SaferProducts incident

Failure type

Fire / ignition

Incident narrative

SaferProducts.gov consumer incident report 20170719-872CE-2147398833. Severity: Incident, No Injury. Product: Frigidaire PLRS267ZA B6 (Frigidaire Gallery side by side refrigerator/freezer, stainless steel, model # PLRS267ZAB6). Incident: Frigidaire Gallery side by side refrigerator/freezer, model PLRS267AZ B6 purchased 6/5/2002. Refrigerator side had stopped cooling recently (temperature regulation was off). Unusual noises had been noticed for a few weeks. While cleaning out the refrigerator, it was found that plastic trim from the backside of the bottom glass tray had become dislodged and fallen into an opening in the left side of the refrigerator (left side when facing the refrigerator) towards the bottom of the box. This opening is designed to facilitate airflow from the freezer which cools the refrigerator side. Because all the drawers and shelf items were in the refrigerator, this hole and the trim that fell into it could not be seen until we began cleaning. It was found that the end of the trim was melted and charred so it may have come in contact with electronics in the refrigerator or the condenser fan. This is clearly a fire hazard and we are fortunate the refrigerator did not catch on fire. This could certainly explain why the refrigerator side of the unit was not cooling properly. While this is probably a rare occurrence, it still seems that this vent/hole should have had some kind of screen over it to prevent things falling into it. What if a jar or other container had fallen in? Or liquids leaked into it? Either way, it was a very dangerous situation that could have led to property damage or loss of life due to fire.