knife or screwdriver: the tubing is bonded directly behind it and a puncture ends the cabinet. Discard food that has been above a safe temperature. Unplug the appliance or switch off its breaker before removing any panel. A capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off. — Id: unplug-before-service A refrigerator holds food safely at 40 °F (4 °C) or below. — Id: fridge-40f A freezer holds food safely at 0 °F (−18 °C) or below. — Id: freezer-0f
Where the service line falls
The cabinet has been fully defrosted, the condenser is clear and ventilated, the doors seal, and the fridge still will not hold 40 °F (4 °C) or below. The freezer will not hold 0 °F (−18 °C) or below with the compressor running continuously and the condenser rejecting heat. A frost-free model ices up solid again within days of a full defrost, which points at the defrost heater, its cut-out or the control. The compressor clicks and stops on a repeating cycle rather than running, which needs a meter on live terminals. You find an oily film at the compressor or hear a hiss from the tubing, which indicates a refrigerant leak and is regulated work.
Nearest pages
What this page does not cover
This page is generalized across families and models and covers both direct-cool cabinets with a static cold plate and frost-free cabinets with a fan and defrost heater. It does not describe any one model family, and it does not cover wine cabinets, commercial cabinets or units with a second independent compressor. For parts sourcing and for telling one production generation from another, work from the manufacturer-entity page rather than this one: the same platform was sold under several group badges, and a parts desk cross-references by platform rather than by the name on the door.
Links down: - [Fagor Refrigerator: Ice Maker Fault](/blog/fagor-refrigerator-ice-production) - [Fagor Refrigerator: Door, Latch or Seal Fault](/blog/fagor-refrigerator-door-seal) - [Fagor Refrigerator: Water Leak](/blog/fagor-refrigerator-water-leak)
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
