How to Change the Temperature on a Frigidaire Refrigerator

Side-By-Side

• Side-by-side Frigidaire appliances separate your refrigerator compartment from the freezer compartment. Compare this to traditional top-freezer units that cool the refrigerator compartment on the bottom with cold air that flows down through a slot from the freezer compartment on top. Though air can move sideways, it is more efficient to control the temperature of the compartments in a side-by-side refrigerator independently. In most Frigidaire models you can see the temperature display on the door outside the refrigerator. Press the up or down arrows on the side of the "Freezer Temp" or "Refrigerator Temp" display to increase or decrease the temperature.

Bottom Freezer

• Refrigerators that have a freezer on the bottom are sometimes called "French Door" models. Recall from science courses that cold air is heavier than warm air and so it has the tendency to fall. Therefore, bottom-freezer units also use independent cooling systems for the refrigerator and freezer compartments, because cold air cannot naturally flow upward. Frigidaire bottom-freezer refrigerators have up and down arrows next to the temperature displays on the door, too. Press these buttons to increase of decrease the temperature.

Top Freezer

• Traditional top-freezer appliances combine resources to cool both the refrigerator and freezer compartments. The cold air originates in the freezer and flows down through a slot to the refrigerator below. Fans complete the job by circulating the cool air around both compartments. The temperature controls are usually on the ceiling inside the refrigerator compartment, but there are two knobs to control both the freezer and refrigerator. Turn the respective knob toward or away from cooler settings. Common labels include "Normal," "Cold" and "Colder."

Additional Considerations and Troubleshooting

• Directly adjusting temperature controls may still fail to make a difference in the coldness of your Frigidaire refrigerator. Give your appliance a full 24 hours to reach the new temperature that you manually selected, especially if you have a larger cubic-foot capacity side-by-side or French door refrigerator. Avoid opening the doors frequently during this time. Also, use a wet paper towel to wipe the magnetic seal around each door frame. Food and dust buildup could be allowing warm air to seep into the compartments. Also, modern Frigidaire refrigerators automatically defrost the freezer on a set schedule or based on sensor detection of frost buildup. In this case, wait at least 30 minutes for the defrost cycle to stop. You might have to wait 24 hours for your appliance to cool back down after defrosting.