Replacing the seal gasket on refrigerators or freezer doors is easy, cheap and never takes much time. The following will inform you of how to see whether you need a new gasket, and how to buy a new gasket.

The first thing we need to determine is whether this repair is necessary. No special tools or meters are required to finish this step. Just a simple piece of paper and dollar bill will do. You open the freezer door and then shut the piece of paper inside the door seal. Does the paper slide out easily or just tear in half? If the paper slides out easily, it is likely that you need to make the repair. Otherwise, rubber gaskets on the door are good enough to work.

Besides, moisture on the seal and evidence of black mold are also signs of the need to replace the gasket. With a significant difference in temperatures in and out of the unit, a leak will lead to condensation on the seal. The condensation will become a place for mold to grow, thus form the little black speckles in and around the leaky seal.

Before we start replacement of the gasket, we need a new piston seal gasket. This won’t be too difficult. You can buy the gasket online or in a shop in your community. But before you buy a new one, you should first check the identifying information of your refrigerator. The make, model and other appliance information should be easy to locate in your owner’s manual or on the unit’s rating plate if you don’t have the original owner’s manual. This rating plate will be located in the jamb of your refrigerator door or on the interior wall of one of the refrigerator’s cabinets.

Once you’ve obtained this information, you will be able to order a new hydraulic seal gasket from the original maker or obtain a universal type gasket from a local hardware or appliance store. The dimensions of your refrigerator may be a good bit of information to have if ordering something other than an exact replacement from the manufacturer.