Sweating Frame Between Freezer and Cabinet Side

Where the water shows, and what that says

Any surface colder than the dew point of the air around it collects water. On a built-in column, the face frame round the door opening and the cabinet edge next to it sit right where a leaking seal lets freezer air out. So the pattern of the water is the first measurement.

• Beads down one side only, top to bottom, point to that side of the door.
• Beads concentrated near a top corner fit a door that has dropped at the handle side.
• Water on the unit and on everything else in the kitchen during heavy cooking is the room air, and it clears as the air dries.

What Sub-Zero says about it

The Designer guide deals with condensation inside the unit, and apart from a clean condenser its checks are all at the door: closing properly, not left ajar, gasket free of rips or tears. For outside surfaces, a guide Sub-Zero wrote for an earlier built-in line notes that some condensation can appear in high humidity and goes when the humidity drops, provided the doors close and seal; if it persists, that guide sends the owner to service. We read a sweating frame the same way. Persistent water on one side is a door fault until the strip test says otherwise.

Beside another column

When the freezer stands next to a column refrigerator, Sub-Zero calls for its dual installation kit or, failing that, a filler strip at least 2 inches wide between the units. Water on that strip is traced on both doors, since either seal can be the one leaking cold air into the gap.

Why the wood matters

Custom panels are meant to be finished on every face, Sub-Zero says, since the back and edges are visible with the door open. That finish is also what stands between the wood and the water on the frame beside it. A panel edge wet day after day can swell or move, so we dry the source first and judge the panel after.