Not cooling · Which part of it is warm?
Both Sides Are Warm — What Failed?
- Signed
- Dean Halvorsen
- Role
- Refrigeration technician — sealed systems and airflow
- Certification
- EPA Section 608 certified
- Published
Short answer
Most likely something the two sections share, not two failures at once. Each side of a built-in Sub-Zero combination has its own compressor, so when both warm together the power, the control, the air over the condenser and the room are checked first. Sub-Zero Repair Edmonds does that for the $89 service call: (206) 210-3547.
Two separate systems rarely quit together
A built-in combination has two sealed systems (a compressor, its coils and the refrigerant sealed inside them), one for each section. For both to go warm at once, look for something upstream of them. Sub-Zero’s service manual, in its list of causes for warmth in both compartments, does not name a sealed-system failure at all. It names these:
- no power reaching the unit, or the unit switched off at its own control;
- showroom mode, which keeps the display looking normal while nothing cools;
- a set point turned up, or a large load of warm food;
- a room outside the 60°F to 90°F range in which, the manual says, the unit performs best;
- a door held open by food or a faulty hinge;
- poor air across the condenser (the coil behind the grille that sheds the heat): dust on it, a fan blade blocked or loose, or a fan motor that has failed or lost its power.
That last group matters most on a two-compressor model. In the manual’s test steps for those units, the condenser fan takes its power from the control board whichever compressor is running, so a failed fan or a failed supply to it warms both sections together.
What you can look at first
Check the breaker and read the display: does it say the unit is off, or show normal figures while a thermometer inside disagrees? Look at the grille from the front and clear anything stacked against it, with the power off before hands go anywhere near it. In a waterfront kitchen in the Bowl, salt air working on that same condenser is one more reason to look at the base first.
Where the technician goes next
Power and the control come first, then the condenser and its fan with a compressor running. Only then is each section’s sealed system tested, each judged on its own gauge readings.
What it may cost
$89 to find out — the visit and the diagnosis, taken off the repair if you go ahead.
- Electronic control board Shows as a lit display and working lights while nothing calls the compressor on $420–$880
- Evaporator or condenser fan motor Shows as a fan that has gone quiet behind the grille, or cold coils behind a warm shelf $340–$700
Should both sealed systems prove to be at fault, each is priced from the sealed-system range once gauges have confirmed it.
Ranges, not starting prices. The technician names one figure inside the band before any panel comes off, and Sub-Zero Repair Edmonds holds to it.
Wait or call today?
Can wait until morning
- The fridge is cool, not cold, the freezer is still firm, and the kitchen has been unusually hot today: keep both doors shut and see whether it catches up overnight.
- You found something stacked against the grille and have cleared it: give the unit a few hours before judging.
Call today if
- The fridge has been above 40°F for close to four hours, the point at which the FDA says perishables should go.
- Warm air has stopped coming from the grille, and the base is silent or clicking.
- The breaker trips again as soon as it is reset. Leave it off.
Anything in the second card is a reason to phone Sub-Zero Repair Edmonds on (206) 210-3547 today rather than tomorrow.
Questions people ask next
Could both compressors really have failed at the same time?
It can happen, but it is the last explanation to accept. Two separate systems giving out together is far less likely than one shared part stopping, such as the control or the condenser fan. Sub-Zero Repair Edmonds rules those out before quoting any compressor work; call (206) 210-3547.
Why does the display show normal numbers when the food is warm?
Sub-Zero's own material offers two reasons. Its troubleshooting page says to rule out showroom mode, the setting for units shown in a dealer's showroom, which is only likely on a unit that once stood on display. The service manual adds a compartment sensor that misreads, leaving the screen and the shelves in disagreement.