Oil is leaking from the refrigerator, what should I do? Why is the refrigerator leaking?

Puddles in the kitchen are usually created by dishwashers and washing machines, but other equipment, for example, a refrigerator, may be to blame for the “flood”. If you encounter this problem, our review will come to the rescue.

Important! Do not panic. If there is a leak from under the refrigerator or you find water inside, but the chambers are cold, the problem is not serious.

When brown liquid flows from the refrigerator or the “flood” is accompanied by a lack of frost, it means you need to think about repairs.

On a note! We are often asked: “A puddle has formed, is it freon leaking?” Don't worry, freon is a gas, and its leak is difficult to detect, and a puddle on the floor is nothing more than melted ice or condensation formed in excessive quantities.

Find the symptoms, causes and solutions to the problem below.

We are looking for a place from which water flows. If the puddle is exclusively under the refrigerator, but it’s dry inside, check the integrity of the pipes and heating radiators. If leakage is ruled out, check further:

  • Is there water inside the chamber? You may not notice it right away - it usually stands under fruit and vegetable boxes. Check for ice on the walls and if the drain is in order. When the drainage tube comes off, the condensate flows past the bath.

Important! In practice it happens thatdue to improper transportationThe container for collecting melt water bursts. You can check the integrity of the tank without the help of a technician: move the refrigerator and see what to do - you need to fix the tube or replace the bath.

  • Freezer performance. When a model with No Frost has a little ice or a snow coat, this indicates a breakdown of the evaporator heating element. In this case, the No Frost function does not work, and the ice grows, as in a regular drip refrigerator. When you open the door, it melts and the water goes down the drain. The container of these models is not designed to hold such a mass of water, so the bowl quickly overflows.

Why does the refrigerator “cry”: common causes of breakdowns

When a Samsung, Atlant, Indesit or other refrigerator leaks very badly, a serious malfunction may be the culprit. The causes and solutions to the problem are listed in a convenient table.

Sign of breakdown What caused the crash What to do
In the model with complete No Frost, the freezer leaks. There is a lot of ice and standing water in the chamber. A clogged drain hole prevents excess moisture from leaving the chamber. Water collects in the compartment, partially freezing. The remaining moisture does not have time to freeze, so it escapes through the door sealing rubber to the floor. The drain needs cleaning. In the freezer it is located far in the depths of the case, so it is difficult to clean it yourself. Contact a specialist - such repairs cost no more than 1500-2000 rubles.
In a model with a “crying” type of evaporator, the leak comes from the main chamber, going down the outer wall. Some water gets trapped under fruit and vegetable containers. The main chamber drain path is clogged. The drain is located at the bottom of the compartment - in addition to water, crumbs and small debris get into it. When a blockage occurs, water does not leave the chamber.

The drain needs cleaning.

Important! To break through the blockage, you don’t have to call a specialist. The work is not difficult: you need to arm yourself with a small bulb syringe and, filling it with slightly warmed water, clean the drainage. If you don't have a syringe at hand, find an ear stick or wire of a suitable cross-section. Be careful not to let the item fall into the drain.

Products freeze, mainly from below the main chamber. Puddles can be inside the chamber or from outside the housing. Cause of damage or wear sealing gum. When gaps or damage occur, air from the environment enters the chamber, causing the wall to constantly freeze. Warm air currents easily melt the ice, and a lot of moisture is formed, which goes down the drain. Neither the tube nor the container are designed for such a volume, so some of the water freezes in the chamber, and some flows away.

The seal should be replaced. You can do this yourself.

You need to buy a new rubber band, dismantle the old one and install an analogue using waterproof glue (or insert it into the groove, depending on the model).

Breakdown after rearranging or transporting equipment. Symptoms: puddle under the cabinet, frozen food, flooding of compartments. The installation was not carried out according to the rules. If the cabinet is standing crookedly, the door does not fit tightly, and there is movement in the compartment. warm air. Next, the process is the same as if the door rubber is damaged. Reinstall the refrigerator using a technical level.

There are other reasons for refrigeration equipment leaks:

  • Incorrect placement of dishes or products on shelves. If you put food close to the wall, condensation, flowing down it, takes with it small particles of food, which is why the drainage path becomes clogged.
  • Loading warm foods. The warmer the food you place on the shelf, the more condensation will form. Monitor the temperature of the food.
  • There was no electricity in your absence. Ask the supplier utilities or neighbors, whether the lights went out while you were not at home. If this is confirmed, then the leak was not due to a breakdown.

If you let the situation take its course, it will end in failure: parts will begin to rust under the influence of moisture, and overhaul Up to and including replacing the refrigerator cannot be avoided. It is important not to hesitate if you have a model with a bottom freezer. If water stands in the chamber for a long time, the steel body will rust and freon will evaporate from the system. Don't wait until the equipment completely refuses to work - take action or call a mechanic.

Why does the refrigerator leak: 3 main reasons

If the refrigerator starts to leak, then you should immediately begin to solve the problem. A refrigerator is undoubtedly one of the most useful and pleasant household appliances to use, which is not alien to even the most distant inhabitants of the corners of the planet, and today is almost a means of vital necessity. Who doesn’t enjoy being next to such a wonderful partner who will not only keep the food in proper condition? long time, but can also serve for many other purposes, both culinary and other areas of activity, because it can also store things that cannot be carried room temperatures, such as certain medications.

However, no one is immune from the risk of breakdown or single failure of this most useful device, regardless of cost and production warranty. Read on to learn how the nature of major refrigerator breakdowns works, and what to do to bring it back to proper condition.

Reasons: when the refrigerator leaks

Everyone may encounter a malfunction of their refrigerator, because equipment tends to break down and malfunction, often regardless of its operating time and cost, be it a product famous manufacturers Atlant, Indesit or Samsung. If, after all, the refrigerator has caused trouble and is literally leaking or leaking, do not panic prematurely. The reason for such a phenomenon may lie on the surface, and to eliminate it, the presence of a master is not necessary, because in this case you can handle it yourself.

The main symptoms of a malfunction can tell a lot, and among them the main ones are:

  1. The refrigerator leaks only from the outside - the cause of the malfunction is external reasons, failures of which may lie in both serious and minor interference in the operation of the device, of which there may be several.
  2. The refrigerator is leaking inside and outside - here the situations are usually more complicated, and most of them can only be solved with the help of qualified specialist, due to the malfunction of the main internal parts and elements, which require certain knowledge and skills to work with.
  3. It only leaks in the inner compartment.

Before repairing the refrigerator, you should determine main reason malfunctions

Besides, significant difference If a refrigerator breaks down, it is a representative with the No Frost system, which has been a relatively recent innovation and a step forward in the production of modern refrigerators. This system is based on the need to defrost a cold friend from time to time and actively helps the owner of the device with this system to forget about these troubles, because he copes with the task perfectly on his own.

In this case, there are no problems with puddles in the kitchen and the proliferation of harmful microorganisms.

The mechanism of action of the so-called dry freezing system is not so complicated, and consists in the resulting evaporation of the liquid formed in the refrigerator, delivered there by a system of circulating fans and an evaporator. As a rule, it is hidden from view by its back wall, to which there are special openings for circulating air with moisture. After moisture reaches the evaporator, the compressor turns off and, with the help of a heater, it evaporates.

It is important to understand that delaying the problem of a refrigerator leak can cause other unpleasant consequences already of a more radical nature, and something needs to be done immediately. Read more about the details of breakdowns and repairs below.

If the refrigerator is leaking from below: reasons

There can be a lot of reasons for the formation of puddles on the floor right in front of the refrigerator, both serious internal ones and more loyal external ones. To decide how to proceed, you should initially determine what is causing the breakdown, based on the main signs or symptoms of what is happening.

A common cause of refrigerator failure is a problem with the drain pipe.

The most typical and common breakdowns that lead to water appearing on the floor from time to time and interfering with quiet life:

  1. The problem with the drain tube is a common failure, which consists in the deviation of the drain tube, as a result of which liquid flows out and accumulates below, outside the special tank. It can be solved by manually inserting the tube into place, after first moving the device (tube at the back).
  2. Problems with the tank are a more serious problem, which is why it requires special attention, and anything must be done with extreme caution. If it has simply deviated slightly from its original location, this can be corrected in the same way as the problem with the tube, but its mechanical damage can only be solved by replacing it by a specialist.
  3. A malfunction of the evaporator heater of the No Frost system, as a result of which the tank overflows, which is not designed for the amount of liquid in the freezer, resulting in a puddle under the refrigerator. It can only be repaired by calling a master.

If the drainage (drain) hole (both in the freezer and in the refrigeration section) is clogged, as a result of which water cannot be adequately removed from the refrigerator chambers and collects inside the chambers, but accumulates in large quantities - from the outside below, then the problem can be solved independently, but this requires some experience and knowledge, since it is not easy to clean, because it is located deep in the refrigerator system.

The refrigerator is leaking inside: causes of breakdowns

Most serious problems with a refrigerator, there are reasons that cause a leak inside one of the chambers, and even worse - if a brown or oily liquid appears, which indicates significant internal problems with the device or that the drainage hole is seriously clogged.

If the refrigerator is leaking inside, it means the drain hole is clogged or the thermostat is broken.

Among the main reasons for the accumulation of liquid inside the refrigerator are:

  1. The already familiar clogged drain hole, the symptoms and solutions for fixing which have already been described above.
  2. An insufficient level of tightness leads, as a rule, to the accumulation of relatively small amounts of water on the extreme surfaces close to the door. It can be solved independently by replacing the rubber seal that holds the compartment door closed.
  3. Thermostat failure is a categorical and most serious malfunction.

All problems with internal leakage in the refrigerator must be diagnosed immediately after the first symptoms, since in the future, turning a blind eye to a seemingly trivial problem can lead to serious consequences for the entire appliance.

Because of the thermostat, the compartment literally sweats, which is where the water appears, and turning it on means saying goodbye to the refrigerator in short terms, as it begins to form a large number of water.

Corrosive metal coating Some important areas of the compartment require the amount of water to be removed. Such an illness should only be treated by turning to specialists, since independent initiative risks bringing much more significant negative consequences.

Caring for the Drain Hole

As already defined above, lion's share problems arise precisely because of problems with drainage system refrigerator, arising for various reasons, ranging from the simplest inability to cope with the resulting liquid, and ending with the deepest blockage of the drain hole.

In order for the refrigerator to break down and leak less, experts recommend taking care of drainage hole

The refrigerator drainage itself consists of 2 main elements - a drainage hole and a drainage tube, interconnected and directly adjacent to each other. Also, depending on the model, there may be 2 drainage holes at once - one on the back wall at the bottom, with a tube attached to it, and the second, used for draining the freezer compartment, under the back cover of the refrigerator.

Like any drainage system, in the refrigerator it becomes clogged over time and can cause a number of problems. In order to prevent this from happening, it is necessary to carry out periodic prevention, which will not require incredible effort, but only 20-30 minutes of time and desire. Excellent the folk way clean the drainage hole more or less when the equipment is “crying” - fill the medical rubber bulb warm water and with a sharp press, release a stream into the drainage hole in order to remove all blockages, and so that for a long time a new puddle does not appear and force the Once again sound the alarm.

Reasons: why the refrigerator leaks (video)

In conclusion, we add that some models have a built-in special brush with which you can perform the cleaning operation. Look after your household companions and they will serve you for a long time.

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You walked into the kitchen and...

  • found traces of water under the refrigerator or
  • looked into the refrigerator and saw that water was accumulating in it

This means that some problems have arisen in your equipment, which is why a leak has formed. Where the water in the refrigerator came from and why it suddenly began to flow out - we will figure it out in our article.

The first thing to do is determine where exactly the water is coming from. We carefully inspect the floor near the refrigerator, the front panel, look into the freezer and into the main compartment.

Failures in which water flows from under the refrigerator of the “no-frost” model

First, you need to rule out any problems not related to the refrigerator: check if the radiator or pipes are leaking. Also inspect the dishwasher and washing machine, if there are any in the kitchen.

    If in " environment“everything is fine and there is no water in the refrigerator itself - perhaps problem with the drain pipe or condensate tank cracked. Normally, condensation from the refrigerator flows into the drainage hole, enters the drainage tube and flows into a plastic tray, which is located near the compressor motor. There the water evaporates. However, if the tube is damaged somewhere, has moved relative to the tank, or the tank itself is damaged, the water flows straight onto the floor.

    It is necessary to move the refrigerator so as to gain access to the back wall and carefully inspect the entire system: if the tube has moved, simply return it to the desired position by hand. If we are talking about a crack in the drainage system or tray, it needs to be replaced.

    Repairs will cost from 1,500 rubles.*

    If there is quite a lot of water on the floor, and at the same time you see a large layer of ice in the freezer, most likely The evaporator heater has failed. With such a breakdown, a “fur coat” forms on the walls, which begins to melt every time you open the refrigerator door. The water, as it should be, flows into the tank. But since there is more water than usual, it does not have time to evaporate in time, the tank overflows, and you see that water is flowing from under the refrigerator.

    Required replacing the evaporator heater, what will cost about 2500 rubles.*

Failures in which water flows from under the refrigerator and accumulates inside it

If you see water not only on the floor, but also inside the refrigerator - in the main compartment or in the freezer, most likely one of the troubles described below has occurred:

    In a no-frost refrigerator, water is leaking from the freezer - most likely The drain hole in the freezer is clogged. In this case, there will be a puddle under the refrigerator, and there will be heavy ice inside the freezer itself.

    When the drainage channel becomes clogged, the freezer ceases to be “no-frost”: all the moisture remains inside the chamber, and a “coat” of ice begins to form on the walls. If there is a lot of moisture and it does not have time to freeze, water seeps through the seal.

    To solve the problem it is necessary clean the drainage hole: such work will cost from 1500 rubles.*

    If in a no-frost refrigerator water accumulates in large quantities under the fruit and vegetable drawers, and also flows out through the seal on front part refrigerator - most likely The drain hole in the refrigerator compartment is clogged.

    Unlike the hole in the freezer (which is hidden deep under a plastic box), the refrigeration “drain” is in plain sight, and the blockage can be removed on one's own. To do this, look for a hole in the lower part of the back wall of the refrigerator and rinse it using warm water and a baby syringe. If you can’t “break through” the plug with water, you can arm yourself with some kind of stick - for example, a cocktail straw - and carefully push through the blockage.

    If water is leaking from under the refrigerator, there is a puddle under the fruit and vegetable drawers, and at the same time the refrigerator is freezing food - most likely rubber seal worn out and warm air enters the refrigerator.

    In this case, in order to compensate for the excess heat, the refrigerator begins to freeze more intensely: the motor runs almost non-stop. The active operation of the compressor in combination with constantly incoming air leads to the formation of a patch on the walls, which thaws under the influence of heat constantly penetrating from outside. Some of the water sits under the drawers, and some of it flows out into the drainage hole into the bath. But since the volume of the bath is not very large, the tank overflows and we see a puddle on the floor.

    To solve the problem you need replacing the rubber door seal refrigerator, what will it cost? 1500 rubles.*

*Repair prices do not include the cost of spare parts. The technician will quote the full cost of the repair after conducting a full diagnostic of the refrigerator, based on the type of breakdown and model of your appliance.

In addition to the breakdowns described above, the problem may also be incorrect installation of the refrigerator: If the unit is standing on an uneven surface, the door may not close tightly. In this case, as in the case of wear of the seal, the tightness refrigerator is disturbed, and the air from the room enters the refrigerator (in this case, the “fur coat” will freeze in the refrigerator compartment).

So if you have recently moved the refrigerator from place to place or you have complaints about the levelness of the floor in the kitchen, it is better to check the position of the refrigerator using building level. And if you find a “skew”, correct it by adjusting the legs of the refrigerator.

1. Drain hose or hole is clogged. If water regularly accumulates in a refrigerator with a “crying” evaporator underneath the fruit and vegetable drawer, then most likely the drainage is clogged. Its purpose is to remove melt water from the refrigeration compartment into a special tank located near the compressor. Drain blockages occur due to the characteristics of the drip defrost system: dust, crumbs, food residues, etc. can get into the drainage hole along with drops of melt water (which can cause bad smell). When the drain is clogged, the water cannot escape. It stands in the drainage, and the excess flows to the bottom of the refrigerator, just under the drawers. During the cooling cycle, the water in the drain often freezes and ice forms in and around the drain hole. Ignoring a clogged drain hole for a long time can lead to freezing of the refrigerator compartment evaporator (it will not have time to thaw) and loss of cooling capacity. At the same time, the refrigerator compressor will turn off less often to compensate for the lack of cold.

In order to restore normal work refrigerator, you should clean the drain hole. Below are two possible cleaning schemes that should be applied sequentially.

Scheme No. 1. Cotton swab + syringe
  • Unplug the refrigerator. Before starting work, unplug the refrigerator and remove the fruit and vegetable drawers from it.
  • Clean the drain hole. If there is no ice around the drainage hole, try clearing it with a cotton swab or similar non-sharp object. Many models include special device, intended for this purpose.
  • Flush the drain. Take a small syringe with warm (not hot!) water and squirt water into the drain hole several times. If the water successfully drains into the condensate collection tray, congratulations, the blockage has been eliminated.

If these actions do not bring the desired result, and all the water from the syringe pours back into the refrigerator, most likely the drainage hose is frozen, and you cannot do without completely defrosting the refrigerator.

Scheme No. 2. Defrost the refrigerator and, if necessary, use wire
  • Defrost the refrigerator and repeat cleaning and syringing the drain. To do this, remove food from the refrigerator and leave it turned off with the door open for 8-12 hours. After defrosting, repeat the procedure of cleaning and syringing the drain.
  • Clean the drain channel using a wire. If water still does not flow into the condensate pan, take a thin wire and use it to clear the drain. In this case, you need to act as carefully as possible so as not to damage the drainage hose and the plastic of the refrigerator. Moreover, you should try to clean it with a wire both from the side of the drainage hole from inside the refrigerator and from the opposite end of the drainage hose. As a rule, this method allows you to achieve a positive result. Otherwise, call a professional refrigerator repair technician.

2. Incorrect installation refrigerator. If the refrigerator is not installed level, the door may not fit tightly. Because of this, warm air will enter the refrigerator compartment, and the unit, trying to compensate for the lack of cold, will turn off less often. Infrequent outages can cause ice to form on the back wall of the refrigerator compartment and around the drainage hole until it completely freezes. During rare defrost cycles, the drain hole will not be able to cope with the increased amount of water (or the moisture will not drain at all if the drain is frozen), and water will collect in the refrigerator compartment below the drawers. In addition, the water collection tank may also not be able to handle the amount of water, and then you will see a puddle under the refrigerator. To fix the problem, you need to install the refrigerator strictly at level.

If cleaning the drainage hole and adjusting the level did not bring results, and water still accumulates in the refrigerator under the drawers, most likely there is a breakdown, the elimination of which will require intervention professional master.

Possible breakdowns of refrigerators with a drip defrosting system

More than 55,000 users have already entrusted the RemBytTech workshop with the repair of their refrigeration units, and the situation with the appearance of water at the bottom of the refrigerator compartment under the fruit and vegetable boxes is painfully familiar to us. Based on the data from the repairs performed, we have collected the most common breakdowns of refrigerators with a “crying” evaporator, when water collects inside the refrigerator under the drawers, in the table below.

Symptoms of a problem Possible breakdown and solution Repair cost*
(work + spare parts)

In addition to water at the bottom of the refrigerator compartment, the following symptoms, one or more, are observed:

  • The refrigerator compressor rarely turns off;
  • the refrigerator freezes food from time to time;
  • A uniform layer of ice has formed in the area of ​​the drainage hole and on the rear wall of the unit, which does not completely thaw.

The rubber seal of the refrigerator compartment does not fit tightly (due to damage or natural wear), because of this, warm air gets inside the refrigerator. The unit, trying to eliminate excess heat in the refrigeration chamber, begins to work, almost without turning off. As a result, the back wall of the refrigerator does not have time to thaw, the drainage hole freezes and a large amount of water forms inside the refrigerator compartment.

The seal needs to be replaced.

from 2500 rub.

The temperature sensor has broken down and incorrectly “informs” about the temperature in the refrigerator compartment. Because of this, the refrigerator motor turns off later than necessary. As a result, the refrigerator compartment freezes the food, and ice forms on the back wall of the chamber. The tube for draining melt water also freezes. When the refrigerator turns off, the ice melts and a lot of water forms. Since the drain is frozen, the melt water has nowhere to go except to accumulate under the fruit and vegetable drawers in the refrigerator compartment.

The temperature sensor needs to be replaced.

from 2900 to 5900 rub.

* The table shows approximate FULL COST OF REPAIR, including spare parts and technician work. The technician will be able to determine the exact repair estimate only after diagnosing the refrigerator. The final price depends on the nature of the breakdown, as well as the manufacturer and model of the refrigerator.

Possible breakdowns of No Frost system refrigerators

The regular appearance of water under the fruit and vegetable drawers in the Full No Frost system refrigerator, in most cases, indicates a breakdown in the defrost module of the unit's evaporator. Additionally, the following symptoms will indicate a malfunction:

  • the refrigerator almost never turns off;
  • formed in the freezer thick layer ice;
  • The refrigerator compartment does not cool.

Due to the failure of the following components in the defrost module, one or several at once:

  • defrost timer;
  • defrost sensor;
  • Evaporator heating element;
  • fuse

The freezer evaporator does not defrost. It freezes and its cooling capacity drops. To compensate for its deficiency, the refrigerator begins to freeze more and more intensely, with fewer “rest” breaks. This leads to even more ice formation: the freezer becomes filled with frost and ice. Then the cold air supply channel from the evaporator to the refrigeration compartment freezes, and the refrigerator compartment stops cooling. Due to the temperature difference (it is warm in the refrigerator compartment), the ice in the frozen channel melts and water flows under the fruit and vegetable drawer in the refrigerator compartment.

The refrigerator components listed above cannot be repaired and require replacement by a specialist.

As you can see, in some cases the cause of water appearing at the bottom of the refrigerator can be eliminated on your own. If the described actions do not bring the desired result, do not try to carry out repairs yourself! Call the company "RemBytTech":

Within 24 hours after receiving your application, a technician will come to your home and repair the refrigerator quickly and with a guarantee of up to 2 years. Contact us!

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One of the most necessary elements household appliances There is a refrigerator in the house. It is in every apartment, since it is almost impossible to live without it nowadays. Unfortunately, like any other household appliance, a refrigerator can break down or leak (which is not always the same thing). Yes, it's unpleasant, but there's nothing wrong with it. Let's figure out why the refrigerator is leaking and how to deal with it. But first you need to understand how this piece of household equipment generally works.

Refrigerator device

We will not touch on technical issues (heat absorption during refrigerant compression), but will only describe the principle of water formation inside the refrigerator. The fact is that most of the food that people put in the refrigerator contains a lot of moisture. Also when opening the door it is warm wet air gets inside. As a result, moisture vapor condenses and settles on the walls when the temperature drops sharply. Then condensate (water) flows down the back wall (precisely the back wall, since it has the most low temperature, and condensation forms on it). There is a special hole at the bottom of the refrigerator compartment where all this condensate falls. Through it, water is discharged outside and supplied to the evaporator.

The evaporator is a plastic container that is usually installed on the condenser (the motor that circulates the refrigerant through the system). The condenser heats up, transfers heat to the evaporator and the water contained in the evaporator gradually evaporates into the room. A similar refrigerator design is true for everyone modern models. Even old Soviet devices work on the same principle. Nothing has changed since then. Yes, technologies like No Frost have appeared that prevent the formation of frost in chambers, but the principle of removing condensation from the chamber and subsequent evaporation of moisture remains the same and has not changed at all.

Where is the leak coming from?

So, if a refrigerator breaks down and water accumulates under it, then you need to go through the entire chain of condensate drainage and evaporation. There's bound to be a problem somewhere. Note that this is an insignificant problem that can be solved independently. In this case, you most often do not need to call a technician, since there is no technical breakdown here. Of course, first of all it is necessary to determine where exactly the water is flowing from: from under the bottom or directly from the chamber. If there is water in the refrigerator compartment, this means that the condensation formed inside does not drain through the drainage system.

Leak from below

If you don’t understand why the refrigerator is leaking from below, then let us remind you once again that the drained condensate accumulates on the evaporator - a plastic container that is heated by the compressor. A leak from below indicates that this container is overfilled, broken, or crooked. In this case, water can only flow from below, and the inside of the chambers will be dry.

In order to understand exactly why the refrigerator is leaking from below, you need to unfold it and inspect the compressor. It's usually at the back household appliance and is located below. An open container can be adjacent to it, installed either on top or end-to-end (it all depends on the model). Many containers (evaporators) are simply glued to the compressor, and when the glue comes off, the evaporators themselves come off, causing water from the drainage hole to simply drip onto the floor. This is where the leak occurs. Also, the evaporator may simply crack, and through the crack water will flow onto the floor.

In some cases, water appears under the refrigerator due to the fact that the condensate flowing into the evaporator simply does not have time to evaporate. This is possible if the refrigerator is forgotten to be closed or opened too often. This leads to a large amount of moisture entering the chamber, which then condenses in large volumes. In this case, it is enough to simply remove the evaporator (if it is removable) and empty it. If it is tightly glued, you can use a syringe to pump out all the water from it. By the way, an overfilled condensate container may indicate low heating of the compressor. In turn, this indicates a loss of efficiency of its work. However, in this case, you will definitely notice that the device has become weakly cold; the presence of water on the floor will be the last thing that interests you.

In any case, the condensate container (evaporator) is the main reason why water flows from under the refrigerator. There can be no other options. Another thing is when the refrigerator leaks inside.

Internal leak

As you already know, condensation accumulates on the back wall of the chamber and then flows through the drainage hole into the evaporator. This hole may simply become clogged, and then water will not be able to pass through it. Consequently, the container itself for collecting condensate will be empty, and there will simply be nothing to evaporate from there.

If this hole becomes clogged (a parsley leaf can get there, for example), then water will flow into the chamber itself. As a result, there will be a puddle at the very bottom of the refrigerator compartment, which over time will become so large that it will simply overflow.

What to do in this case? First of all, you need to find a drainage hole - look for it on the back wall (all food must first be removed). Found it? Look visually to see if anything is preventing the free flow of water to it? If there is any obstacle, it must be removed. If everything is clean, then there is a possibility of internal blockage. This means that the entire tube must be cleaned. This can be done using water pressure. You can simply pour water from the kettle into it and see if it flows out into the condensate container at the back. Such a flow can move a blockage that the condensate could not move. Still, it flows into the pan in small drops, and not with a powerful pressure.

If you cannot break through the blockage using a stream of water, you can try to remove it using a long wire. Most often this helps solve this problem.

Blockage in the freezer drain hole

The freezers of modern refrigerators also have holes through which excess water is drained to the evaporator. However, there is a difficulty here, since this hole is located in the device body itself, so it cannot be cleaned in the standard way. In this case, you will have to call a specialist.

Inefficient compressor operation

One of the reasons why a refrigerator leaks may be a compressor that has served its useful life and has already lost its former efficiency. This is a device that creates pressure inside the system and circulates the refrigerant in a vicious circle. This refrigerant contracts in one area and absorbs heat and expands in another, which helps release heat. However, if the compressor does not operate efficiently, the pressure in the system will be low. Therefore, the refrigerant will not be able to absorb large amounts of heat and maintain negative temperature in the freezer.

Ice in the freezer may melt more rapidly over time, which may not be noticeable immediately. This will lead to intense accumulation of condensate in the evaporator, and it may even overflow. As a result, the refrigerator will leak. The reason for this will be precisely the inefficient operation of the compressor. Without special knowledge You cannot repair the compressor yourself. It needs to be sent in for repairs. Buying new is not always the case rational decision, since this element is the most expensive in the entire system, and its price can reach 70-80% of the cost of a new refrigerator.

Freon leak

If freon leaks from the system, the compressor circulates air instead. Naturally, air does not have the property of absorbing heat when compressed, so cooling efficiency will decrease as the mass of refrigerant in the system decreases. Over time, the cold will not be enough, the ice will begin to melt and rapidly flow into the container. It will overflow, which will lead to the formation of a puddle.

Therefore, water under the refrigerator can become an indicator of a compressor malfunction and a freon leak.

Old seal

The seal on the refrigerator door prevents air from getting inside. It also allows you to keep the cold inside the chamber. If the seal does not fit tightly in any place, then warm air from the room may enter the refrigerator (or freezer) chamber through the resulting hole. Since its temperature will be higher, this will lead to the formation of condensation, which is why the back wall of the refrigerator leaks. As a result, the condensate formed in large volumes will not have time to evaporate, and this will certainly lead to the formation of a puddle on the floor.

In this case, it is necessary to check the seal along the entire perimeter, and if you can find weakness, then it will have to be replaced. Luckily, it's not expensive, so buying a new one won't break your pocket. In any case, it will be cheaper than if it were due to a compressor malfunction.

Brown liquid

By the way, in some cases, brown liquid flows from the refrigerator. Many users complain about this, mistaking dirt for rust. This may mean that condensation collects various types of dirt along the way. The rust that hints at Brown color, it cannot be, since there is simply nothing to rust: condensation forms on plastic walls and flows through plastic tubes into a container, but they cannot rust.

Conclusion

Now you know why water may leak from the refrigerator. The reasons can be very diverse, so such a problem requires a comprehensive diagnosis. First, check the obvious things, and if you find that everything is fine with the collection and evaporation of condensate, then call a specialist. The problem may be in the technical part.