Sub-Zero · Chicago, IL
Freezer Repair
Frost that keeps coming back, drawers that will not seal and compartments running above setpoint — the defrost circuit and the drain get proved out before anything is replaced.
How it gets described on the phone
- Frost rebuilding on the rear panel within days of being cleared
- Ice cream soft while the display still insists the cabinet is at zero
- A drawer that has to be forced, or one that swings shut on its own
- Meltwater running out of the bottom of the compartment onto the floor
- Evaporator fan audible one minute and silent the next
What gets tested on the visit
- Defrost cycle forced and watched through end to end rather than inferred from the frost pattern
- Defrost heater, terminator and drain tube — the three faults behind frost that returns
- Evaporator fan current draw, and blade clearance whether it is iced or clear
- Shelf temperature logged against the setpoint over a full cycle
- Drawer rails, alignment and gasket compression on drawer-style compartments
- Air duct from the evaporator into the compartment checked for a blockage
Frost that is back within a week of being cleared is not a cleaning problem — it is a defrost fault or a blocked drain, and clearing it by hand only resets the clock on the same call. The other common shape is soft ice cream under a display still insisting on zero: the compartment is warmer than the board believes it is, and the sensor is usually why. Both are answered by forcing the cycle and watching it, which takes minutes.
What it costs
Ranges, before anyone has seen your cabinet
These are the bands this shop works to. The figure you are given on the day is one number covering parts and labour, agreed before a part is ordered — and it does not move afterwards.
| Repair | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Door gasket or seal replacement | $290 – $630 |
| Evaporator or condenser fan motor | $330 – $650 |
| Defrost heater, thermostat or sensor | $260 – $630 |
| Ice maker, water valve or supply line | $280 – $740 |
| Electronic control board | $440 – $980 |
| Compressor or sealed-system repair | $1,440 – $3,160 |
Flat $89 service call covering the visit and full diagnosis, credited against the repair once you approve it.
For scale: a comparable built-in replacement, before installation and cabinetry work runs $11,190 to $22,180. That gap is why a repair is the right answer on most of this stock, and it is also why you will be told plainly on the day it is not.
Reviews
What the callback sounded like
Small drawer unit under the island had stopped defrosting on its own. He got at it without pulling the cabinetry apart, which two other outfits had told me was unavoidable, and it works again.
Serafina T. · Roscoe Village
Drawers had iced along the runners over a cold snap and would no longer sit square. He defrosted it properly rather than forcing anything, then replaced the drain heater that had gone open circuit.
Emmanuel D. · Lincoln Square
Compartment held temperature overnight then climbed every afternoon. He came back at the hour it actually failed rather than making me guess, and caught the defrost timer misbehaving.
Otto V. · Lincoln Square
Booking
A cabinet that is climbing does not wait for Monday
Dispatch is answered around the clock. An overnight call is logged with the fault, the model and the address, and goes to the front of the next working window rather than into the morning queue.
- The line is answered by a person, not a machine
- On site 8:00 am – 8:00 pm, seven days
- Overnight logs are slotted first, not re-queued