cleaningrefrigerator
My fridge/freezer has been turned on and running since I last moved house several years ago. I clean the shelves/bins in the fridge every couple of months, or when something is spilled, but the freezer hasn't been cleaned for ages. It doesn't particularly smell bad and it's not iced up, but there is a bit of that 'freezer smell'.
Should I clean it?
Is there any worthwhile cleaning procedure other than removing all the food and letting it come up to room temperature?
Well, the problem is solved, thanks to a great insight from @bcworkz in the comments.
It turned out that there was another magnetic switch at the very bottom, below the fridge door, and this is what is meant to trigger the light. For reasons unknown, the light had decided to activate only by the freezer door switch, even after I unplugged the whole unit and plugged it back in. However, @bcworkz's comment about the control board having a problem got me thinking, so I started pressing buttons on the control panel at the back of the fridge. I pressed the left-hand button that selects fridge or freezer when making temperature adjustments. And lo, the lamp turned on immediately!
So I don't know why this whole thing happened, and pressing the button again doesn't make it broken again, but it's behind us now, presumably some strange bug in the embedded system logic.
Your compressor is going to look something like this
To test the windings, you'll first have to remove the "box" where the wires connect.
WARNING: There's likely a capacitor in here. Take care not to let the capacitor discharge into you.
Once you've go that out of the way, you should see three pins/terminals. They'll typically be arranged in a triangular pattern.
One terminal will be start, one will be run, and the other will be common. To determine if the windings are still good, you'll simply test the resistance between each terminal.
NOTE: Your readings may vary.
You should end up with something like this.
This tells me that the top pin is common, the lower left is start, and the lower right is run. It also tells me the compressor is still good. The reading from start, to run should always be the largest reading. The readings between start and common, and run and common should total up to the reading from start to run.
If the values are way off, or you get infinite resistance between the pins, replace the compressor.
If the compressor checks out, you'll want to make sure it's getting power.
After reassembling the compressor, plug the refrigerator back in. Set the refrigerator to a setting that should cause the compressor to come on. Using a multimeter set to volts AC (VAC), carefully probe the two wires connected to the compressor. You should measure ~120 volts.
If you get the proper reading, you'll likely have to replace the relay and/or capacitor. If you don't get ~120 V, the problem is in the control circuitry.
If everything checks out, there's still the possibility that the compressor is seized. In which case, you'll have to replace the compressor.
Best Answer
I don't usually bother letting it warm up. I just use a mixture of a mild kitchen cleaner and warm water on a paper towel. If you're careful, and don't let any moisture pool up, it seems to evaporate before it freezes to the inside.
If you're just trying to combat a smell, try putting some baking soda in there.
As for how often to clean, I usually do a purge of the contents of the freeze 1-2 times a year, and do the cleaning then.