The fridge--hopeless?

[eljay]

Yesterday there was still an inch of ice on the door handle. Today it has all melted off. Here are the fridge pictures. The freezer area and the upper fridge are melted. I have removed the melted freezer door which was held in place with duct tape. There is a wide space at the bottom of the main door. And the last one is the side-is this the dreaded ammonia leak goo there at the bottom?

[Tinsel Loaf]

Cut your losses, a new frige is your best bet.

[TomW]

I don't quite follow you eljay.

Did the freezer door melt before you had it? Did the ice form while you were running the fridge? If it did, your ammonia is intact. Once it starts leaking, it leaves rather quickly.

While the fridge is running, condensation will form between it & the side panels. Your third picture looks like simple rust that formed as a result. I had a similar situation with my fridge that I treated with rust neutralizer before reinstallation.

BTW, I'm running my original, 37 year old unit at present. With fridge prices what they are, I plan to run the unit until it quits.

Tom

[eljay]

Did the freezer door melt before you had it?

Yes, this was the way it was when we got it. I'm a bit nervous about plugging it in and testing it out...

[TomW]

Off hand, I would say the PO melted the door with a hair dryer trying to defrost the unit.

Ultimately, its your comfort level using the device. Plug it in, and run away. Come back two hours later. The fridge will either be slightly cooler than its surroundings, or the same temperature.

Better yet, get hubby to do it...

Tom

[till]

Laura,

I can see that you need a door gasket, and a new freezer door. I'm with Tom, plug it in and see what happens. The burner looks like it could use a good cleaning and maybe a ajustment. Worst case is you may have to buy my extra.

[eljay]

We probably killed it for good today. Ran through the start up process, let it sit for about an hour. Nothing. Began checking from power source on. Cord fine. Flue cleaned out. Then began checking the element area. Broken wire in there, vent tube rusted beyond recognition. Wiggled this part way down here. Sprang an ammonia leak way up there (about a foot away from the wiggling...). Ran. Whoooeeyyy-whattasmell.