Fridge broken, what now? Repair or replace?

You open the fridge and the milk is lukewarm. So your fridge is broken: what now? In some cases the fridge can still be repaired. But once the costs no longer add up, buying or renting a new fridge is sometimes the better choice.

How do you know your fridge is broken?

Not every odd noise means your fridge is ready for the scrapheap. Still, there are a few signals that usually point to something being genuinely wrong. Watch out for these:

• The temperature inside stays too high, even when you turn it down colder.

• The fridge isn't cooling at all any more and feels lukewarm.

• You suddenly hear a lot more noise, or nothing at all.

• There is water in or underneath the appliance.

• There is a thick layer of ice on the back wall or around the fan.

• The light does not come on, or you notice a musty, off smell.

Not sure about the temperature? Put a thermometer in a glass of water in the middle of the fridge and read it after a few hours. If you are well above 7 degrees Celsius, something really is wrong. The freezer compartment should sit at around minus 18 degrees.

What you can check yourself before you call anyone

Before you call out an engineer or buy a new fridge: some faults you can fix yourself. Worth running through:

Start with the power. Is the plug pushed properly into the socket, and has the circuit in the fuse box not tripped? Test the socket with another appliance if you can. If you hear nothing at all and the light stays off, the problem may not be in the fridge itself.

Then check the settings. Is the thermostat accidentally on its lowest setting, or on holiday mode? With a mechanical dial, turn it from warm to cold once. If you hear the compressor kick in, the thermostat is still working.

Next, look at the door. A worn or dirty door seal lets warm air in continuously, which means your fridge never gets cold enough. Clean the seal with soapy water and check that the door closes neatly all the way round. A sheet of paper that you can pull out without any resistance gives away a poor seal.

Pay attention to the heat outlet too. If the back or the bottom is full of dust, the appliance cannot get rid of its heat. Unplug it and vacuum the grille carefully. And make sure there are a few centimetres of space left behind and above the fridge.

Seeing a serious layer of ice? Then switch the appliance off for 24 hours with the door open, let it defrost completely, clean it and start it up again. Often it cools just like before afterwards. If none of this helps, it is time for a professional: a faulty compressor, a refrigerant leak or a broken circuit board are not jobs to take on yourself.

Repairing a fridge: what does it cost and when is it worth it?

A fridge repair almost always starts with a call-out charge and an hourly rate. As a rough guide, expect somewhere around €100 to €180 for replacing a thermostat, a sensor or a start relay, including the call-out and labour. If the problem is in a fan or a heating element, it can run towards €200 to €250. Always ask for an estimate up front.

A repair pays off mainly if your appliance is not yet halfway through its life — a fridge lasts ten to fifteen years on average — and if the repair clearly costs less than half the price of a new one. A €150 repair on a four-year-old fridge is almost always worth it. Check your warranty first as well: within the warranty period the repair may cost you nothing.

Repairing becomes unattractive as soon as the more expensive parts give out. A compressor, a heat exchanger or a refrigerant leak quickly costs almost as much as a replacement appliance. And if your old fridge uses a lot of electricity, the energy saving of a new model sometimes outweighs the repair.

Replacing your fridge: when is that the better choice?

Replacing your fridge is usually the logical step if your appliance is more than ten years old and the repair runs up a serious bill. The same goes if you have already had an engineer out for the same problem before, or if there are no parts available for your model any more.

Look at the energy label as well. A fridge is switched on 24 hours a day, so consumption counts for a lot. A modern, efficient fridge freezer can save you a decent amount a year compared with a twelve-year-old appliance. That makes replacing it cheaper than it looks at first glance.

Do not forget that there is more to it than the purchase price: delivery, installation and having your old appliance taken away. With many suppliers those are separate items on the bill.

Repair, buy or rent: what suits your situation?

If your fridge is still fairly new and the fault is a small one, have it repaired. If it is getting on in years, uses a lot of energy or the faults keep stacking up, a different appliance makes more sense. And if you would rather avoid the hassle of repair bills, or you do not want to hand over hundreds of euros in one go, renting is a good-value option.

Keeping food safe while your fridge is broken

As long as your fridge is not cooling, keep the door shut as much as you can. A closed fridge stays reasonably cool for a few hours, and a freezer for longer still if it is nicely full. Move perishables such as meat, fish and dairy into a cool box with ice packs if you have one. And if something no longer looks or smells fresh, throw it out: if in doubt, leave it out.

A working fridge again, fast, with Homie

When your fridge breaks down, there is really only one thing you want: a quick solution. At Homie you rent a fridge freezer from around €13.99 a month. Arranged in a few minutes, and we simply deliver and connect the appliance for you, usually within one to three working days. No lugging, no purchase costs and no hunting for an engineer.

And if something breaks in the future? Then we repair or replace the appliance, at no charge. You choose a term that suits you and cancel easily afterwards. Take a look at the Homie fridges.