Same-Day Freezer Repair in La Mesa

Plenty of La Mesa ranch houses keep a second freezer in the garage, stocked with bulk meat and frozen fruit. That is also the hardest place in the house for a freezer to work. A garage has no air conditioning, often takes the afternoon sun, and holds heat long after the kitchen cools. We repair chest, upright and built-in freezers from brands like Frigidaire, GE, Whirlpool and Sub-Zero, and every garage call starts with checking whether the unit was ever rated for that spot.

Garage Heat and the Limits of a Freezer's Rating

La Mesa's record high is 109 F, and average August highs sit near 86 F. Inside a closed garage the air can run warmer than the outdoor reading. That matters because a freezer's capacity falls as ambient temperature rises: the condenser has to dump the heat pulled from the food plus the compressor's own heat into air that is already hot. Run time climbs until the compressor rarely rests. Garage-ready models are built for this, but even they have ceilings. Maytag rates its garage-ready refrigeration only to 110 F, and GE lists 0 F to 110 F for its garage-ready chest and upright freezers. A standard indoor model is simply outside its design range on a hot La Mesa afternoon. Santa Ana conditions between September and April add dry, dusty wind that settles on condenser coils, especially on upright units with fan-cooled coils near the floor. Chest freezers usually hide the condenser in the cabinet walls, so they need open space on the sides and back to breathe. Many of the city's houses were built between 1940 and 1969, and their garages often have a single shared outlet circuit, which is a poor match for a compressor that needs steady voltage to start.

What Goes Wrong With Freezers in Warm Garages

Garage Freezer Upkeep Through the Hot Months

A freezer in the garage needs more attention than one in the kitchen. Keep it at 0 F and verify with an appliance thermometer rather than trusting the dial. Manual-defrost units should be defrosted once frost reaches 1/4 to 1/2 inch; thicker frost insulates the cold wall and makes the compressor run longer. If an old freezer is being retired, remove the lid or door or have it hauled away, since an empty chest in a garage is an entrapment hazard for children.

• Clean the condenser or grille every 6 months, and every 3 months if the dryer or a pet shares the garage
• Check the thermometer weekly from July through September
• Defrost manual units at 1/4 to 1/2 inch of frost
• Keep the unit out of direct sun and away from the water heater

Getting Ready for a Freezer Visit

For a garage unit, clear a path to the back and sides, and make sure the garage or side door will be open when we arrive. If the freezer shares a circuit with the door opener or shop tools, tell us; we'll check voltage at the outlet. Move food into coolers if you can, since diagnosis may require unplugging the unit. The model and serial number are usually inside the lid or on the back of the cabinet.

Deciding on an Aging Freezer

Relays, thermostats, defrost parts and fans are usually worth the repair on any freezer. The hard case is a refrigerant leak in the foamed-in wall tubing of an inexpensive chest freezer, which often makes replacement sensible. Built-in column and drawer freezers are nearly always repaired. If a standard model keeps failing in a hot garage, a garage-rated replacement may cost less over time. The $99 diagnostic is credited toward the repair.