Most fridge freezer call-outs start the same way: the freezer is still rock solid, but the milk in the fridge has turned. On the frost-free models that fill most kitchens within four miles of Northolt, both compartments are cooled by a single evaporator hidden behind the back panel of the freezer, and a small fan pushes that cold air up a duct into the fridge. When the defrost circuit stops clearing frost off that evaporator, the ice blocks the duct long before it affects the freezer, so the fridge warms up while the freezer carries on as normal. That is why changing the fridge dial almost never cures it. We handle the electrical and mechanical side of these appliances: defrost heaters, thermal cut-outs and defrost sensors, evaporator and condenser fans, thermostats and control boards, door seals and dropped hinges, blocked drain holes, interior lamps and door switches. But the closed cooling circuit is specialist work we do not take on, and we will say so on the visit rather than sell you a repair that cannot hold. A typical visit means taking the freezer back panel off, reading the state of the ice, metering the defrost components and testing the airflow, then telling you plainly what the part is and what it will cost before anything is fitted.
£80
call-out charge per visit
Labour is included for most repairs. More extensive or complex jobs may require additional labour, which we always quote and agree with you before starting. Parts are charged separately and always quoted before we fit them.
We are not registered for VAT. The price we quote is the price you pay.
Usually: On a frost-free model one evaporator feeds both compartments, and once it ices over the air duct to the fridge is the first thing to close up.
On the visit: We take off the freezer back panel to see how the evaporator is frosted, clear it under controlled heat, then test the defrost circuit so the same ice does not build straight back.
Usually: The evaporator fan motor has failed, or its blade is striking frost, so no cold air is being pushed through to the fridge compartment.
On the visit: We hold the door switch in to run the fan on test, check the supply reaching it and how freely the blade turns once ice is cleared, and fit a new fan motor where the winding is open or the bearing has collapsed.
Usually: The defrost heater under the evaporator has gone open circuit, or the thermal cut-out sitting above it has tripped for good, so frost is never melted during the defrost cycle.
On the visit: We meter the heater and the cut-out for continuity at the loom connector, fit replacements where either reads open, and check the wiring back to the control before the panel goes on.
Usually: The defrost sensor or bimetal thermostat is reporting the wrong temperature, or the control board is simply not calling a defrost cycle.
On the visit: We read the sensor's resistance against its actual temperature, force a defrost through the control and watch what actually switches on, then replace the sensor or control depending on where the chain breaks.
Usually: The drain hole at the back of the fridge liner is blocked with food debris or plugged solid with ice, so defrost water has nowhere to go.
On the visit: We clear and flush the drain hole through to the drip tray, check the trough behind the liner is not iced, refit the drain plug correctly and confirm water runs away before we leave.
Usually: The door seal has hardened, torn or lost its magnetic grip, or the door has dropped on a worn hinge and no longer pulls square against the cabinet.
On the visit: We test the seal all round by closing the door on a strip of paper, adjust or replace hinges where the door has sagged, and fit a new seal to the affected door where the old one will not seat.
Usually: The thermostat or fridge sensor has drifted, or on dial-controlled models the capillary phial has come away from the evaporator plate it should be clamped to.
On the visit: We take our own readings in both compartments and compare them with what the control thinks, refit or replace the phial or sensor, and while the panel is off we check the interior lamp and door switch, since a switch that never opens leaves the lamp on and warms the cabinet.
3-month guarantee on the part we replace. Any part we replace is guaranteed for 3 months from the date it is fitted. This covers the replaced part only — it is not a warranty on the whole appliance.
Pick your district for local detail, or just call — we cover 16 districts across West London and Harrow.
On a frost-free fridge freezer both compartments share one evaporator behind the freezer back panel, and a fan blows that cold air up to the fridge. If the defrost circuit fails, ice seals the duct: the freezer stays cold because it sits right next to the evaporator, while the fridge slowly warms. It is nearly always a defrost or fan fault rather than the fridge thermostat, which is why turning the dial colder makes no difference.
Defrosting by hand clears the ice but not the reason it formed. Something in the defrost circuit has stopped doing its job: usually the heater under the evaporator has gone open circuit, the thermal cut-out has tripped permanently, or the defrost sensor is reporting a temperature that prevents the cycle ever running. We meter each of those in turn so the repair lasts beyond the next couple of weeks.
The call-out is £80 per visit and includes labour on most fridge freezer jobs — clearing an iced evaporator, changing a defrost heater or sensor, freeing a blocked drain, fitting a door seal. A longer job, such as stripping a full frost-free evaporator assembly, may need additional labour, which is always quoted and agreed with you before we start. Parts are charged on top and quoted before fitting, and whatever part we fit carries a 3-month guarantee covering that part rather than the whole appliance.
Yes, and it is worth saying up front: the closed cooling circuit is specialist work we do not take on. What we do cover is the electrical and mechanical side — defrost heaters, cut-outs and sensors, evaporator and condenser fans, thermostats and control boards, door seals and hinges, blocked drains, lamps and door switches. If our tests point at the cooling circuit itself, we will tell you on the visit and explain your options rather than fitting parts that cannot fix it.
Please leave the ice where it is if you can. A frosted evaporator is the evidence we need, and the pattern of the frost tells us whether the heater, the sensor or the fan is at fault — defrosting first can hide the fault for a fortnight. Clearing the freezer drawers and the shelf in front of the back panel helps, and it is worth having a cool bag ready for frozen food, because a badly iced evaporator takes time to clear properly.