The short answer
Start here -- on an Imperial freezer, a freezer that runs without holding temperature points first at heat with nowhere to go, not at a failed compressor. If that is clean, a seal that is letting air in is next. Most causes below are owner checks needing no tools and no panel off; the last is a service call.
What you are looking at
- Ice cream is soft and refreezes grainy — The cabinet is cycling above its set point.
- The compressor never switches off — It runs without ever satisfying the control.
- A thermometer between packages reads warm — A freezer holds food safely at zero degrees Fahrenheit or below.
- NEAR MISS -- the unit is silent and the light is dead — That is a supply or control fault and belongs on the will-not-start page.
Causes, most likely first on this kind of unit
- The condenser cannot reject its heat — Heat pulled out of the load has to leave through the condenser. A dusty coil, a cabinet in a hot garage, or no clearance at the back leaves the box warm while the compressor runs on. Ranked first on an Imperial commercial-grade unit in a working kitchen: a freezer is usually installed where nobody looks at it again, and that is where this fault starts.
- The lid or door is not sealing — A gasket that has taken a set, a hinge that has dropped, or frost on the sealing face lets humid room air in continuously. The unit runs endlessly and the load never comes down. Ranked here because air leaking in continuously explains a running compressor and a warming load.
- Frost has built up past the point of working — On a manual-defrost cabinet, frost on the walls is insulation. Once it is thick, the coil is talking to ice instead of air and the load slowly warms even as the unit runs. This rank, because thick frost stops heat reaching the coil, which reads as a unit that runs and loses.
- The sealed system or the compressor — A refrigerant leak, a restriction or a compressor that will not pump leaves a cabinet that hums and stays warm. It is the only cause here needing licensed tools. Last, and that is the point of the order: it is the least common and the most expensive, which is exactly why it is last.
Check in this order, and why
- Feel the condenser and the air around it — A hot coil with no clearance answers the question before anything is opened.
- Paper-test the seal all the way round — Close it on a sheet of paper and pull; anywhere it slides free is not sealing.
- Only after the checks above are clean — A coil that never warms, or oil at the compressor, moves this to the front -- and it is a service call.
What an owner can safely check
- Vacuum the condenser and open up the clearance — Clear the coil and grille, then pull the cabinet away from the wall.
Tools: vacuum, soft brushAbout 20 min
- Paper-test the lid or door seal — Test all the way round and clear frost or crumbs from the sealing face.
About 10 min
- Put a thermometer between packages — Read it hours later rather than trusting the dial; it separates cooling from control.
Tools: thermometerAbout 10 min
- STOP HERE -- the next step needs a meter on live terminals — Thermostats, start devices and sealed-system pressures are technician work.
Before you open anything
Safety
Power off at the plug or breaker first, and let a loaded cabinet warm on its own rather than forcing ice off with steel. A punctured evaporator is a replacement, not a repair, and the sealed system is licensed work.
When to call a technician
Anything you can reach without a panel is owner work; anything behind a panel or on the sealed system is not.
Nearest pages of this class
What this page does not cover
This page covers the Imperial freezer as a class, not one family or model line. Where a family- or model-specific page exists for your unit it is the more specific answer -- go there first if your model is named. Deliberately not here: wiring colours, thermostat part numbers, defrost-heater ratings and the panel-removal sequence, all of which differ by family.
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
