Bosch fridge freezer playing up - any ideas?
Discussion
Hi
Bought a Bosch fridge freezer new about 5/6 years ago.
About a year ago the fridge part of it stopped being cold, not very technically/engineering minded I tried searching online, got a number of possibilities so ended up calling place I bought it from. They sent someone out, they pulled it away from the wall, looked behind it etc, said they couldn't see anything obvious, so probably blockage internally, so turn it off for 24hrs so any ice buildup causing problems should melt away and clear.
It worked fine after this for about a year, but now it's doing the opposite - the fridge part is like a freezer and has frozen everything from liquids, veg and meat.
I turned the settings down to minimum this morning, the one before 'eco' setting, it seems to have stopped feezing, but still way to cold for the fridge part. I checked this evening and the setting (for the freezer, not the fridge) had changed from lowest (-18) to 'super' i.e. the highest setting.
Any idea's recommendations?
Admittedly, being a bit of a cheapskate and not wanting to pay another £75 for a call out.
Most obvious would be the internal vents on the back walls are blocked in one or both compartments.
Check there aren't any boxes or storage containers pushed up against them - temp regulation relies on free passage of air between the fridge and freezer sections.
If that's not the case, should another poster have an idea of the problem/solution, unless you can fix it yourself you'll be looking at another call-out charge. Probably two, as the "engineer" won't take your word for what is wrong so will have to verify themselves, order the parts and come back to replace them.
Could be £150 plus £XXX in parts on an appliance that's approx. half-way through it's average life.
If it's not an easy / DIY fix, I'd be weighing up the potential repair costs of an older model against the price of replacement with a new unit tbh.
Check there aren't any boxes or storage containers pushed up against them - temp regulation relies on free passage of air between the fridge and freezer sections.
If that's not the case, should another poster have an idea of the problem/solution, unless you can fix it yourself you'll be looking at another call-out charge. Probably two, as the "engineer" won't take your word for what is wrong so will have to verify themselves, order the parts and come back to replace them.
Could be £150 plus £XXX in parts on an appliance that's approx. half-way through it's average life.
If it's not an easy / DIY fix, I'd be weighing up the potential repair costs of an older model against the price of replacement with a new unit tbh.
tgr said:
If you can, switch it off and defrost.
At that age it probably has one compressor doing both jobs. Best to reboot.
They are fairly non-intervention so if that doesn't work I'd just replace
I would agree, ive found that most fridge/freezer problems are fixed by a good defrost, ie not just turn it off for a bit, properly defrost it so its all room temp, and a hoover of any vents etc. At that age it probably has one compressor doing both jobs. Best to reboot.
They are fairly non-intervention so if that doesn't work I'd just replace
OK, I'll try the reset with a 24hr defrost, see if that clears it. If not I guess another call out. There's nothing blocking the back of the fridge, it's against a wall but theres a few inches of room. The open part at the bottom, there's nothing obviously amiss, a little dusty and dirty but nothing seems loose or damage.
It seemed strange the problem is the opposite to before, which is why I wasn't sure if defrosting it would work.
What food needs to be chucked - things like yoghurt, milk, cream are all now 1/2 frozen or frozen completely. I know some things can be frozen and thawed to eat, but some foods can't be thawed out and refrozen multiple times i.e. ice cream .
Thanks for help.
We routinely keep a supply of frozen milk as a back-up, so that should be fine. Don’t worry about the fact it’s gone yellow when frozen - that s perfectly normal due to one of the proteins temporarily changing, but it ll go back to pure white as soon as it defrosts.
Pretty sure you can freeze cream as well, and I don t see why you couldn t freeze yoghurt but never done it.
Ice-cream would be perfectly safe, but will refreeze into a solid block so won t really be usable.
I believe the thing about not thawing and re-freezing food from a safety point of view is simply because it becomes much harder to keep track of how long the food has been in the unfrozen state, and therefore how long the bacteria have had a chance to multiply. The official advice is therefore to keep it simple and just not re-freeze stuff at all.
Pretty sure you can freeze cream as well, and I don t see why you couldn t freeze yoghurt but never done it.
Ice-cream would be perfectly safe, but will refreeze into a solid block so won t really be usable.
I believe the thing about not thawing and re-freezing food from a safety point of view is simply because it becomes much harder to keep track of how long the food has been in the unfrozen state, and therefore how long the bacteria have had a chance to multiply. The official advice is therefore to keep it simple and just not re-freeze stuff at all.
Edited by Dr Mike Oxgreen on Saturday 31st May 12:14
wotsit88 said:
OK, I'll try the reset with a 24hr defrost, see if that clears it. If not I guess another call out. There's nothing blocking the back of the fridge, it's against a wall but theres a few inches of room. The open part at the bottom, there's nothing obviously amiss, a little dusty and dirty but nothing seems loose or damage.
It seemed strange the problem is the opposite to before, which is why I wasn't sure if defrosting it would work.
What food needs to be chucked - things like yoghurt, milk, cream are all now 1/2 frozen or frozen completely. I know some things can be frozen and thawed to eat, but some foods can't be thawed out and refrozen multiple times i.e. ice cream .
Thanks for help.
It only takes an hour if that, and if you put everything in a freezer bag or something then all will be well, i just take everything out, obviously turn off the freezer and warm it with a hair dryer held a few inches outside the freezer. you will need something to catch the water, with mine you can fit a shallow baking tray to catch it all.It seemed strange the problem is the opposite to before, which is why I wasn't sure if defrosting it would work.
What food needs to be chucked - things like yoghurt, milk, cream are all now 1/2 frozen or frozen completely. I know some things can be frozen and thawed to eat, but some foods can't be thawed out and refrozen multiple times i.e. ice cream .
Thanks for help.
As said milk etc will be fine, its only really chicken and fish that i worry about re refreezing..
When we moved in we inherited the appliances which were built in
On a really hot day the fridge started underperforming
I could t easily remove it for various reasons, but I could remove the kick board
I put a desk fan down there as an experiment and the thing slowly started to behave
On the weekend I removed the fridge and the rear innards were caked in spiders webs / brown dust goop
I wiped this all down and it’s been fine since
I think the thing was overheating
On a really hot day the fridge started underperforming
I could t easily remove it for various reasons, but I could remove the kick board
I put a desk fan down there as an experiment and the thing slowly started to behave
On the weekend I removed the fridge and the rear innards were caked in spiders webs / brown dust goop
I wiped this all down and it’s been fine since
I think the thing was overheating
I had a similar issue with my fridge freezer earlier in the year. The issue was compounded by the fact that we are moving house next month, to a house with a built in fridge freezer, so definitely didn't want to be buying a new one!
Not regulating the temperature correctly sounded like a thermostat issue to me, and at <£20 I figured it would be worth replacing it, rather than calling someone out. When I started replacing the thermostat I found what the issue was - the knob for controlling the temperature had cracked internally, so although I had turned it to the position for the warmest temperature the knob was just spinning, but not turning the spindle to adjust the temperature. A quick tweak with some pliers and normal temperature resumed.
Not regulating the temperature correctly sounded like a thermostat issue to me, and at <£20 I figured it would be worth replacing it, rather than calling someone out. When I started replacing the thermostat I found what the issue was - the knob for controlling the temperature had cracked internally, so although I had turned it to the position for the warmest temperature the knob was just spinning, but not turning the spindle to adjust the temperature. A quick tweak with some pliers and normal temperature resumed.
M138 said:
I just don t really associate Bosch with good quality anymore.
Get rid of it and get a new one but not a Bosch.
My folks are obsessed with Bosch, if you can buy something Bosch they will get itGet rid of it and get a new one but not a Bosch.
I now buy spare elements for their appliances as stock items
We have found appliances from Ikea superb, and the fact they are standard sized stuff with a return to base no quibble 5 year warranty
Appreciate the replies.
Update. Did the 24hr turn off, gave everything a good clean while at it, manage to save quite a bit from there, but looks like £20ish of stuff like yoghurts, cream, bacon etc will have to go, so not too bad.
When it was turned off, pulled it right out away from the wall, it was a bit dusty and dirty where the exposed workings are rround the back, so gently hoovered in and around that, nothing seemed loose or obviously broken.
Fired it back up first thing yesterday morning, set it on the 2nd lowest settings for both fridge and freezer. Check last night, still had same settings but fridge felt a bit cold. Came down this morning and the freezer setting had changed itself from 2nd warmest to the 'super' setting (the coldest of the cold), which means it's gives a blast of very coldest for a little while for an emergency freeze.
Yep, some of the veggies left there were now frozen.
About 2/3 years ago the side of the fridge used to get very warm occasionally too.
I know in this day and age most things are only supposed to last until the warranty runs out, so wasn't expecting miracles, but this seems a bit too problematic. It was discontinued shortly after we got it, think that was a sign.
If we do have to replace, any recommendations, not looking for anything fancy, just something that's reliable? Any brands to avoid (we won't be getting bosch).
I just checked Which for brands, Bosch came 5th out of about 20, so nowhere near the worst(?) I'm wondering did we just get a lemon..? 3 problems in 6/7 years seems alot.
We got it from a local independent shop that's had a good reputation for years, don't know whether to go for a large retailer instead if we go for a replacement.
We got it from a local independent shop that's had a good reputation for years, don't know whether to go for a large retailer instead if we go for a replacement.
wotsit88 said:
I just checked Which for brands, Bosch came 5th out of about 20, so nowhere near the worst(?) I'm wondering did we just get a lemon..? 3 problems in 6/7 years seems alot.
We got it from a local independent shop that's had a good reputation for years, don't know whether to go for a large retailer instead if we go for a replacement.
Whenever we need to purchase appliances I just use AO and purchase one of the most popular and reviewed items. AO are also super easy to deal with in my experience. We got it from a local independent shop that's had a good reputation for years, don't know whether to go for a large retailer instead if we go for a replacement.
Danm1les said:
Whenever we need to purchase appliances I just use AO and purchase one of the most popular and reviewed items. AO are also super easy to deal with in my experience.
What are they like for deliveries , ok for keeping to delivery time/date, installation? We're going to need installation and removal of old one.Thanks..
wotsit88 said:
What are they like for deliveries , ok for keeping to delivery time/date, installation? We're going to need installation and removal of old one.
Thanks..
I regularly use AO. Thanks..
I have a number of properties and have found them to be brilliant. They update all the way through the order and delivery process.
There AO membership is good value if you buy stuff regularly as well £40 / year for free delivery, unpack, removal of old appliance and recycle. Plus 100 day free change of mind guarantee. You’ll probably pay £20 just for delivery anyway.
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