my refrigerator has a sour smell coming from it i have cleaned defrosted and disinfected it but the smell is still there any idea whats causing this

jackie, September 2006

i have cleaned my fridge,then i put a lime in the fridge because they are meant to suck up the smell and put a cotton bud through the hole in my fridge and it came out red(i think its blood) and i looked at the back of my fridge and there was nothing there but i thought there was a dead animal or something because of the blood, but there was nothing like that, it even didnt smell at the back of my fridge.

snoppz569, January 2010

My fridge has suddenlybecome very smelly. The smell is fishy altho there was no fish in it. I have fully cleaned it out (twice), cleaned and disinfected the defrost drain, and left bicarb, vinegar and lemon in it to absorb the smell.
I have recently had a number of electricity outages plus a power surge that burnt out a number of appliances. Is it possible something reacted with the plastics in the fridge interior?
Please help as I cannot stand the smell and can't afford a new fridge!

star2759, December 2008

There should be a drainage hole inside your refrigerator. This is to allow run-off from the freezer.
This run-off normally drains onto a dish on top of the compressor and evaporates so it does not reach the floor.
This drainage hole is usually located dead centre of the fridge on the rear wall somewhere below the freezer unit and goes through the fridge casing.
Check that the drainage hole is not blocked by using a cotton-bud or Q-tip to clean it out.
Leave an open box of Bicarbonate of Soda inside the fridge to prevent odours.

Big Softy, September 2006