What to do when a fridge reading is too warm

Step 1: check the reading is real

• Probe a sample of food or a container of water, not the air by the door.
• Check your probe works: it should read close to 0 °C in iced water.
• Was the door just opened, or a delivery just loaded? Wait 15 to 20 minutes and check again.
• Is the fridge in a defrost cycle? Check the display and manual.

Step 2: work out how long it’s been warm

Look at the last reading in your log. If the morning reading was fine and it’s now warm, the problem started since then. GOV.UK guidance is that food can be out of the fridge for up to 4 hours; food out for longer should be thrown away. Use the same thinking for food that’s been in a fridge running warm.

If you don’t know how long it’s been warm, treat it as the worst case.

Step 3: protect the food

• Move high-risk food (cooked meats, dairy, ready-to-eat food, cream cakes) into a working fridge.
• Throw away anything that’s been above 8 °C for too long, or that you can’t be sure about.
• Don’t use the faulty fridge until it’s fixed and back at temperature.

Step 4: find the cause

• Door left open, or a seal that doesn’t close properly
• Overloaded shelves blocking the air flow
• Hot food put in before it had cooled
• Dust on the condenser, or a blocked vent
• A fridge in a hot spot, next to the oven
• A fault that needs an engineer

Step 5: write it down

Record the reading, the time, what you did with the food, and what you did about the fridge. A clear note next to a warm reading shows an inspector your checks work. A warm reading with nothing beside it shows the opposite.