Fridge gas / chemical smell - leak?

Vexr · 26 Jun 2019 at 18:39

I bought a used fridge a couple of days ago. It seems to work and cool just fine. It also runs nice and quietly.

The problem is there seems to be a chemical smell to it, which doesn't appear to be dissipating. It's detectable outside the unit, but it seems to be a tad more concentrated in the fridge itself. I'm only putting sealed items like bottles/cans/jars in it at the moment, and when I remove them the chemical smell lingers on them too.

The unit is about 10 years old. Unfortunately I don't have a particularly wide palette when it comes to identifying chemical smells. Closest I could say is its like a much more subtle but evil version of a chlorine smell, so probably nothing like chlorine technically. The previous owner kept it in a shed rather than a kitchen, if that could have something to do with it...

LuckyBenski · 26 Jun 2019 at 19:06

Maybe it's been cleaned with bleach? Swimming pools smell?

RJC · 26 Jun 2019 at 19:22

Is there a data plate on the fridge anywhere?

Some Fridges were absorption style.

Vexr · 26 Jun 2019 at 19:42

RJC said:
Is there a data plate on the fridge anywhere?

Some Fridges were absorption style.

All the info on the plate:

Can't see much online about the model (Beko LSA 426 W)

LuckyBenski said:
Maybe it's been cleaned with bleach? Swimming pools smell?

That would certainly be a best case scenario to be hoped for...

RJC · 26 Jun 2019 at 20:52

This is a normal Fridge - not the absorption style.

The smell must be from as said previously by cleaning, wonder if the condenste drain migt of been cleaned with a chemical / bleach which was not cleared through properly.

Vexr · 26 Jun 2019 at 21:00

RJC said:
This is a normal Fridge - not the absorption style.

The smell must be from as said previously by cleaning, wonder if the condenste drain migt of been cleaned with a chemical / bleach which was not cleared through properly.

So specifically, is ammonia the thing that can be ruled out with it being a normal fridge? I must confess to not precisely knowing what that smells like, and that would be the most alarming possibility. I understand other refrigerants are odourless so I wouldn't be able to sense a leak except for the physiological effects on myself and the fridge not cooling... Is that right? I know very little about fridges other than what I've tried to google in the last day or so.

RJC · 26 Jun 2019 at 21:56

Vexr said:
So specifically, is ammonia the thing that can be ruled out with it being a normal fridge? I must confess to not precisely knowing what that smells like, and that would be the most alarming possibility. I understand other refrigerants are odourless so I wouldn't be able to sense a leak except for the physiological effects on myself and the fridge not cooling... Is that right? I know very little about fridges other than what I've tried to google in the last day or so.

You can rule out Ammonia (you soon know - eyes & throat start hurting and you have trouble breathing used to work with it on a site I looked after)
Your fridge runs on R 600 a which is a Iso-Butane refrigerant and the amount that it holds it would have leaked out in no time at all and the fridge will stop working as you mentioned.

RJC · 26 Jun 2019 at 21:58

Quick question is the condenser visible on the rear of the fridge?

Vexr · 26 Jun 2019 at 22:10

RJC said:
You can rule out Ammonia (you soon know - eyes & throat start hurting and you have trouble breathing used to work with it on a site I looked after)
Your fridge runs on R 600 a which is a Iso-Butane refrigerant and the amount that it holds it would have leaked out in no time at all and the fridge will stop working as you mentioned.

That sounds reassuring, thanks for the explanation.

RJC said:
Quick question is the condenser visible on the rear of the fridge?

Yes, seems the condenser coils are on the rear and are lukewarm... how come you ask?

RJC · 26 Jun 2019 at 22:29

Just wondered if they cleaned the condenser and did not clean the residue off and where this is getting warm emitting the smell.

Might be worth giving the fridge a once over with a damp cloth.

Vexr · 26 Jun 2019 at 22:41

Ah okay, yes sounds worth doing. In the meantime I've stuck a bowl of bicarb of soda in the fridge for odour absorbing properties - bit of a stab in the dark, but all I've got time for tonight as need to hit the hay. Cheers for all your help.

balls · 27 Jun 2019 at 08:26

If there's a small drain at the back - might be worth trying to syringe some very hot water down it

Sasahara · 27 Jun 2019 at 13:06

Fridges tend to smell if you leave them closed for long periods of time when not in use. Most manuals will tell you to leave the door open a crack.

So could be this.

https://homeguides.sfgate.com/remove-smell-unplugged-fridge-41719.html

Vexr · 28 Jun 2019 at 23:44

Time is rolling on and the fridge still seems to be generating its unpleasant chemical odour. I haven't got around to trying the measures suggested above though, and it's in a space that gets very little ventilation.

A possible reassuring hint is I left the vegetable crisper drawer out of the fridge since getting it up and running, yet it still has a very very faint whiff of the same odour that affects the rest of the unit.

Got a feeling this thing just wants hosing down (which i'm guessing isn't recommended for a fridge).

kitfit1 · 29 Jun 2019 at 07:01

A 10 year old fridge, that might have stood unused for some time, possibly with the door closed after it was last cleaned ?
I would turn the fridge off and leave it with the door open for 24 hours. Then use isopropyl alcohol to clean the entire inside of the fridge including all the trays. Let the alcohol evaporate completely then turn the fridge back on.
If the chemical odour is still present, you can then rule out the inside of the fridge as the cause.