Cleaning the coils on your refrigerator every six months may help eliminate service calls and repairs on your refrigerator and may lengthen the lifespan of your refrigerator. A clean refrigerator will cool better, will run less and will not have to work as hard to do its job. Some service companies will recommend cleaning the coils once a year but if the refrigerator is really dirty the first time you clean it is a good idea to check it again in six months. If you notice that your refrigerator condenser coils seems to be staying fairly clean you then should only have to clean them once a year.
There are two types of condenser coils: static condensers (mostly found on older refrigerators) and forced air condensers (mostly found on newer model refrigerators.)
If you have a large coil covering the back of your refrigerator this is a static condenser coil and if the coils are located under the refrigerator this is the forced air condenser coil and will have a fan motor that is pulling hot air from the coils. Some model refrigerators such as a Sub Zero may have the condenser coils above the unit .
Before you begin make sure the refrigerator is unplugged from the electrical outlet. In most cases you will have to pull the refrigerator away from the wall and remove a cardboard or metal cover to access the condenser coils. The best way to clean the condenser coils on any style refrigerator is with a coil cleaning brush and a vacuum cleaner that has a hose attachment. Just take your time and move carefully and slowly over the coils with the brush removing all the dust and dirt from the coils and fan assembly, then use the vacuum cleaner hose to clean up dust and dirt that the brush doesn't pick up or has left behind. A static condenser refrigerator will have no fan assisting the condenser coils. The coils and other refrigerator components may have very sharp edges and can cut you so please careful. This is another reason that we recommend that you use a coil cleaning brush and a vacuum to clean the condenser coils.
If you have a large coil covering the back of your refrigerator this is a static condenser coil and if the coils are located under the refrigerator this is the forced air condenser coil and will have a fan motor that is pulling hot air from the coils. Some model refrigerators such as a Sub Zero may have the condenser coils above the unit .
Before you begin make sure the refrigerator is unplugged from the electrical outlet. In most cases you will have to pull the refrigerator away from the wall and remove a cardboard or metal cover to access the condenser coils. The best way to clean the condenser coils on any style refrigerator is with a coil cleaning brush and a vacuum cleaner that has a hose attachment. Just take your time and move carefully and slowly over the coils with the brush removing all the dust and dirt from the coils and fan assembly, then use the vacuum cleaner hose to clean up dust and dirt that the brush doesn't pick up or has left behind. A static condenser refrigerator will have no fan assisting the condenser coils. The coils and other refrigerator components may have very sharp edges and can cut you so please careful. This is another reason that we recommend that you use a coil cleaning brush and a vacuum to clean the condenser coils.
COMMON CONDENSER LOCATION J