Fridgidaire FRT21H8CQ2 top freezer; water at bottom

[frigfrank]

Water at inside bottom. Need directions to find defrost timer and heater.

How do I get to interior coils. How do I take the inside shroud off to view evaporator coils etc. It looks like one molded piece. Where are removal screws?

No water in bottom pan. drain tube looks okay, in back, bottom.

Will replacing defrost timer and heater solve this? Is it worth it on a more than 5 year old refrigerator?

FRT21H8CQ2
 

[tgoods]

Remove the control box from the ceiling of the refrigerator.  In the back end of the control box you'll probably find the drain hole gunked up.  Clean it out. If the clog is in the tube that runs through the back wall, squirt some hot water down it to clear it.

[haroldsappliance]

Remove back panel, a couple screws. Drain hole should be somewhere in the middle. I usually work some hot water back and forth with a turkey baster. When it's clear, blow it out with a small hose, and then run some more hot water. Done.

[tgoods]

This refrigerator doesn't have a small drain hole. It has a drain opening that also serves as the air return.  It will never plug with ice.  There was a design flaw with some of these but I can't seem to find the service bulletin for it.  The drain funnel was too short, causing the defrost water to drip from the control box rather than go down the drain.  The official fix is to replace the funnel.  There are two unofficial fixes that both work well.  Seal between the incoming and return vents with a bead of permagum.  The second fix is to trim away some of the styrofoam insulation until the funnel extends about 1/4" past the insulation. This was an old bulletin so if your fridge is less than 10 years old, it probably doesn't have this flaw.

[haroldsappliance]

Tgoods is correct. What is happening is the drain water is bleeding over into the air duct area. I run a thick line of silicone around the air duct side. This will solve the problem.

[frigfrank]

Going to try that, thanks!

[tgoods]

I ran into one just today. This was an 11 year old fridge in an apartment.  Makes me wonder if it just started leaking or it always leaked and previous residents ignored it. I used to just do the sealant trick but one day I didn't have any permagum or food-safe silicone so I tried removing styrofoam from around the funnel.  It seems to work well, sealant is probably a little easier.  I didn't think to take a before pic but here's the after: