Defrosting A Freezer - Having Troubles - Help!

[joko]

I have a supposedly frosyt free freezer - electrolux ER2650B

Now and again it stops keeping stuff cold & the freezer thaws out - the back stuff seems to stay hard but the stuff at the front goes soft.

last time this happened, i took everything out & put a fan heater in front of it - & it started working properly again

cold air does come out of the freezer part - but its like the freezer is very cold fridge cold & the fridge is a little bit under room temp

Now my question is - is it better - for the food - if i just turn it off & keep doors shut for a good while, or to empty it & use heat for a quicker time?

its not that cold today so the stuff will not be kept pretty cool in the kitchen.

(there is no meat or fish in there, only veggie food & veg etc so im not too worried about safety with refreezing it. i will obviously check everything anyway.

the trouble is the stuff at the back that is still frozen will thaw even more & if the thawing of the unit doesnt work, it will all be just chilled, nothing will be at a frozen state

i dont know how long it will take the stuff at the back to go soft as the freezer is still releasing icy air into it.

Thanks :)

instructions are no help.

[jno]

I don't suppose the seal on the door has failed? If it's still producing cold air at the back, it should stay in the freezer.

[barry1010]

Is it a freezer or a fridge freezer?
Check the seals are free of debris and clean.
Check there is absolutely nothing at the back of the drawers stopping them going fully back - even a few milimetres can stop the door shutting fully.

I would take the opportunity to fully empty it, defrost it and give it a darned good clean.

[joko]

thanks all - i checked the seal all round & mostly it seems ok, using my hand & feeling for cold air - except for about a 4 inch long bit along the bottom where i can feel the air quite strongly
the gap is about half a cm i think
it looks like that bit of the seal has sort of shrivelled or retracted & is uneven & out of shape
does anyone know if it can be reshapen?
'plumped out' again.
ive been reading about vaseline on the seals, which im going to try but its not even touching the other side so the gap will still be there.

any ideas?
thanks :)