Hot and cold spots in refrigerator/freezer

[JAZ]

The combination fridge/freezer in my apartment is pretty good -- certainly better than in previous kitchens I've had. (It's a Whirlpool, freezer on top, auto ice and defrost in the freezer.)

Recently, though, I noticed something strange. First, I put my ice cream canister in the freezer overnight and the next day, it still wasn't frozen. I'd frozen the canister several times before that, and before it was always solid after a night in the freezer. Then, the next day, I put two ice cube trays side by side at the same time, and a few hours later, one was frozen almost solid while the other was still mostly liquid. It occurred to me that I'd put the canister in the same spot as the unfrozen ice cube tray. Since then, I've noticed that occasionally (but not always), that spot seems to be warmer than the rest of the freezer.

Also, and I have no idea if this is related or not, my refrigerator has a really cold spot in the back of the center shelf. I inadvertently pushed a bottle of ginger ale back there and kind of forgot about it for a week or so. Yesterday, I went to get it to make a cocktail, and found that it had frozen and burst, spewing sticky ginger goo all over the damn fridge. An old jar of salad dressing next to it had frozen as well, but since it wasn't full, it didn't break.

Is this normal? I know that frost-free freezers cycle off and on; is the warm spot in the freezer just related to that, or is it something I should call maintenance about?

And is the fridge problem related, or just a coincidence? Are temperature zones common in refrigerators?

[snowangel]

Janet, I don't think you are alone. We have an electric fridge at home (side by side), and I notice that the stuff on the left side of the fridge (up against the freezer side) is always colder.

At our cabin, we have a Servel gas fridge, and the left side of the freezer is always much colder (actually freezes stuff!), and the back of the top shelf of the fridge is much colder than the rest of the fridge. Note: with a Servel that there is no compressor.

I do know that both fridges and freezers seem to work better when they are full.

[Toliver]

And is the fridge problem related, or just a coincidence? Are temperature zones common in refrigerators?

I can't speak to the freezer hot & cold spots problem, but refrigerator hot and cold spots are a known issue. For example, if you want a frozen item to defrost more quickly (but safely), they say you should put it on the bottom shelf because it's usually the warmest spot in the fridge.

I have a friend who uses a 5th wheel for camping and she always uses a small battery operated fan in the camper's fridge to help circulate the cool air more evenly. I suppose you could do the same with a household fridge if you were really concerned about getting rid of hot spots.