How to Reset a Refrigerator: Samsung, LG, Whirlpool, GE

To reset a refrigerator, you almost always cut the power, wait a minute or two and turn it back on. Most refrigerators have no reset button for the whole unit; a button labeled reset usually clears something smaller, such as the water filter light. A power cycle can clear a frozen display or a temporary error code, but it does not fix a failed part, so if the problem comes back, the reset has told you something useful.

Is there a refrigerator reset button?

Usually not for the whole refrigerator. What you will find is a Filter Reset or Water Filter button that clears the filter reminder, a test or reset button on some ice makers, and on Samsung Family Hub models, a power switch inside the top of the right door that reboots the screen. The reset for the refrigerator itself is a power cycle.

How to reset a refrigerator: the power cycle

1. Write down any code first. Take a photo of the display. A code that comes back after the reset is the most useful thing you can tell a technician.
2. Unplug it, or switch off its breaker. Pulling a refrigerator out to reach the plug can kink the water line, so the breaker is often easier.
3. Wait. One to two minutes covers most brands; the manufacturers' own times run from 30 seconds to 2 minutes, and the brand guides below have each one.
4. Restore power, straight from the wall. LG says to plug the refrigerator directly into an outlet, not a power strip or multiple socket, and that a full restart can take up to 5 minutes.
5. Keep the doors closed and check the display. Make sure the temperature settings are where you left them and that no mode was switched on.
6. Give it time. Samsung says that in most cases, three hours is enough to see the temperature start to drop.

Brand reset steps

Each brand has its own wait time, button names and quirks. Rather than repeat them here, our brand guides keep them in one place:

• Samsung refrigerator reset steps, including the self-test that runs as it reboots.
• LG refrigerator reset steps, including how to bring up a stored error code.
• Whirlpool refrigerator reset steps, including the check that cooling is turned back on.

For GE refrigerators, GE says that if the refrigerator has just been serviced and is stuck in diagnostic mode, disconnecting power for 30 seconds should reset the control panel. See also our Samsung, LG and Whirlpool brand pages.

Why it does not start cooling right away

After a short power interruption, the compressor may not restart the instant power returns. GE explains that the compressor overload cycles on and off, while the compressor itself waits, until the refrigerant system equalizes; then the compressor starts and refrigeration resumes on its own, with no need to cycle the power again.

Patience matters after a setting change, too. Samsung says it can take up to 4 hours for the display to show the temperature you set and up to 28 hours for the refrigerator to reach it, if the doors stay closed.

If the lights work but nothing gets cold after several hours, check for demo mode below, then see why is my fridge not cooling.

Demo mode: lights on, no cooling

Most brands have a showroom or demo mode that turns off cooling while leaving the lights and display working, and it can be switched on by accident. The signs differ by brand:

• Samsung shows OF OF, O FF, OFF OFF or scrolling temperature bars, which Samsung calls Cooling Off mode.
• LG shows O F F; LG's display mode disables all cooling in both sections.
• Whirlpool calls it Showroom or Demo mode, and some models can also have cooling switched off with a COOLING OFF message.
• GE lists demo mode among the reasons a refrigerator does not run or cool.

The steps to turn it off are in the brand guides above, or in your owner's manual. Do not confuse demo mode with Sabbath mode: on Whirlpool models with Sabbath mode, ice and water will not dispense, but that mode is not what stops the cooling.

Resetting the water filter light

On most models, the filter light does not clear itself when you install a new filter; you reset it from the control panel, usually by holding Filter Reset or Water Filter for about 3 seconds. Some models use a two-button combination instead, which the Whirlpool guide lists by model. After any filter change, flush the air out of the lines; our guide to a refrigerator water dispenser not working has each brand's routine.

Resetting the ice maker

Many ice makers have their own test or reset button, and the steps vary more than anything else on this list. Our guide to an ice maker not making ice covers the Samsung, Whirlpool, LG and Frigidaire procedures.

When a reset does not fix it

If the same code, the same warm fridge or the same dead display comes back after a reset, stop resetting. GE recommends leaving a refrigerator that needs service plugged in so the symptoms do not disappear before the technician sees them. A part has usually failed:

• Start relay or overload. A click from the bottom back, then silence, and no cooling.
• Evaporator or condenser fan motor. The compressor runs but the refrigerator stays warm.
• Defrost parts. Frost building on the freezer's back wall.
• Temperature sensor. Temperatures that do not match the settings.
• Control board. A display that stays blank or keeps resetting. We test the cheaper parts first.

That is the point to book a refrigerator repair visit and describe what you saw before and after the reset.

What it costs in Atlanta

The diagnostic visit is $80, and it is waived when you approve the repair. Repairs start at $180 labor plus parts, quoted in writing before any work begins. On standard brands, most refrigerator repairs run $250 to $500 in total; fans, defrost parts and relays sit at the low end and control boards at the high end. See the typical totals on our pricing page. Every repair carries our 60-day parts-and-labor warranty.

Schedule a visit or read about our refrigerator repair service. Prefer to talk? Call (470) 778-4087.