How long does a fridge freezer last and when should I replace it?

Cold appliances fail in two categories and the difference is decisive. The sealed system — compressor, condenser, evaporator and the refrigerant in them — is a closed circuit that must be recovered, repaired, evacuated and recharged by someone qualified to handle refrigerant gases. On a domestic appliance that work usually costs more than the appliance is worth. Everything outside that circuit is a component swap, and component swaps are often very good value.

Step by step

1. Establish the age from the rating plate.Inside the fridge compartment, usually on a side wall. It carries the model, serial number and often a date or a date code. Ten years is middle age for a modern appliance; fifteen is a good innings.
2. Work out which category the fault is in before getting a quote.Sealed system faults: the compressor runs but nothing gets cold anywhere, the compressor is silent and hot, there is an oily residue around the pipework, or an engineer says it has lost its gas. Everything else — fans, thermostats, defrost heaters, door seals, hinges, lights, drawers, control boards — is outside the sealed system.
3. Rule out the cheap causes first.Dusty condenser coils, a failed door seal, blocked ventilation and a blocked defrost drain each produce symptoms that look like a dying appliance. All four are owner-fixable in an afternoon and none of them costs much.
4. Get a diagnostic quote from an independent engineer.A call-out charge that is set against the repair if you go ahead is normal. Ask specifically whether the fault is in the sealed system, because that one answer settles the decision.
5. Apply a rough repair-versus-replace threshold.A common rule of thumb is that a repair costing more than half the price of a comparable new appliance is not worth doing on an appliance already past half its expected life. Adjust for how well the rest of it is holding up.
6. Check whether parts are still available.UK and EU rules require manufacturers to make key parts available for a period after a model is discontinued — thermostats, door seals, hinges, handles and shelving among them. Check availability before paying for a diagnosis on a very old appliance.
7. Put the energy saving in perspective.Take the difference in annual kWh between yours and a replacement, multiply by your unit rate, and divide the purchase price by that. If the payback runs beyond about a decade, the energy argument is not carrying the decision — the reliability argument has to.
8. Dispose of the old appliance legally.Fridges and freezers contain refrigerant and insulating gases that must be recovered by a licensed facility. Retailers must take the old one away when delivering a replacement, and councils collect them. Fly-tipping a fridge is an offence and the gases matter.

Tips

• A door seal is one of the cheapest parts on the appliance and one of the biggest influences on how hard it works. Replacing a tired seal on an eight-year-old fridge is almost always worth it.
• Independent appliance engineers are usually much cheaper than manufacturer call-outs and often carry the common parts on the van.
• Keep the manual and the model number somewhere findable. Half the difficulty of sourcing a part is identifying the exact variant.

Common mistakes

• Replacing an appliance because it is a certain age — Age is a poor predictor on its own. A well-maintained twelve-year-old appliance with clean coils and good seals can outlast a neglected six-year-old one. The fault, not the year, is what decides it.
• Paying for a compressor replacement on a mid-range domestic appliance — The labour, the refrigerant recovery and the recharge usually add up to more than a new appliance costs, and the rest of the machine is the same age as the part that just failed.

Keeping on top of it

• Vacuum the condenser coils at the back or underneath (Annually)
• Check and clean the door seals, and run the paper test (Every 6 months)
• Clear the fridge drain hole at the back of the cabinet floor (Every 6 months)
• Defrost a static freezer before the ice reaches 5mm (Annually, or as needed)
• Check the temperature with a thermometer, fridge and freezer (Every 6 months)
• Check the appliance is level and the doors self-close (Annually)

Questions people ask