Why are refrigerator walls hot?

“Why did the walls of the refrigerator get hot because the refrigerator was unusually hot? You do not understand why the refrigerator or its side walls are heated? Think your home appliance needs professional service? Do not rush to conclusions. In most cases, the heating of the refrigerator is a standard situation and one of the stages of heat exchange and cooling. We will talk about the principles of operation of the refrigerator and the cooling system.

What to do if the refrigerator is heated, in part of its side walls? Is it normal? How to recognize a malfunction and when should you sound the alarm? These questions are very often asked by users of home appliances when they have doubts about the increased temperature of the case. Today we will figure out why the refrigerator is heating up, how a household appliance works, and in what cases it is necessary to immediately call a refrigerator repairman.

The principle of operation of a household appliance
To understand why the refrigerator heats up while the compressor is running, you need to find out how it works. Basically, household refrigeration units are vapor compression. The cooling effect in them occurs according to the principle of the reverse Carnot cycle.
During cycling and shutdown of the compressor, the refrigerant moves through the cooling system, which changes its physical properties and transports the heat accumulated in the freezer and refrigeration compartment to the outside. Further, this thermal energy is transferred to the outside by means of a condenser. The condenser is a radiator grille. In older models, it is located on the back wall of the refrigerator outside, in new household appliances, the capacitor is hidden inside the case. That is why the user may notice that the walls of the refrigerator are heating up. In addition, the more intense and longer the compressor runs, the higher the heating temperature of these side walls. By the way, this situation is considered quite standard and should not alert the owner. But there are cases when the walls are too hot and it is impossible to touch them - it is in this case that we can talk about technical malfunctions.
!It is important to know. A running compressor always raises the temperature of the heat exchanger (grille or refrigerator body). This is considered one of the cooling steps inside the freezer and refrigerator compartment. If the heating of the sides of the unit occurs in a constant mode and exceeds the temperature of 45 degrees, this is a signal for action. The refrigerator is probably out of order.

Why do the side walls of the refrigerator heat up?

As mentioned above, manufacturers of many modern models hide heat exchange grilles inside the side walls. This gives a more aesthetic appearance to the product and has a conditioned functionality. Therefore, if the refrigerator is heated on the sides during operation, then this is quite normal and understandable from a technical and physical point of view. Thus, excess heat is transported from the chambers, and the resulting thermal energy is released into the environment. At the same time, the body temperature rises for about 20 - 25 minutes (this is how long the compressor cycle lasts), then the temperature gradually decreases to normal values, because. motor-compressor is off.
In some household appliances, heating is observed between the partitions of the refrigerator and freezer. This observation is due to temperature fluctuations in these areas, which occurs due to the accumulation of thermal energy from the products that have been placed in the freezer for freezing.
If you notice that the refrigerator heats up and does not cool down, as it should in principle, then there are good reasons for this, for example:
Heat sources. The side wall of the refrigerator heats up due to the proximity of a gas or electric stove, a central heating battery, warm floors on which a household appliance stands or direct sunlight from a window, while refrigerators with a dark body heat up most intensively.

First inclusion. When you turn it on for the first time, when you just bought the household appliance and turned it on, more intense heating may heat up. The thing is that inside the chambers the temperature is too high, which needs to be lowered to certain values. The compressor runs longer without shutting down to allow heat to escape. That is why the refrigerator gets hot. This does not pose any danger and is not an emergency. When the set temperature is reached, the case will gradually cool down.

Complete defrost. Naturally, when defrosting, the refrigerator and freezer change their temperature to positive values. Just like when you first turn it on, after defrosting, the device must dial the desired temperature, the compressor also works for wear, which causes the case to heat up.
Loading cameras with products. Simultaneous placement in the chamber of a large amount of not frozen, but especially warm foods (pots with soup, compote, fresh meat, etc.) leads to an increase in temperature in the chamber. The refrigerator begins to compensate for heat transfer and produce more cold. At the same time, all internal nodes work more intensively, which forces large amounts of thermal energy to be removed from the inside. The heat exchanger cannot immediately cope with this amount of heat, so the side and back walls can become very hot.
Ice in the cells. A thick layer of frost on the evaporator or frost in the freezer significantly impairs heat transfer. This leads to an increase in the temperature regime outside. In this case, it is necessary to inspect the sealing rubber for damage or breaks. Ice and a fur coat can be the result of constant ingress of warm air into the chambers.
Super freeze. Activating this mode causes the compressor to run without interruption until this function is manually disabled. In this case, more heat energy is produced, which is output to the outside. In this case, the condenser, of course, heats up to the limit values, which leads to heating of the refrigerator case.
Opening doors. In fact, when opening the chamber door, warm air from the room inevitably enters. If you do this more often, the temperature inside will be higher than that set by the thermostat. In this case, the temperature drop will be longer, which will cause the compressor to turn on more often and for a longer time. As already mentioned, a running compressor will inevitably remove heat from the interior of the chambers, and the heat exchanger will heat up. Therefore, you should not unnecessarily open the refrigerator door, but it is better to organize the products in such a way that everything is laid out on the shelves in the right order and accessibility.
Temperature regime. Manufacturers do not recommend setting the maximum values, due to more economical power consumption. The lower the temperature is selected, the more often the compressor will turn on, and this gives an additional load on it. The best option is to set the average values \u200b\u200bon the thermostat.
Contamination of the heat exchanger grate. If you have an old-style model, where the heat exchange grate is located at the back and in the public domain, then it must be periodically cleaned of dust. A layer of dust and dirt prevents heat transfer, which causes the case to heat up to critical temperatures.

technical issues
Unfortunately, not all heating problems can always be resolved by eliminating a few simple factors that affect it. In some cases, when the refrigerator is heated on the sides or back, some minor or major malfunction may be the cause. If you find malfunctions and suspect that the refrigerator is not working, and its body is too hot, we recommend that you seek qualified help. Only a specialist will be able to detect the true cause, find a malfunction and eliminate it as efficiently as possible without harming your wallet.
Strong heating of the compressor, which affects all parts of the household appliance, occurs for the following reasons:
Too much load on the compressor due to loading a large amount of food or placing only hot cooked dishes in the chambers. Also, the reason for the non-stop operation of the motor may be poor tightness of one of the chambers as a result of damage to the seal.
The maximum cooling and freezing mode is set, which causes the compressor to work harder and overheat.
A malfunctioning thermostat has a deplorable effect on the operation of the compressor. The thermostat records the temperature inside the chamber and as soon as it goes beyond the set values, it sends a signal to turn on the motor. If this component is defective, then the signal to turn on or turn off the motor will be incorrect. The compressor will start to work in an inappropriate mode, due to which it will overheat.
Blockages in the capillary piping, leading to malfunctions in the cooling system. This results in an additional load on the motor-compressor, which causes it to overheat.
Malfunction of motor components, breakage of the winding or abrasion of the motor brushes, frequent voltage drops, which can damage electrical equipment, short wiring or other problems with the electrical part of the refrigerator.
To all of the above, it must be added that power surges have a very adverse effect on the electronic and electrical parts of technology. In particular, especially sensitive electronics, the control module, temperature sensors and other elements that control all the processes of the household unit suffer greatly. Because Since all elements and nodes are closely interconnected with each other, the failure of one node can affect the operation of all systems. Thus, if the temperature sensor or the start-up relay has ceased to perform its functions, then the motor will stop turning on or off in a timely manner. It is also possible that a command has been given to the compressor, but due to some factors it will attempt to start, but without much success. This will also cause it to overheat.

So, what conclusion can be drawn from everything that we have told you today? There is no need to panic if:

If the refrigerator is heated, which is connected to the network for the first time or has been defrosted and turned on for further operation in the usual mode;
If the walls of the refrigerator are heated, in which the body color is darker (black, red, burgundy, etc.);
If in the warm season or at high room temperatures the refrigerator becomes very hot, this is a common occurrence;
If the "Quick Freeze" option is activated;
If there are additional heat sources near the refrigerator (batteries, electric stove, heater, etc.);
If the doors of the cells are often opened;
If there is damage to the compartment door seal;
If the doors do not close tightly and warm air gets inside;
All this contributes to the heating of the housing of the household appliance due to the additional load on the compressor. So that the side and back walls do not get too hot, you must follow the simple tips and operating rules that we have listed today in this article.
Everything that you consider a deviation from the norm and causes you suspicion should be eliminated only by a good, skilled specialist with experience in the field of repairing household appliances. Do not hesitate to call the service department if you notice that the refrigerator is not working properly. So you can protect your equipment from serious damage and extend its service life.