Both the freezer and the refrigerator must be maintained at their optimum temperatures all the time. Sometimes, the freezer in the lab refrigerator works fine, but the refrigerator stops working properly. It starts getting warm and then stops working. So, all the bio chemicals, vaccines, etc stored in the freezer may not remain in their well-preserved state. These substances are highly sensitive to sudden changes in the storage temperature. Cell cultures, media and other substances that need a temperature of at least 10 degrees Celsius are also very likely to get spoilt. Sooner or later, as observed in many other instances, the freezer also stops functioning properly. Therefore, the problem must be looked into at the earliest.

There are many reasons that could explain this problem. There is a vent that controls the flow of cold air between the freezer and the refrigerator. The pre-installed fan in the refrigerator blows cold air through this vent that connects the freezer and the main refrigerator. A blocked vent can cause cold air to be cut off from reaching the refrigerator. A faulty fan also could also be responsible for the problem.

If a lot of frost collects behind the refrigerator, the solid frost may freeze the blades of the fan. When the fan stops moving, the circulation of cold air stops completely. At times, if not observed for a long period of time, the fan gets completely frozen all over. In this scenario, the refrigerator must be defrosted. It is advisable to manually defrost the refrigerator by increasing the temperature. Auto defrost might not be useful in this situation. All the ice that collects must be allowed to melt completely. The ice that collects on the evaporator coils also must be got rid of. These coils are located behind the panel of the lab refrigerator. The doors must be left wide open to further enhance the process of getting rid of the ice as soon as possible.

Another panel is built at the bottom of the refrigerator. When ice collects in this part of the refrigerator, it causes a lot of damage. The drain hole that helps get rid of the water during the defrosting process gets blocked. The water doesn’t collect in the drip tray. The tray is placed at the bottom of the refrigerator. In more high-end models of lab refrigerators, there are small coils that originate from the compressor. There are small embedded tubes that help drain the water away. The heat generated by the compressor keeps the coils hot. Therefore, all the drained water gets evaporated instead of getting collected in the refrigerator tray. The problem with these lab refrigerators is that the tubes that help collect the water get clogged. Clogging occurs when there is some kind of leakage of chemicals, bio molecules and other biological material stored in the refrigerator unit.

After the process of defrosting, the evaporating fan, the vent and the coils must be checked to ensure that there are no blockages and all the components are operating normally. Also, clean the refrigerator thoroughly before you start using it again.

Author Bio: Dr. Bob Sandor is a Director at Tovatech, a leading supplier of undercounter refrigerator units in America. When not busy running his company he explores his fascination with the many aspects of various scientific & industrial devices. For more details on the above you can reach him through his site’s lab & industrial refrigerator section.

Category: Computers and Technology
Keywords: laboratory refrigerator,lab refrigerator,laboratory freezer, freezing refrigerator,defrosting