Error codes · Electrolux · Refrigerators

Electrolux refrigerator error codes: a door left open, a power blip, or the one fan behind the freezer wall.

An Electrolux refrigerator is built on the control that runs Frigidaire's, so the display talks the same way — a two-letter pair in each temperature window, SY in one and the fault in the other, or OP and SH naming a sensor. Most of what people call about is a state rather than a fault: a high-temperature alarm after a door stood open, the power-failure light, Sabbath mode, the cooling switched off. Find the pair below; the fan, sensor and board codes are a technician's, the rest clear at home.

Covers: 2015-and-newer French-door (EI23BC, EI28BS, ERMC2295, ERFC2393) and side-by-side (EI23CS, ERSC2322) refrigerators, and the EI32AR and EI32AF columns — all built on the same control as the Frigidaire line.

Electrolux · First

Before you clear it

Electrolux prints E codes (E11, E21, E41); the service mode reads the history back.

1

The code shows in the two temperature windows: SY on one side and CE, CF or EF on the other; OP or SH on one side names an open or a shorted sensor, and the window it sits in says which section. H, HI, PF, Sb and OFF are states, not faults.

2

The reset: press Alarm Reset (or Clear Alerts) once for a state. For a code, unplug the refrigerator — or switch its breaker off — for 30 seconds and plug it back in. A fault code that comes straight back is real.

3

The door alarm chimes after a door has stood open about 5 minutes; the high-temperature alarm follows a long open door or an outage once the freezer passes 26°F or the fresh-food side passes 55°F. Both clear by themselves once the box is cold again.

4

The code history and the diagnostic are a technician's read on this control; there is no published owner mode. The reset above is the only one the use-and-care gives.

5

The model and serial plate is on the inside wall of the fresh-food section, up high on the left or the right, or on the ceiling just inside the door. Every warranty call starts with those two numbers.

Section 1 of 2

States, not faults

A chime with no code is the door alarm — a door open past about 5 minutes, or a bin, a jar or a bag holding it off the seal. It stops when the door seats.

H#1

Also printed as HI · H1

Fix at home
Code

High temperature alarm

What it means

Not a fault by itself. The freezer went above 26°F or the fresh-food section above 55°F for more than an hour — a door left open, a long outage, or a box still pulling down after it was first plugged in.

Check first
  1. Every door and drawer is shut and nothing inside holds one open — a bag, a shelf pushed out, a bin not seated.
  2. The gaskets seal: shut a dollar bill in the door and pull; it should drag all the way round.
  3. The box is cooling: a hand on the back wall of the freezer feels cold, and the fan runs when the door switch is pressed in.
  4. A refrigerator just installed or just moved needs 24 hours to reach temperature; the alarm clears on its own.
The fix

Press Alarm Reset to mute it; it stays lit until the section is back in range, then goes out by itself. A box cold at the back wall and warm up front is airflow — pull the box out and let the air through behind it. A box that never gets cold with the doors shut is a fault, not a state — see SY EF, or a sealed-system call.

PF#2
Fix at home
Code

Power failure

What it means

Not a fault. The power went out while the refrigerator was running; the light or the letters stay on so you know the food sat warm for a while.

Check first
  1. Press Alarm Reset (or Set) once the power is back. After a long outage the high-temperature alarm shows too — it clears once the box is cold again.
The fix

Nothing to fix. PF with no outage is a plug loose at the wall or a breaker that is tripping — look at the cord at the outlet.

OFF#3

Also printed as OF F · OFF OFF

Fix at home
Code

Cooling is switched off

What it means

Not a fault. The lights and the panel work and nothing cools — the cooling system has been turned off from the panel, the way a store floor shows the controls, or by a key held by accident.

Check first
  1. The display reads OFF where the temperatures should be, and the box is warm with the lights on.
The fix

Press and hold the key the panel marks for cooling On/Off (on most IQ-Touch panels the On/Off key, held about 3 seconds) until the temperatures come back and the compressor starts. Give it 24 hours to reach temperature.

Sb#4

Also printed as SB · SB SB

Fix at home
Code

Sabbath mode

What it means

Not a fault. The display shows Sb and the lights, the dispenser and the tones are off; cooling continues and the high-temperature alarm stays armed.

Check first
  1. Press and hold the – (minus) key and the Temp °F/°C key together for 5 seconds; the display returns to the temperatures.
The fix

The refrigerator is back to normal. On a panel laid out differently, the use-and-care names the two keys — held 5 seconds either way.

Filter#5

Also printed as Replace Filter · Change Filter

Fix at home
Code

Water or air filter reminder

What it means

Not a fault. The water filter light comes on at about six months, and the air filter light at about six months, on a timer — not on a measurement of the filter.

Check first
  1. Replace the filter (the plate inside the fresh-food section names the type), then press and hold the Filter Reset key — Water Filter or Air Filter, the panel prints which — for 3 seconds until the light goes out.
The fix

The light goes out. A dispenser that trickles after a new water filter has air in the line — run a gallon through it.

Section 2 of 2

Fault codes

These five are the maker's own list of codes that mean a service call — the checks are what to rule out before you make it.

SY EF#6

Also printed as 5Y EF · SY EF2

Service call
Code

Evaporator fan fault

What it means

The control drove the evaporator fan — the fan behind the freezer's back wall that moves cold air to both sections — and got no feedback. The freezer may still feel cold while the fresh-food side creeps up.

Check first
  1. With the freezer door open, press the door switch in and listen for the fan behind the back wall; a fan that never runs, or grinds, is the fan.
  2. Frost on the back wall means the fan is iced in — the defrost system failed first.
  3. Unplug the refrigerator for 30 seconds, plug it in and wait 10 minutes for the fan to be called again.
The fix

A fan that will not run, or runs and the code returns, is the evaporator fan motor or its harness — a technician's part behind the freezer panel. A fan iced in is the defrost heater, the defrost thermostat or the control, the same call.

Stop & call

SY EF that comes back after a reset is a service call. Keep the doors shut and move frozen food to a cooler if the freezer is warming; on a machine under warranty it is a warranty service call.

SY CE#7
Service call
Code

Communication error

What it means

The display board and the main control board stopped talking to each other.

Check first
  1. Unplug the refrigerator for 5 full minutes, plug it back in and give the display a minute to wake.
The fix

A code that returns is one of the two boards or the harness between them — a technician's part. The box often keeps cooling meanwhile; feel the freezer's back wall by hand.

Stop & call

SY CE after a five-minute unplug is a service call. Say whether the refrigerator is still cooling; on a machine under warranty it is a warranty service call.

SY CF#8
Service call
Code

Communication failure

What it means

The main control reached for the display board, or a sensor, and got nothing back. It is SY CE's family, read from the other side.

Check first
  1. Unplug the refrigerator for 5 full minutes and plug it back in.
The fix

SY CF that returns is a board or the harness — a technician's part. Nothing to reach at home.

Stop & call

SY CF after a reset is a service call. On a machine under warranty it is a warranty service call.

OP#9
Service call
Code

Sensor open

What it means

A temperature sensor reads open — the control sees no sensor at all. OP in the freezer window is the freezer sensor; OP in the fresh-food window is the fresh-food sensor.

Check first
  1. Unplug the refrigerator for 30 seconds and plug it back in. A sensor code that stays gone was a blip in the reading.
The fix

OP that returns is the thermistor named by its window, or its wiring — a technician's part. Until it is replaced the control runs that section on a guess, so keep the doors shut.

Stop & call

OP after a reset is a service call. Say which window printed it; on a machine under warranty it is a warranty service call.

SH#10
Service call
Code

Sensor shorted

What it means

A temperature sensor reads shorted. SH in the freezer window is the freezer sensor; SH in the fresh-food window is the fresh-food sensor.

Check first
  1. Unplug the refrigerator for 30 seconds and plug it back in.
The fix

SH that returns is the thermistor named by its window — a technician's part. The section may run too cold or too warm until it is replaced.

Stop & call

SH after a reset is a service call. Say which window printed it; on a machine under warranty it is a warranty service call.

Warranty · When to file

When it's a warranty call

Every unit leaves with the manufacturer's full factory warranty. The codes below name a part inside the machine — once the checks have ruled out the install, the power and the hoses, call Electrolux's line with the model and serial, and text us if you want a hand with the claim.

All units are surplus inventory (open box, cancelled order, customer return, overstock, or minor scratch & dent). Every unit includes the manufacturer's full factory warranty. Please inspect thoroughly in person before purchasing — cosmetic imperfections or missing accessories are possible.

Still stuck?

Text us the model number and what it's doing — we'll point you at the next step.

A fix, a part, or a warranty call — the plate's model and serial plus one line about the symptom is all it takes to tell which.

These pages are educational. Every appliance is a little different — follow the manufacturer's manual and local code, and leave gas, water heater and 240V work to a licensed installer.