Commercial refrigeration · Kent
Commercial Fridge Not Getting Cold? An Engineer's Diagnostic Guide
A commercial fridge that won't hold temperature puts your stock and your HACCP records on the clock — once chilled food sits above 8°C, you're counting hours. The good news: it's almost always one of four causes, and the first two you can rule in or out before an engineer arrives.
Quick answer
If a commercial fridge is running but not getting cold, check these four things in order:
- Condenser coil & filter — the everyday cause. Dust and kitchen grease blanket the coil, the heat has nowhere to go, and the cabinet temperature creeps up.
- Door seals & loading — split or perished gaskets, warm food loaded straight in, or stock stacked against the internal airflow vents.
- Evaporator iced up — a failed defrost buries the coil in ice, so the fan can't move cold air around the cabinet. Engineer territory.
- Refrigerant or mechanical fault — a gas leak, failed fan motor or struggling compressor. F-Gas regulated work, engineer only.
What to do before calling an engineer
A few minutes of checks maximises the chance of a first-visit fix:
- Verify the temperature independently — put a probe thermometer in the cabinet rather than trusting the display, and confirm the setpoint hasn't been knocked.
- Clean the condenser filter and coil — with the unit isolated, brush or vacuum the dust and grease off the coil (front, rear or underneath depending on the cabinet). This alone fixes a large share of cases.
- Check the door seals and loading — gaskets intact and gripping, door actually closing, nothing warm loaded in, and the internal vents clear of stacked stock.
- Look for ice on the back panel — a sheet of ice inside the cabinet points to a defrost fault. Don't chip at it; note it for the engineer.
- Note when it started and any error code — overnight, after a delivery, after a hot service? Plus the actual cabinet temperature and what it should be.
⚠️Act now — stock and safety first
Move your stock and call an engineer now if you have:
- Chilled food above 8°C — in England that's the legal limit. Move stock to another cabinet and record the times; your EHO will expect to see it in the HACCP log.
- A burning smell or a compressor too hot to touch — isolate the unit and do not restart it.
- The fridge tripping the electrics — that's a fault, not a glitch. Stop resetting the breaker.
- A hissing sound or oily residue around the unit — signs of a refrigerant leak. F-Gas regulations make this engineer-only work.
- Freezer stock starting to soften — once it thaws you can't refreeze it. Call before the stock loss outgrows the repair bill.
Fridge down? Talk to a Kent engineer now.
Same working day for emergencies. Service agreement holders get priority dispatch with a defined SLA.
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See service agreements →Commercial fridge not getting cold — common questions
Why is my commercial fridge running but not getting cold?
Almost always one of four things: a dirty condenser coil, failed door seals or poor loading, an iced-up evaporator from a defrost fault, or a refrigerant or mechanical fault. The condenser and the seals are the everyday causes and the ones you can check safely; the defrost system, fan motors, compressor and gas circuit are engineer jobs.
Can I fix it myself?
Cleaning the condenser filter and coil, checking the gaskets and sorting the loading — yes, with the unit isolated. Anything on the refrigerant circuit is different: F-Gas regulations mean only a certified engineer can legally work on it. Repeated DIY resets also tend to mask the fault and cost more downtime in the end.
What temperature should a commercial fridge hold?
In England the legal maximum for chilled food is 8°C, and most kitchens run at 5°C or below as their HACCP target so there's margin before stock is at risk. Check cabinet temperatures against a probe thermometer rather than the display, and record them — your EHO will ask for the records.
How quickly can you attend a refrigeration fault in Kent?
Same working day for emergencies wherever possible. Engineers based in SE Kent cover all of Kent, F-Gas certified and Refcom registered, working on Williams, Foster, Gram, Polar, Precision and most other commercial brands. Service-agreement holders get priority dispatch with a defined SLA.
How do I stop it happening again?
Most repeat refrigeration faults come from a dirty condenser. Clean the filter and coil monthly — more often in a busy kitchen where grease carries in the air — keep the vents clear and never load warm food. A service agreement adds planned condenser cleaning and gas checks so it's caught before you lose a cabinet of stock.
Equipment down? Talk to a Kent engineer.
Same working day for emergencies. 8am–5pm Mon–Fri. Out of hours, leave a message.
📞 Call 01304 873469 ← Refrigeration repair Kent