I hope somoene in this group can help me out. I have a Kenmore side by side referigerator and every few months. i purchased it back on 2002. on the freezer side, bottom, where the condenser is, get all iced up, and because of this, the referigerator gets warm. the referigerator seems t o be running at all time and never stops. i guess this is why it gets freezed up. does anyone know what i would need to do, i have many serivce techs came and they can not fixed the problem.
please advise, what parts may be defective and should be replaced. any opionts would be great!
While it may be many things, I suspect it is going to require some materials and tools you are not likely to have around. You are likely to have the need to search for a very small leak, fix it and adjust the refrigerant charge.
Either the timer has malfunctioned or the heating element has gone open or both. Replace the timer first (either inside freezer compartment on wall, or built into ice maker or mounted inside bottom of fridge depending on model) cause it is easier to get at and cheaper to buy.
If that dosen't work, then it is most likely the heather element, these are usually mounted behind the first wall inside the freezer compartment and will require complete defrost and disassembly to get to it. If you have a multimeter, you can test the heater element by measuring its resistance (it should not be open).
The power to run the timer is often delivered by passing it through the heater element first so it is sometimes tricky to know which failed. However, in some models, if the heater goes, the whole thing just quits.
Check the timer first, it's the most likely suspect. It turns the heater on periodically to melt the frost and if not functioning will never turn on the heater. Most timers have a hole where you can manually advance its clock wheel, if you turn this with a screwdriver and get the heater to come on, then it definately is only the timer. Don't leave it on though or you will cook the food. When the heater is running the compressor should be disabled (by a switch in the timer) and not running at the same time.
my sears kenmore model number is 106.53552201, it is a side by side referigerator. it has an electronic control board. i can not find the defrost timer. does anyone know where it is ?
It is the evaporter coil inside the freezer that is icing up, not the condeser like i mentioned previously. i guess this restricts the air flow to the referigerator side. strange, when i defrost the freezer, eveything comes back to normal, but after about 3 months, it ices up again.
i ordered the following parts to see if this helps.
2 THERMISTOR 1 for the referigerator and 1 for the freezer
1 bimetal defroster (defrost terminator)
i'll see what happens. sure hates to trash a 2.5 year old referigerator.
Thank you Jeff! it is frosting. i wait to see if my other parts fails, than i will go and purchase the control board. quite expensive. does anyone know how to test the control board to see if it can turn on and off the defroster?
Your compressor works OK. Your sensors work too except the iceover gives them false readings. The cold air transfer duct between the freezer compartment to the fridge compartment is likely iced up and blocked.
The easiest fix is to remove all your foodstuffs from the fridge and put them in you picnic cooler. Switch off the power and leave the doors open overnight. This will let the ice in the cold air transfer duct thaw. The duct is within the fridge's wall insulation and won't thaw otherwise. There is as much as a mugfull of water. I have to do this two to three times a year because I have too little food in the fridge (live alone) and there isn't enough thermal mass to buffer the temperature when I open the frisge door.
It's more of eliminating things....if the defrost thermostat and defrost heater ohm ok when testing, the controlling part(s) are assumed at fault and replaced.
today i received the parts 2 thermistor and 1 bimetal-deforster sears part 2188819 and 2188824. i am just wondering, do i need some type of adhesive to attach the bimetal-defroster? is the adhesive necessary and what type is recommended? brand, name ?
does it matter where i clip the bi-metal defroster on the evaporater coil tubing. i remove the original bi-metal defroster and try to clip it on it's original position, but the one I got, does not fit. it seems like the diameter is a bit bigger, so i moved it to another part of the tubing.. it is the same part, part from the manual. just the cliping is designed differently. hope that's ok.
according to
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it states "Defrost thermostat, clip-on (The manufacturer has replaced part number 2196155 with this item, part number 2188824.)" don't know if this matters.
i have included a picture of how it should look like and how it is redesigned now.
original part looks like this:
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new design clip look like this. this will not fit in the same position.
Thanx for the reply, but why does this bi-metal needs to be placed as close to the original position as possible? Is there something special about this area, does it contain special metal, has a sensor,etc, other than it is a bit bigger than the rest of the tubing?
there is no way, the newer design would fit in it's original place. and i do not belive anyone else carry the old style anymore.. i evern tried to force opened the clip a bit wider, but no go.
Placed in an area that might get more heat will cause short cycling of the defrost cycle....placed in an area that might be hidden or gets less heat may cause temp spikes in the freezer during a defrost cycle. We normally stick with " as close as possible to the original" position.
Ok, i finally got this bi-metal defrost to clip on it's original position, i have to force it very hard to get it in, without breAKING THE CLIP. i am wondering if the bi-metal defrost may have been shorted or not, i did not test with a meter. in any case, i am very surprise, on the cramp pig tail wire connectors, there was no sealer, or tape to block moistures, water from getting into the wires... don't know this is by design or a flaw. i sealed the whole wire connector with electrical tape just in case. water and electric don't mix..
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