The fan is one of the key components on a fridge that is responsible for keeping the freezer and fridge compartments cold. The fan turns on and off periodically as a fridge is running. When the fan on your Kitchenaid fridge never runs here’s how to fix it.
Ensure cooling mode is enabled. A KitchenAid fridge can be on, but cooling is disabled. This occurs if power is disconnected to your KitchenAid fridge. Refer to your owners manual to see how to turn it on and off. If it still doesn’t work ensure it’s not in Sabbath or showroom (demo) mode.
Turning cooling mode on and off differs depending on what year, and model of KitchenAid fridge you have. For example, here’s a video that shows how to turn it on and off for one of the newer KitchenAid fridges:
Older KitchenAid fridges generally have a switch on the interior of the fridge compartment, that you switch on and off. It’s very unlikely showroom mode or Sabbath mode are enabled unless you recently installed your fridge. But, if someone in your household was tinkering with the control panel, they may have accidentally enabled showroom mode or Sabbath mode by mistake.
It’s worth double checking using the instructions in your owner’s manual for how to enable or disable both of these. It’s also worth noting that the one of the fans that blow air into the interior of your Whirlpool fridges will always run when you hear your fridge hum. You can feel the air blowing into your fridge with your hand from the vent located at the rear of your fridge or freezer.
This is distinct from the fan located at the back or on the underside that blows air over the condenser coils. For fridge freezer Kitchenaid fridges the fan between the freezer and fridge may not run when you hear your fridge hum. Instead only the fan in the freezer will run.
This is because the fridge is already at the right temperature. Therefore, the computer on your KitchenAid fridge detects that the fridge compartment doesn’t need to get any cooler.
The hum is caused by the condenser which creates cool air. It will only engage when your fridge detects the temperature in your fridge or freezer is below what your fridge is set to.
Why Your KitchenAid Refrigerator Fan Is Not Working
All fridge freezers have a fan that blows cool air into the freezer and another fan that blows cool air from the freezer into the fridge. Whereas, standalone fridges only have one fan responsible for blowing cool air into the fridge.
In general, cooling mode is turned off, it’s in showroom (demo) mode, Sabbath mode, or an internal component is faulty. After a power outage or power surge many fridge models disable cooling and it needs to be turned back on manually.
Copyright protected content owner: ReadyToDIY.com and was initially posted on February 26, 2023.
It’s very simple to fix some of these issues. Whereas, others require a repair technician, unless you have experience working with electronics. Below, I will cover how to troubleshoot each of the issues that cause the fan on your fridge not to run.
Top Reasons Why KitchenAid Refrigerator Fan Is Not Working
1. Cooling mode is turned off
Virtually all fridges have cooling mode that can be turned on and off. If someone in your household has been tinkering with the digital display they may have accidentally disabled cooling mode. On many fridges cooling is turned off when the power is disconnected to your fridge.
This can happen if the fuse at the switch board for your home is triggered due to a power surge. Or, if you moved your fridge to a different part of the house. It’s very easy to check if your cooling mode is on.
There is typically a dedicated button on the LCD display for a fridge. On fridges without an LCD display there is a decent sized switch like a light switch. It’s typically located around the edge or on the interior of your fridge.
If you can’t locate it, refer to your owners manual to see where it’s located. It can be a paper version, or an online version. You can typically download an online version from your fridge manufacturers website.
Copyright article owner is ReadyToDiy.com for this article. This post was first published on February 26, 2023.
2. It’s in showroom mode or Sabbath mode
Showroom mode, also called demo mode, is used when a fridge is in a store. It enables all of the functionality of a fridge to work, but does not cool your fridge. And therefore the fan never runs.
It may have been left on by mistake when you brought your fridge. Or, it may have been enabled accidentally. Sabbath mode is closely related.
It stops a fridge from cooling on the Sabbath, which, as you may know, is a Saturday. Refer to your owners manual to see how to enable and disable showroom and Sabbath mode.
3. An internal component is faulty
There are various internal components on a fridge. These include the internal computer, the fan, thermostat, and condensers. These are all closely related, and if one is not working it can cause one of the others to not function.
The fan itself can also be faulty. Unless you have experience working on electronics, or appliances, it’s best to have a repair technician take a look at it.
ReadyToDIY is the owner of this article. This post was published on February 26, 2023.
They can identify what component is faulty, and repair or replace it. The repair or replacement may also be covered under your manufacturer’s warranty.