Diagnosing a Bad GE Board - Part 1: Fan Motors

[@GraceAppliance]

Hi Everybody, Welcome! If you have technical questions please check out www.Patreon.com/GraceAppliance By becoming a channel supporter, you'll get priority response to technical questions, technical data sheet requests, and help support the channel so I can produce more repair videos. Thanks so much! Andy

[@troynichols9030]

Andy, thanks for all of the great diagnostic videos. I couldn't have fixed my GE refrigerator without you. When my refrigerator compressor and fans stopped working I checked the compressor overload and start relay first and the overload broke in my hand. However, replacing both parts didn't fix the problem. Thank God I found your videos that helped me locate the problem: the fans weren't getting any voltage even though there was no visible sign of any damage. Replacing the control board fixed the problem but there was one complication. I had ordered an aftermarket control board because they offered free returns but it kept cycling off and on every minute. I think it may have been overloaded because the large resistor in the evaporator fan drive circuit ran extremely hot. I replaced it with an OEM board and now the refrigerator works great. Thanks again for your help.

[@MsOnTheOtherHand]

GREAT Job! Hubby is not home and your video made me NOT AFRAID to tackle this by myself. I read every single question in the comments and didn't find this one: Problem: evaporator fan pulsing on and off every second or so - everything else seems fine. I followed along the video step by step and everything was as expected, but once I got to the part after you remove the harness and check the Ohms between R2-3 (white) and R2-8 (red), the reading would go back and forth between 0L and 3.0 - it just depended on how I happened to orient the harness, or which way the wires got jiggled. I was very careful and certain that the electrodes maintained contact with the metal inside the wire holes in the harness while I moved or jiggled (and also tried using the easily accessible metal stripes on the back of the harness with same results). The reason I was moving and jiggling is because at first, the reading was 0L, but when I shifted my weight, it popped up to 3.0. So then I replicated this by moving the harness and/or the wires while keeping the electrodes in certain contact. On the one hand, your opening comments put pulsing fans in the motherboard category. But on the other hand, I got 124VAC and 13VDC in the previous steps - so NOT the motherboard. And THAT's why they call me Miss On the Other Hand!

[@generessler6282]

Super excellent! Really clear and methodical and complete. Thank you so much. Minor tip: I think PWM is pulse _width_ modulation.

[@ticosceninc.elsdexpertsfda7713]

I got my G.E. Cafe' fridge for free from a frustrated neighbor that couldn't get the "PROS" to fix it right. I fixed it up for a couple hundred and love it. Save 4K from having to buy one. :) Freezer fan was freezing up due to moisture and mother board had to be replaced (weak power supply). These must be replaced at the same time. Just had to replace the MOBO again because the door's water and ice dispenser stopped working along with the LED lights. That was due to a recent lightening strike wounding the board and finally that power supply dying. Sensitive electronics for sure on these smart refridgerators.

[@co8142]

You helped me rule out a board and pinpoint me to a bad evaporator fan motor, and I cannot thank you enough. Such invaluable information! Very detailed and concise, not to mention the video angles were spot on haha. Great job.

[@davidfagan1276]

Hi Andy, I was a full time Appliance Service Tech, and have since moved on to Data Center Support, but did retain a small number of customers. One thing that is very difficult for me is trying to keep up with the latest and greatest appliance technologies. Unless you are factory authorized, you are just very limited in that category. What you are doing is much appreciated by folks like me. I left the business full time about 18 years ago, just when variable speed fan motors were coming out, and never really did figure out how they worked. You explained it in a way that was easily understood. Thanks for your help

[@GraceAppliance]

Thanks so much for the kind words and am so glad the information is helpful! Things are getting more and more complex every day and yet we complain that things don't last as long as they should. Being a able to preheat your oven from the store, a 2nd washing machine where the pedistal once was, a giant $1000 iPad on my fridge door for my 2 year old to break, no thanks! Sheesh!

[@rugged1987]

This video was instrumental in saving me a costly repair the only difference for me was that I have purple wires on j2 and not red thanks a ton for your to the point video !

[@juan42ism]

I'm an automobile tech and with your help I was able to fix my refrigerator thank you for your help :)

[@GraceAppliance]

Nice work Juan! I'm glad to have helped in a small way. Stay in touch.

[@ejimenez8952]

Andy - thank you very much. GE side by side, model PSS27SGMBBS. The problem started with a clicking sound. Replaced two capacitors...still clicking; replaced a resistor, clicking disappeared, but caused a burnt part of the main board (Q13) after I plugged it in. Watched many videos including all yours in diagnosing the problem. Replaced the main board, three times as it was not sending enough voltage to the fans. The refrigerator still did not start. Replaced evaporator fan. Still no start. Replaced start relay, still no start. Then.... I found one of your comments very helpful...which was "the fan motor could be robbing some voltage from the main board." That was it. I unplugged the J2 then the refrigerator started up. Turns out the refrigerator has a bad condenser fan pulling voltage from the main board. Going on my 4th week in repairing this thing. Luckily I have time due to COVID-19 lockdown. Thank you very much. Waiting for the part to arrive. Hopefully that will be it. Your videos are very helpful and informative.

[@GraceAppliance]

E Jimenez awesome work! Let me know if you run in to any issues!

[@josephfolsom2030]

Excellent video tutorial Andy. Being an old school appliance tech it’s nice that you can turn to a tutorial like yours. I’ve been in the trade for over 37 years. Today I had my first inverter compressor problem. I have a compressor analyzer that I have used for years, but from my understanding you can’t use it on an inverter compressor. In this case everything was running except the compressor. It was another person who I just happened to find and I was very grateful. Videos like yours and the one I viewed today can teach an “old dog new tricks” I’m subscribed to your channel now.

[@GraceAppliance]

Joseph Folsom hey Joseph! You’re most welcome. Thanks for the kind words. Yeah, the inverter compressors are a different animal than the typical relay style. The inverter board has one task, to provide power to the compressor, but before it turns on, it must get a low voltage signal from the main board. It’s got 2 small wires leading from the main control and sends something like 3.5vdc (I forget exactly) but if you’re getting this voltage the main board is doing its job. If the compressor still does not come on, it’s a failed inverter board (or in theory could be a failed compressor). But, annoyingly you can’t do your typical Ohm test between the 3 compressor pins. The tester you have wouldn’t help here I think. Stay in touch!

[@wcjcnc]

My GE side by side stopped working. The compressor was hot. I figured the thermal protector had shut it off. I cleaned the dust and dust bunnies off the condenser cage and put a fan blowing onto the back of the fridge. This got the fridge to start working again but I knew something was wrong. Using your video I started diagnosing the circuit board. I had power going to the evaporator fan but it wasn’t working. So I knew I had to replace the evaporator fan. I purchased one at a local appliance store and installed it. My fridge works great again. THANK YOU!!!!

[@GraceAppliance]

wcjcnc you’re most welcome! Great work. Stay in touch. Andy

[@samuelsanchez4885]

Hello Andy , Thank you once again for your videos and your response ! I checked the voltage at the MB like you said, and everything had voltage. I bought the condenser motor replaced it plugged the refrigerator and the motor turned on !! What a relief 😅 I’ll be watching your videos to further educate myself on repairing my GE frig . Thx 🙋🏽‍♂️✌🏻

[@GraceAppliance]

Nice work Samuel! I'm so glad it helped you. Stay in touch.

[@mattgallagher3245]

Im developing a business plan for TwelveSprings RV and Repair and am "self taught" mechanically not through trade school or other. Andy, you are teaching for the sake of your viewer, not for your own sake. You've set yourself apart from many onKZbin, including myself. I've liked and subscribed, and will likely make an offering to honor the work you do empowering people to help themselves and others.

[@phoenixkeller5858]

Some of the best quality video and instructions I've seen on all of you tube! Very helpful descriptions and showing details. Thank you.

[@youcandoitrv4198]

Beat control board diagnostics video I’ve seen so far. Great camera position to see the probe contact points. The rest of these jokers are not teachers who show diagnostics without seeing the probe contact the wire terminals. You’re legit! You care that there is understanding Thank you

[@merlinxyzzy]

Andy, your videos are excellent. Thankyou. I have a GE SxS with the freezer working but not the refrigerator section. I followed your video and found 800 ohms on the fan power circuit which I think is what your video showed and you said it should be around 1.6 K ohms. I could easily see the fan on the squirrel cage and it was working. So I painfully took the freezer drawers, ice maker and panels off to find the other fan. Not easy because my freezer is a large drawer at the bottom with a big Stop sticker telling me not to remove the 5 screws on either side of the pull out bracket. I tested the fan motor and found it to be 1.6K ohm. I also tested the tach circuit using the Hz setting and it worked. Thank you for showing that. I also tested the squirrel cage fan and it was also 1.6 K Ohm. On your schematic shown on the video you show the power lines for the two fans to be in parallel. So the 800 ohm reading you and I got are correct for two 1.6 K Ohm motors in parallel suggesting the motors are ok. You said the 800 ohms shown on your video suggests a bad fan motor. I plugged both fans in and powered up. They both work and after an hour my fridge was clearing working. By 2 am I had the fridge all back together and my wife and I did a good cleaning. Thanks to you I saved hundreds, I am not exactly sure why the second fan stopped and now working but at least I know what to look for and I have a very clean and working fridge. Just wanted to suggest your comment about 800 ohm on the parallel fan circuit may be wrong. Let me know if I did not understand correctly.

[@GraceAppliance]

Awesome info Merv, I appreciate the detailed follow up and i'm sure this will help someone else out there. I'll be sure and pin this comment and try and highlight it during that moment in the video. Thanks! As for your specific issue, you might want to check the temperature sensor for the refrigerator section. The evaporator fan will cycle on and off (whenever it needs to) based on temperature in the freezer section and the refrigerator section as well. If the control board isn't getting a correct signal from the refrigerator temp sensor - it may not realize it should be circulating air to the fridge section at that point. Just a thought I had.

[@AlexSanchez-ci1rd]

Thank you for your videos am a technician in training and your videos are really help full

[@GraceAppliance]

Awesome Alex! Yes, I try and make videos that I wished were put there when I first started. Not so much how to disassemble andreassemble, but how to troubleshoot and diagnose quickly. I'm so glad you enjoy them! I've moved and my internet connection is awful here so uploading new videos seems impossible here. I'm still trying to find a solution. :( Stay in touch!

[@AlexSanchez-ci1rd]

hopefully you get a better connection god willing you are going to find a solution and yea i was looking for the same thing how to troubleshoot fast and easy and i got that from your videos. :)

[@crypto_riddler8012]

One of the most informative and well explained videos I have seen on KZbin. Appreciate the work you put into it.

[@juanDominguez-wl3un]

Going to try to fix GE fridge now with the help of you videos. EVAP resistor R43 is burned on board

[@erichoward5565]

awesome vid. the schematic towards the end was worth it enough, but nice simple troubleshooting steps brings it all together.

[@GraceAppliance]

Thanks a million Eric, it means a lot. I'm so glad it helped.

[@CarlCHRISTENSON]

That was exactly what I needed. I am now sure what I have to replace and saved a bunch of $$$. Thanks A LOT!

[@GraceAppliance]

Awesome! You’re welcome. Stay in touch.

[@Nclght]

Great video... two small points with regards to terminology " linear protection," is actually 'liner protection." in other words, the evap fan runs once doors are open for a period of time (there's actually two timers) to protect the fridge liner from heat from the lamp as well as from condensation . And pwm is" pulse width modulation " as it's not modulating the wave, as a square wave will still be a square wave, but it is modulating the width of the wave. Both are small points but their names make it easier to understand what they are, in fact, doing. However" linear protection " is certainly something people need to prevent them from purchasing LG Fridges that feature their god awful linear compressors. 🙂 Regardless, a fantastic explanation of this board..

[@GraceAppliance]

Great info! Thank you for that. The PWM, I caught myself after the upload, but ehhh that’s KZbin I guess. I miss being able to add annotations to the video after. Ha! Liner Protection! That makes a ton of sense! I’ve seen some built in fridges with failed door switches that ended up melting the lining due to this exact issue. Thanks for the kind words and great info. Stay in touch. Andy

[@Nclght]

@@GraceApplianceI've worked on countless of these things yet I still have to visit service manuals and tech sheets from time to time, your video and visual representation has helped cement some of that info. Also, although I prefer voltage tests over resistance tests any day of the week and twice on Sundays , your fan motor resistance test suggesion from the board is something I never tried but is now a part of my arsenal! Always learning! New subscriber!

[@VentureAretecom]

Many Thanks to Andy and Grace Appliance for their 8 Videos on Diagnosing The GE Refrigerator Control Board. ... Thanks so much for these 8 excellent videos. They clearly showed me how to access the needed places so I could conduct successful testing. These are great!!! Signed Henry Gurr

[@jpgny929]

Thank you very much for your video. It will help me begin my refrigerator diagnostic testing.

[@GraceAppliance]

Thanks Jeff, you’re most welcome. Stay in touch!

[@user-mr7fu8pi2l]

I am so impressed with your technical knowledge and your willingness to share. Appreciate you!

[@nuguyrex6510]

I can't say more and different of the most comments. Your videos are very informative and clear. thank you very much andy.

[@steelers9417]

Man thank u that's how u explain how to test and fix stuff u the man...thanks now I see with your great great video how to test and fine the problem to fix my mom side by side refrigerator evap fan..and I did just that ...thanks

[@lennyrichardson3452]

YOUR THE BEST THANK YOU . FOLLOWED YOUR STEP BY STEP. MY BOARD WAS BAD. I HAVE A GE PROFILE ARTICA.

[@GraceAppliance]

Lenny Richardson you’re most welcome! I’m glad it was helpful. Stay in touch.

[@vernroach3413]

A damn good video....Shows more than most, and the camera work is excellent....Thank you for the info and the video.

[@GraceAppliance]

Thanks for the kind words Vern! You’re most welcome. Stay in touch.

[@benkanobe7500]

This was FANTASTIC! I was thinking maybe my board had failed as my evaporator fan did. I was going to just visually inspect the board (not an electrical guy) to if I could find a failed resistor or capacitor. This is the right way. Do you have a board repair video as I am going to test my board just like you showed me and I am sure my board will be bad (my condenser fan is running) but the evaporator is not? Thank You!!!

[@Ally-oi6lm]

He has a video on diagnosing bad control board. It was done awhile back scroll down to his videos and you will find it. I just watched it

[@muzaffaramirza12]

Thank you so much Andy for your detailed video. I am just trying to understand on J2 moler contactor you put your black lead on white wire and red lead on red wires I am trying to understand and wanted to confirm my understanding, it will show the voltage is being supplied between 12v to 14v for both evap & cond fan motor correct? Because later you tested evap & cond fan separately from white to yellow/black and yellow. So white and red should show between 12 to 14v DC for both fans and then separately white to yellow/black and white to yellow should be 12 to 14v DC as well. Did I understand correctly? By the way where did you get that kind of small probes for your meter or if you did, how did you make them? Mine is very thick and regular looking and I do not want to shove that into the molar connector. Also you showed how to test power coming to the board can you please tell me what do you call those moler connectors? Are there any #s that indicates that those are power supply connectors?

[@GraceAppliance]

Hi, you’re welcome and thanks for watching. You are correct, the red and white wires are the supply voltage for both fans which is then distributed to each fan motor as determined by the board. Here is a follow up video after having replaced the board and will show you correct voltages as I’m testing. kzbin.info/www/bejne/oImVcqGHgZisn5Y As for the questions about the plugs, the extent of my knowledge about the plugs is that they are made by a company called TE Connectivity. At least the white plugs are and imagine they all are. They are very similar to Molex brand connections, but different in measurement. Also, the pins inside the connector are quite different between these two brands. Looking on mouser.com will get you in the right ballpark for the needed part numbers. Another thing to note is that the lower 1/2 of the board is going to have A/C voltage (120vac) and the upper portion of the board deals only with DC voltages (13vdc and less). To my knowledge, There are no component level schematics for this board. Only pin out diagrams. So, the majority of what I know has been through what’s available via tech sheets and trial and error....much error. Haha

[@jasonochs8369]

Very Awesome video! easy to follow, easy to do, even for some very technical tests! Great job!!! Now, On to my issue... Freezer went out, cold at bottom, no so cold at top (thawing out) fridge was freezing food at bottom, normal at top. I replaced the defrost heater element, thermister, thermostat. everything seemed fine for about 6 weeks. Now, the freezer iseems to be working fine and the fridge is getting warm at top, cold still at bottom. Frost on freezer back panel. Ok, with that out of the way...on to your tests GE Hotpoint model HSS25GFPA WW unplugged. blue to orange ohms- 20, +/-1 unplugged. white to red .8xxK ohms unplugged. white to yellow/black OL unplugged. White to yellow OL plugged volts white to red 13v plugged white to yellow 12.5v plugged white to yellow and black 12.5v +/-. All the fans seem to be coming on and working, your board test seems to show a good board. My next step is to run a jumper to run the defrost element to get it to defrost. NOTE, I have not removed the cover for the coils in the freezer this time around. NOTE, I can see light coming from the freezer from the fridge side when i open doors and click the switch off, so if there is a damper door, its open NOTE, I dont have 2 green resistors side by side...I have 2 ceramic looking ones...One pink, One grey UPDATE: I jumped the wires for the heating element and it is glowing, So I let it run for a few minutes, un-jumped. A couple hours later, jumped again... The frost is disappearing on the back panel and I can actually feel cold air coming into the fridge side at the top vent....Good news I hope....

[@GraceAppliance]

Hey sorry I missed the comment. KZbin comment section is THE WORST! Anyway, the 4 components that relate to your fridge defrost are: The heater (working) The high limit thermostat (working since heater comes on) Defrost sensor (replaced already?) on top of the evaporator. & your control board. Since you've verified the heater & high limit are both working, if you've already replaced the defrost sensor (I'd be sure to use a legitimate GE part here) it only leaves the control board as your culprit. I hope this helps.

[@jasonochs8369]

@@GraceAppliance awesome. Thank you. The control board tests good. Maybe defrost sensor? I replaced the thermostat (clip on) and replaced the thermister at the top of the coil, but there's another at the bottom. I'll look into defrost sensor. Thank you so much!!!!

[@jasonochs8369]

So, I just watched your video on checking the defrost sensor...Nothing. No readings on the ohm meter. So I should replace the defrost sensor and is that the same as a thermister? I DID replace one already, but it came with other parts. Should I order OEM GE part and order 2?

[@GraceAppliance]

Jason ochs hey, just so I’m not confusing things with the names of the parts... You’ve got a high limit thermostat which looks about the size of a stack $4 of quarters. If your heater glows with the jumper wires, both the heater and this part are good. This part does not dictate when the heater comes on, only turns the heater off should it get too hot. The defrost sensor is actually the part that tells the board how long to keep the heater on. It’s located on top of the evaporator and you’ve only got one of these. Roughly the size of 1” long and 1/4” wide. White in color with two white wires leading to it. This should defiantly not be open like you mentioned. Defiantly replace this with a GE OEM part and you should be good to go. :)

[@majidhossini676]

Sorry mr Andy, since I have started corresponding with you i had e few error in my text I hope you forgive me for those, i meant my fridge is not cooling up, but the freezer is fairly running okay. Thanks yours sincerely Majid HOSSEINI.thanks again for your videos and your positivity and educational tips on fridge freezers.

[@GraceAppliance]

No problem Majid, Are you seeing any heavy frost build up on the back wall of the inside of the freezer?

[@majidhossini676]

No mr Andy I opened the freezer door and I don’t see any frost like you said, at all, but when I leave it off for 30 minutes or little bit longer and run it for 45 minutes it doesn’t do its job properly it’s my fault then again I can’t let run constantly, that is my way of being on the safe side, any way did you read my another text about the company that I phoned to come and repair it for the second time!?

[@philc.688]

Andy, I wanted to make one correction to your video. PWM is "Pulse WIDTH Modulation", not WAVE. Thanks for your informative video. I have had an issue with two new OEM main boards failing to supply the pwm signal voltage across J2-4 to J2-3 . Each board failed after a week of use. I bought a new board because I was seeing something flaky going on with the compressor and evap fans shutting down for a long period and not starting up when the freezer temp goes above 15 degrees F. The Evap and Freezer thermistors appear to have the correct resistance, so I do not believe they are the issue. However two new OEM boards failed with no signal voltage after a week or so use of each board. The original board which was replaced by an appliance repair tech 4 years ago, still works and runs the evap and condenser fans. I had replaced the evap fan 7 months ago, as it failed open circuit. I am ordering another evap fan to try as it seems to be the only suspect that might cause two new boards to fail. Unless there is a major defect in the two GE OEM boards that just failed on me.

[@GraceAppliance]

Hey Phil, Thanks for the correction. I caught it after the fact, but that's life I guess. Lol I agree, it sound like a failed evap fan motor which when bad will cause the the boards to fail in short order. Specifically, it will often cause the 2 larger capacitors on the board to turn brown or black. The PWM signal is sent by the fan itself, so if you are not getting that frequency response (and the fan is turning) that points toward the fan. I'd replace the evap fan with the new board (if needed). Andy

[@padilla7019]

Clear and straight to the point

[@nikeM80]

Andy, Thank you so much for making these videos!!!!! I have followed each step, I am still unclear on somethings. My fridge is GE profile refrigerator model GDSL3KCYCRLS serial number TT305913. I have some browning around R43 on the board but when I use my testing meter on the J2 connection I am reading 12.5 volts to fan motor. I only have two fans in this model. the top is fridge and bottom freezer. My refrigerator is completely warm and freezer appears to be fine. I have setting adjust control board in the top fridge for both freezer and refrigerator. My meter doesn't have a hertz setting so I wasn't able to follow with the tachometer reading. I'll continue to search for more of your videos hoping to find a solution

[@GraceAppliance]

nikeM80 hey! You’re most welcome and I’m so glad they’re helpful. Sorry to hear about the fridge issues. The good news is that your freezer is doing alright. That rules out a lot of more expensive issues. Now, it’s a matter of air flow that’s causing your issues since the refrigerator shares it’s cold air from the freezer. So, I assume it’s the evaporator fan that you took that reading on so the board is doing its job in supplying correct voltage. The main things that can affect air flow would be: A defrost issue (I.e. heavy snow build up on back wall inside the freezer) A bad fan motor (or board, sounds like yours is good) is your evaporator fan turning? Bad damper motor or damper door is frozen shut/broken Food blocking vents Do you see any frost build up inside the freezer section?

[@nikeM80]

@@GraceAppliance I am going to order and replace the fan only Panasonic Evaporator fan., as the board seemed to pass all the meter tests

[@yamahalowrider]

Andy, Thks for great video, my GE fridge stopped working completely, Compressor doesnt start, NO pwr, only light is on. Am sure the control board is bad as i see R43 resistor has browning on the board & a big capacitor has oozed out like a white caulking material on board. My Q is does the bad board cause fridge to behave with above symptoms. I did already replace a new starter relay & the capacitor along with it still NO turning ON.

[@jonleone777]

Hello. Great vid. My unit wasnt cooling in both fridge or freszer. There was quite a bit of ice on condenser unit and i noticed my evap fan was very quiet and barely blowing any air. I checked the defrost heater by jumping j11 and j9. The heat turned on and seems to be fine. I tested the control board with the help of this video. All tested fine, power in, power out. When i did the ohm test for the motors the ohm test for the evap fan was only .730 ohms . This leads me to believe the evap fan is bad and need to be changed. Please let me know if im on the right track. Thanks

[@geraldklenke9276]

Hello Andy. I have watched your videos and have learned immensely from them. Thank you!!! I do have a slight worry since I replaced my control board(WR55X10529) with (WR55X10942). My Refrigerator/Freezer SxS Model # GSS25QGSC CC has a little different wiring on the J2 plug.p1-Blue,p2Red-jumper from p8,p3-white,p4 yellw/black, nothing @p5,p6,p7, &2 red p8. I do not know how to test for my condenser fan for voltage. My fan doesn't seen to be working even after an hour of cooling. I placed a small desk fan on the condenser and compressor to try and keep from overheating. Had to wait 3 weeks for the new control board because of Cov19, and do not want to damage it. When I installed the new board , the instructions said to cut a wire in J1 connector pin 2 to Eliminate Thermistor wire. This note said only applicable for bottom freezers and a few Encoder models w/ serial 3 prefixes, which did not match mine. I did not cut the wire. Anyway, with no yellow wire in pin5 of J2 , i am lost. Tested J2 Voltage and Ohms (p3-p8) all good readings. Any ideas?

[@GraceAppliance]

Hey, I'm almost certain it will. Be between the white and red (p3&p8) that would be your condenser fan circuit, but am not able to find a diagram for your exact model. How you can verify is to either do your voltage test directly at the fan motor plug itself which is probably the easiest. Tell me what color wires you have coming in to the fan motor behind the fridge. Also, you can (with the fridge unplugged) verify which wire leads to which pin on the board by performing an ohm test between each wire and the corresponding pin on the board. Your red wire should be your constant 12-14vdc and the white is your neutral.

[@tysimmons2444]

Hi Andy. Great information. I am working on a 2013 GE model GSE26HSECHSS SxS. Evaporator is freezing over. Fridge and Freezer warm on top and freezing on bottom. I initially replaced all Thermistors. I jumped the wire for the heater and it glowed orange as it should. All tests came out correct except for the EVAP Fan was around 18 when you spec's it at 1.5-3 k ohms. Would a failed EVAP motor cause the defrost heater to not come on ? The R43 Evap Fan motor resistor on the circuit board looks fine. The solder joints on the bottom look slightly discolored. They both tested at 2.1k ohms on the top. Just trying to make sure it is the board before I spend the money. Anything else you can think of? Thanks Ty

[@GraceAppliance]

Hey Ty, Sorry to hear about your issues with your refrigerator. I have not seen where a bad fan will keep the board from going in to defrost, but a shorted out fan will damage a board and no defrost as a side effect wouldn't suprise me either. In your case, I'd replace both the mian control board and evaporator fan motor. Thanks!

[@tysimmons2444]

@@GraceAppliance Thank you for the quick response !

[@GraceAppliance]

@@tysimmons2444 you're welcome! If you purchase through Amazon please click on the affiliate links in the description and it helps the channel a ton. Thanks!

[@tysimmons2444]

I bought the new control board and fan via your link. Those did the trick. Thank you for the help. Leaving a donation. Ty

[@GraceAppliance]

@@tysimmons2444 I'm so glad to hear that! Glad to help and thank you ever so much for the donation! Stay in touch. Andy

[@rafiekjhawrafiek3956]

Finally a good troubleshooting video

[@GraceAppliance]

Rafiekjhaw, I'm glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for the kind words. Stay in touch.

[@msnetsvc]

Andy, you have a great methodology for explaining several issues, but I can't find anything showing the panel removal for my French door model PFSF6KPX BBB (black). That front panel doesn't come out the way shown, is flat faced, has one screw underneath the ice/water edge, and doesn't budge. How does one remove that - so I can get to the ice path spring-loaded door which is always open?

[@GraceAppliance]

msnetsvc hey, here’s a video that should make things more clear. I hope it helps: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bJO3k35vj9mgmc0

[@msnetsvc]

Thanks, exactly what I needed. This is a great site.

[@majidhossini676]

Hi mr Andy, engineer came out to replace the control board in my Maytag refrigerator but the point is he didn’t do any test on it before he change it, to see if there is any fault in it I don’t mean to be rude sir is it possible he might have stolen the original one and kept it for himself ?and on top of that my fridge is not cooling enough but my freezer is fairly working okay, is there something wrong with evaporator fan motor because my refrigerator is constantly running nonstop and I have to turn it on and off manually by leave it on for 45 minutes and off for 30 minutes and turn it back on again and keep repeating the same cycle over and over again and i am still waiting for another visit by engineer to come and have a look at it. I really appreciate you comments on that sir, because believe it or not it is doing my head in!

[@GraceAppliance]

Majid Hossini hi! I’m sorry to hear about the issues. I’d like to think the technician did not do such a dishonest thing, but I have seen worse things personally. More likely to me is that he simply guessed at the possible needed part based on the symptoms it’s exhibiting, and guesses wrong. If you’re able or get in touch with him, I’d request your old board back...or perhaps a refund for the money you paid him for the incorrect part. I’m not certain how most companies handle it, but I’ve never charged a customer for a part due to an incorrect diagnosis. It does happen...and the best one can do is take it on the chin and eat the cost of the parts. This shouldn’t be on the customer unless I’ve had a conversation about my findings and give them the option of trying a particular part on their dime. I also won’t charge for a diagnosis if I am not certain of the issue with the machine. It saves this kind of headache if I haven’t charged anything for my time. Anyway, hopefully he takes good care of you there. As far as the evaporator fan, it certainly could be this based on your symptoms. And, if you in fact have a new control board, the fan should be turning if the freezer is too warm. If not, likely it’s a failed fan motor. A qualified technician should be able to verify voltage to the fan motor quickly and easily to confirm this. Let me know if you run in to any questions!

[@valentinmatos2992]

Andy thank you so much, you are an angel!

[@GraceAppliance]

You're most welcome! I'm glad to be of some help. Thanks for watching.

[@TheRoostking]

Great Video. The trouble I am having is the front display panel is not working, and neither is the ice/water dispenser. Any suggestions?

[@GraceAppliance]

TheRoostking hey! If you haven’t watched it yet, check out this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jJqpoap-a8SKqK8 Also, there is a troublemaking connection plug behind the kick panel near the freezer door hinge. This tends to get corroded and should start there. Plug this in an unplug it about 10x and see if that improves things. If so, you might consider removing the plug and hardwiring it by soldering the wires together. Let me know what you find. Thanks!

[@notruss1]

Isn't there a diagnostic function you can access from the display panel on the door by pressing the WATER - CRUSHED - CUBED buttons all at once to reveal problem codes? My fridge is working but from your videos here before I even test I suspect a bad evaporator fan and/or motherboard. Fridge works, but fresh food area is warm like 66F with ice and water forming on floor under deli tray. Freezer is cold at 0 degrees F, ICE maker works fine, etc. Thanks! Very good info here.

[@GraceAppliance]

Hey, sorry to hear about your fridge issues. To answer your question about the diagnostics mode...yes, some models do have this capability. Typically the models with the temperature controls inside the refrigerator section with the digit displays. In fact you can also buy these super expensive control boards and install the board on fridges without the temperature controls to gather the codes and forced run options. Essentially, the board is doing for you what I demo in these videos. This video gives a nice breakdown: www.appliancejunk.com/forums/index.php?topic=2380.0 I've never found the codes super useful though. They'll tell you if your temp sensors are open or closed, but not the ohm reading. So, you end up needing to test with a meter anyway. Lol. Or, fan motor failed. Yet, that could mean a bad fan motor or has the board failed?! So, again you're still needing to test with a meter. So, you're not missing anything without the boards. 😅 What is your model number?

[@notruss1]

@@GraceAppliance Thanks Andy. Yeah so I took off the access plate and my motherboard is different. My fridge is GE PYE22PSHBSS and the motherboard number etched on it is EBX1425P001. There is a J2 but it is a 6-pin connector at the bottom and has only one solid yellow, white and black coming out. There are other Js; J8; J10; 12 etc. with different thinner guage wires, but i dont see one with the color coding or numbers like you have. My issue is fresh food at 66F, with ice on the condenser and water at bottom of deli drawer floor. I have not noticed any fan noise either. I visually checked the motherboard and there are no popped/bulged/leaking caps and the resistors look fine. Motherboard looks like new the fridge is dated 2014. I have not taken the motherboard out yet to look for solder issues on the back side. If I leave the doors open for 3 minutes shouldn't the fans come on? So I could wait 3 minutes and if I dont hear the fan at least I know it is not coming on? The mother board has what looks like a green power good LED flashing every second. The freezer is fine at 0F and the ice maker is working fine but melting due to warm food compartment.

[@notruss1]

I decided to open fridge and access the connector for the fan from inside the food compartment since I cannot ID it on the motherboard. It has black, red, yellow and blue wires from the connector to the fan. I tested the red and black posts on the fridge side and got 13.64 volts. So even though my MB is different, there appears to be proper voltage going to the fan plug. Then I did an Ohms check between the black and red wire plug ports on the fan side of the connector and got about 132.3k and it bounces around between 109k and 298k. If I'm reading that correctly...lol

[@GraceAppliance]

@@notruss1 Yes, it does sound like you've got correct voltage at the fan plug. The OHM test I wouldn't worry too much about for now. You wouldn't be able to take the OHM reading with voltage being sent currently. You'd do this with the fridge unplugged and fan disconnected. If you're getting 13.5vdc to the fan and the fan isn't turning - You've diagnosed it as a failed fan motor. Congratulations! : ) The fan you need for the refrigerator section is this one. You can help support my channel by purchasing through this Amazon affiliate link: amzn.to/2SeNJaL The other colored wires on the fan are the same as what is shown in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/hqjWoIKmiserrM0 Basically, it's Red & Black for the power (13.5v) the yellow is a signal wire back to the board and the blue wire being a tachometer to give the board a certain frequency response so it knows the speed of the fan motor based on RPM. Let me know if you have any questions. Thanks! Andy

[@notruss1]

@@GraceAppliance Thanks so much! Yes, when I did the OHM test I unplugged the fan from the inside of the fridge and then tested the unplugged hanging fan connector at the red and black wire plugs on the fan side. Thats where I got the OHM reading from, no power. I also notice the freezer fan was working because the port to the ice maker door is blowing from the bottom but the top one is not. Trying to melt ice now to get the condenser cover off and access fan. Thanks again and Merry Xmas!

[@bobmcnally1621]

Hi Andy I appreciate your very clear videos I have the same Fridge you show in your video. It stopped working - no cooling I get voltage to the board and the evaporator fan comes on after 3 minutes The condenser fan does not come on. I put a jumper between position 4 and 5 and then after 3 minutes both fans come on and run The compressor does not run and gets no voltage to the input side Is it the control board - any tests I can do to confirm that before purchasing a new one? Thank you

[@GraceAppliance]

Hi Bob, Generally speaking, if you've got multiple issues like this going on - the only common part between them all is the control board. So, just based on the description, it sure sounds like a bad control board. If you've left the door open for 3 minutes and the board still does not send voltage to the fan, that's a bad board. I'd say to can safely replace the board and you should be good to go. The only other thing I would recommend checking is unplugging the front control panel harness, plug the fridge back in, and if the fridge fires up at that point - you've got a shorted front touch panel. However, the issues you're having don't sound like that's the case. Here's a video for that: kzbin.info?o=U&video_id=ViFpwH6_WrM Let me know if you run in to any issues. Thanks! Andy

[@bobmcnally1621]

I appreciate your quick reply. I pulled the front panel plug with no change in the symptoms. I have a board on order and my fingers crossed Thanks again for your expertise Bob

[@GraceAppliance]

Good deal, sounds like you'll be in good shape soon. You're most welcome, I'm glad to help. Thanks for watching.

[@bobmcnally1621]

I rec'd the control board and it has helped but I am not there yet When I power on with the new control board installed both fans start up after a couple seconds (better than old board) but I am still not getting voltage to the compressor leads I tested the thermistors and get reasonable readings I disconnected the front panel plug from the control board but that did not change the results Is there a fuse somewhere that could be blown between the board and the compressor Thanks again for giving this consideration

[@unioncityhiller]

Andy......What’s the proper way to test the thermal fuse ? ( the part that has one black wire and one red wire connected to it, and a foam insulation wrapped around its sensing tip)

[@GraceAppliance]

Guang LF if you have continuity when doing an Ohm test, it is a good fuse. You should get around .01 - .03 Ohm resistance. The fuse only relates to your defrost cycle. As I understand it, you are dealing with a fan that is not running, is that right? The frost build up you are seeing on the evaporator is likely not a defrost issue, it is due to no air flow caused by the fan not working.

[@tonybrown7846]

Very informative and very well presented.

[@GraceAppliance]

Thanks Tony for the kind words! Stay in touch.

[@tonybrown7846]

@@GraceAppliance I got home from work today and plugged it in, heard noise but not compressor. Checked for 12v power from wr55x10942 board at dispenser board, only had a minimal fluctuating voltage. After 10 min the compressor started. Note it wouldn't do this for last 20 hours after power failure. Checked voltage again at dispenser, ~14vdc now. I have a new main board ordered, but would like to repair this one for spare. What is likely culprit power supply or one of the relays? Nothing obvious on board... Thanks again for the help.

[@GraceAppliance]

Tony Brown hey Tony, I’m not sure if you have watched the video on troubleshooting a front control board, but if the compressor does not run, you can unplug the front board. If the compressor then comes on, you’ve got a failed front touch panel. If no change, then yeah it’s probably the main board. More than likely it is one of the relays on the main board. Also, the medium sized capacitors are troublesome on these boards. So, if you’d swap out the relays and caps, you’re most likely back in business. The main headache with rebuilding these boards is that they are coated in what’s called a conformal coating like a clear coat which ends up binding the components to the board. So, you have to use more force than you’d like to remove the parts which can damage the solder pads and makes it non rebuildable. That’s been my experience anyway. I hope that helps.

[@tonybrown7846]

@@GraceAppliance I'll check it out. Thanks!

[@EhsanAmini]

Thanks a zillion for this tremendously helpful video. I have a question regarding an evaporator fan of a top-freezer GE Profile. Ever since I replaced the fan, it runs nonstop. It's constantly on and doesn't shut off or cycle at all. The freezer temperature has already dropped below -12°F and going. According to the manual, the freezer temperature should range between -6°F and 6°F. Also when I open the freezer door, the fan speed doesn't change (as I've heard it should when the freezer door opens.) I'd appreciate any tips. I've set the temperature to the recommended 0°F several times using the front display panel, but after several hours, it's still going down. The original fan didn't have a sensor, but the new one does, and I connected it with the metal clasp to the evaporator. My suspicion is faulty sensors or the board, but I'm not sure how to test for that. Do these fridges have a diagnostics mode that can be activated?

[@robertmunguia250]

Great video very informative! Could you make one on how to test defrost system from the board? Thank you!

[@GraceAppliance]

Hey Robert, Thanks very much! There is one in fact: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jpa9l6N4bNSeb5I&lc=UgzL-H37sk30oEvH_hl4AaABAg Let me know if you have any questions! Andy

[@gerard-laurent]

Hi Sir, Can you tell me the value of the resistors for both fans? I am confused about the correct value of these resistors. Thank you for any possible help. Excellent videos by the way. Very good contribution.

[@genarofan]

thankyou Andy your explanation are very pro..and it helped me a great deal..have a prosperous 2019

[@GraceAppliance]

Awesome to hear genarofan! Stay in touch.

[@seriyvolk4597]

ANDY !!! YOU ARE AWESOME !!! Thank you for your precise descriptions and video shots!"-)

[@bobkeller2409]

Hi Andy. I am working through the videos to troubleshoot my 15 yr old fridge. I was able to borrow a meter with Hz/Freq setting but when I looked at all the steps to access the evaporator fan motor I am wondering if I can test at the control board with power applied. When I do that I read 0Hz. It also has a % setting that I guess is duty cycle of the PWM and that also reads 0. I did verify that the meter works, reading 60Hz and 50% duty cycle on the input power. Both fans are running but temperature is about 32 in the freezer and 50 in the fridge. Condenser fan is 2.18k and Evaporator Fan is 1.60k.

[@unioncityhiller]

That was the thermal fuse (the part that has 1 black and 1 red wires connected to it and a insulation foam wrapped around it). It reads 0.1 ohm

[@GraceAppliance]

Guang LF that’s a good fuse.

[@DavidShay-lk8ij]

Hi Andy. Great video. I am in a pickle and maybe you can help. I followed your test and the board is supplying power to my evaporator fan. But my fan is not working at all. I have bought 2 oem new motors and still never turns on. Any idea what maybe wrong? I did the self diagnostic test T8 and t4 that check the fan and thermistor and they both passed. Freezer cools fine. Just no airflow to fridge. Any idea. Please. Thanks in advance

[@mickeypm100]

Hi Andy, As per this video, on two occasions when we had power failures, my GE side by side refused to come on. fortunately after around eight hours on both occasions it restarted as normal. during the down period I checked the 13 VDC as per the video and found that the voltage was swinging like in the video. could the non restarting of the unit have anything to do with a thermistor or the evaporator fan? Once it restarted the 13 VDC supply is fine and the unit is functional. Your comments if you can would be much appreciated. ...... Mike

[@benjaminsmith9175]

Your videos are Great! Thanks Andy.

[@GraceAppliance]

Benjamin Smith thank you so much! I'm in the process of moving currently so it may be a bit sporadic in the next few weeks but more to come soon. Thanks for the kind words!

[@JOSEGARCIA-ng2kk]

thanks for your video great help .because of this video have save big money thanks

[@GraceAppliance]

Awesome Jose! I'm so glad I could help.

[@juanDominguez-wl3un]

Nice work with videos and details. Very professional....A+++++👍😁

[@robertpearl2369]

Great videos. Keep up the great work. Would you be able to do a video on how to fix the actual circuit boards?

[@GraceAppliance]

Thanks! Is this what you need? kzbin.info/www/bejne/e5CrdJuJfq6cnJo

[@robertpearl2369]

@@GraceAppliance Thats a great video as well. I didn't know if you could do a video where you replaced resistors or capacitors. Where you are fixing a broken circuit board.

[@secondwindmusicproductions]

I believe it should be called "pulse width modulation" not "pulse wave modulation". The width of the square wave pulse is varied to change the average power sent to the motor.

[@GraceAppliance]

Thank you. I mis spoke. Good catch.

[@shawjamesr1]

Mr. Andy, More info on my problem of a couple hours ago. Thanks to your compressor video, and another gentleman’s with an inverter on the compressor, I diagnosed the problem as the inverter on my frig. I got readings on the three leads of the compressor of 8.1, 8.1 and 7.9. Can you verify these readings for a GE ZISS420DXASS? But I need go back to getting a reading of 836 (your commented bad reading in the video was ~818) on the ohm test which you said should be 1500 to 3000 ohms and you said that with such a low reading I have there is a fan circuit issue, BUT both my fans work and seem to do so with speed. Will be nice to hear what you think! Thanks in advance, Jim

[@husker1872001]

Thanks for the excellent videos. Where did you get the test leads for the fluke 116? I have that meter already but would like to purchase the leads.

[@GraceAppliance]

Thanks for the kind words! Yes, the 116 is a choice meter... I've had mine about 7 years now and wouldn't change a thing! So much so that I think I may have changed the battery just once. LoL The meter leads I have are stand alone leads vs an adapter you add on to your existing leads. If I had to choose again, I'd probably get these for the sake of less room on my diagnostics bag where space is a premium. Amazon affiliate link: amzn.to/2STBy4B Also, if you don't already have one, a super nice thing I have for my fluke is one of these hanging magnets for the meter. It sticks to the appliance and just makes life so much nicer. Amazon affiliate link: amzn.to/314PSde

[@MM-ix5nf]

Thank you for the video. I am having trouble with my GE GSL25JGCBLS side by side refrigerator and like Merv Swan I also get 800 ohms. Only thing is that I taken out both fan motors (condenser and evaporator) but do not get any Hz reading when I do the test you showed. Both fans do turn on and spin. I have done the visual inspection of the board and it seems fine. I have been getting good voltages to both fans. I have good voltage coming from the wall 122 V. Is there a reason why I am not getting any Hz reading. I noticed that on the condenser fan there are only 3 pins are being used which connect to the Red, Yellow and White part of the motor going to the control board., Btw my evaporator fan in the freezer has an extra connection for the light bulb not sure if that affects it. Thank you for your video and any advice will be greatly appreciated. P.S. Where do you get your wiring schematics?

[@GraceAppliance]

M M hi MM, sorry to hear about your issues with the refrigerator. I’m not entirely clear about what issue you’re having. So, neither fan are turning? Don’t worry too much about he Ohm read out at the fans, I’ve heard from others that the 800ohm range is no problem. The 4 wire fan should be getting a Frequency response as this is the motors tachometer and if this fails the fan won’t work properly. The 3 wire fan has no tach and it just measures for Dc voltage from the board. In either fan instance, if you’re getting proper voltage to the fan plug the fan should be turning. If not, you’ll need to replace the fan motors. The light circuit that you mention is of no consequence. You should see links in the description to both of the these fan motors. I’ll be traveling for a few days, but if you wanted to email your model number to [e-mail] I can respond with your technsheet which will have schematics you could look at. Thanks! Let me know if you have any questions.

[@philbytx]

Hi Andy, Thank you so much for the great vids. I had an issue with heat on the side wall and the separator wall (between fridge and freezer) on our GE PSC23MGPAWW. So, I checked the Condenser fan and found it consistently runs at low speed (4.4v). Main check shows 13.96 v J2 3-8, so I ordered a replacement fan motor (cheapest part first!) as everything else works just fine. Not sure if the Condenser fan motor is a variable speed like the Evap motor. So, was this the right way to go (new motor) or should I just cough up for a new control board as well??

[@gibson7654]

Hi. Great video. Thank you for putting it together. At this test at 6:00, I am getting 11V. On the next test, I am getting 1200 ohms. Does that mean the control board is bad?

[@my2k2zx2]

Ok, I've dug a little deeper in to this. The fridge only ran for one cycle and then doesn't seem to come back on. The freezer is working with no issues, has -2F temps coming out of the freezer fan. Ice is also being made. I dont see any green resistors on the board, it doesnt look like the board in your videos. I'm guessing it is the board since the freezer portion seems to be working and the fridge portion is not. I'd just hate to take the $200 gamble and have the board not be the issue. Big bummer that it's just over 2 years old and already having problems.

[@GraceAppliance]

Sounds like it's running as it should so. That's good! Keep us posted if you have any issues.

[@mrjp2149]

I don't have the schematic for my 2007 GE Profile side-by-side refrigerator and have a question regarding the condenser fan which I hope you can answer. The refrigerator is at a rental property so I'm remotely troubleshooting with the individual living there. He is reading the appropriate DC voltage at the J2 jack when measuring at the test points you referred to in this video. I also have additional wires on pins 6 & 7 and unclear what they are for although I simply thought I would mention it. He sent me a picture of the fan and at 1st glance it looked like an AC voltage c-frame motor. Because the voltages were good at J2 I had him unplug the fan and measure continuity across the coil. He's reading 80 ohms across the black and orange wires so the windings are not opened up and the bearings are good, it spins fine by hand . This makes me believe the motor is fine. Moreover, with the fan still unplugged I had him measure the incoming voltage directly at the harness that plugs into the fan. He's measuring 120vac at the load and not the low DC voltage that was referenced at J2. Are these motors powered by 120vac? If they are then it is fair to assume the power at J2 is only signaling the relays which in turn close their contacts to send the appropriate AC voltage to the fan. If the signal voltage is reading fine, and these fans are powered by 120vac then some people may only have a bad relay/contacts and not necessarily a bad fan motor. If the motor is rated for AC voltage then do you know whether or not these condenser fans require or have a run/or start capacitor?

[@GraceAppliance]

Hey Mr JP, Some condenser fans on the GE side by sides will be 120v AC powered vs the type of motor looked at during this video. Something similar to a wr60x10168. If he's getting 120v AC at the wires to the plug at that fan, yet the fan still does not spin, it's a failed motor (or bad connection, mouse chewed wire, etc etc) but most times... A failed motor. He's getting appropriate voltage to the motor. The issue is between that plug and the fan motor. If the connection and wires are good, replace the fan motor and good to go! The fan motors don't have a start or run capacitor (compressors often will, but not the fan motors which differs from say an hvac system) I hope that helps.

[@mrjp2149]

@@GraceAppliance thanks for the quick response. I had him pull it out so I could verify what was going on. Come to find out it is a 120vac C-frame motor which you are correct does not require a capacitor. Once it was removed I had him recheck all his measurements and the motor was still reading good. However, he then told me that it was a little stiff when he turned it. I had him remove the armature and clean it up and reinstall everything. It works fine now. I wanted to make sure it was definitely the motor because even with Amazon prime it would take 2 days to get it lol. Plus he's family and lives there for cheap, he can get his hands dirty. Thanks again I do appreciate the video and your time.

[@GraceAppliance]

Hey Mr JP, You're most welcome! Glad you got it sorted. Nice work! Yeah, I'd definitely get one of the motors on the way to him because it sounds like it's on the way out. In the meantime, you can have him put a regular box fan behind the refrigerator with the back fridge panel removed in case the fan goes out, it will keep the air moving either way until the new motor gets there. Thanks!

[@mrjp2149]

@@GraceAppliance I agree and found a replacement for it on Amazon. Just subscribed too, thanks again!

[@MegaJoselito01]

Great Video Andy ,Thank You..

[@GraceAppliance]

You're most welcome. I'm glad it helped. Stay in touch.

[@Volt_Appliance_Reapir]

Where did you buy your meter test leads? Did you rig them up? I always have a hard time shoving my leads in DC wire harness 😅.

[@mattclark5480]

Wow what a great video thanks very informative 👍

[@unioncityhiller]

Andy......My Samsung Side by side fridge: since some of the veggie and diary products in my cooler got really icy, so I increased the cooler temp by 2 degrees to 40 F. The next day, I noticed the freezer led temp display 0 F started flashing. So I powered the fridge off at the breaker and waited 2 hours before powering it back on. The fridge was on, compressor was running, cooler temp was preset at 38 F so I left it at that and freezer temp was preset at -4 F, so I adjusted it to 0 F. However, after running for 3 hours or so, the led display showed freezer temp at 48 F and it showed cooler temp at 34 F. The compressor doesn’t seem to stop. Please advise what should I do at this point. Thanks a bunch!

[@GraceAppliance]

Hi Guang, If you'd like to send me your model number to [e-mail] I can look for your tech sheet and reply with that. This will help with some troubleshooting tips. If you have a single evaporator, it could be a defrost issue on the freezer side, but the tech sheet will help us determine this. Thanks

[@majidhossini676]

Hi mr Andy this is silly i should have told you about my problems with the actual refrigerator right from the beginning it has all started when i noticed the change in the way I was running ;the temperature on my refrigerator rose from 3 up to 7 and right after that I mean after a while same thing happened to the freezer temperature on the control panel and some of my stuff in the refrigerator had frozen so I turned off my fridge and took them all out of fridge to clean out my fridge, it took me a quite a while before I could manage to put my stuff back in the fridge and turn it back on again; the temperature on freezer dropped back down to number3 but not on the refrigerator; remained at 7and I couldn’t change it because i wouldn’t have moved by pressing it, still do you think there was any fault with the control board?

[@majidhossini676]

Sorry an error on my part, i want to put it right, in my text i should have written i noticed the change in the way it was running.........

[@jimjohnstone3575]

Hello Andy. I need your help please. Your videos have been a great help in ruling out components on my PSHF6RGXCDBB GE Profile side-by-side. The front control panel shows a -9F for the freezer regardless of what temp I set it at. I used a separate thermometer to verify the freezer fluctuates between 10-30F. I tested the resistance of the thermistors at the J1 connector with it unplugged from the main board. The two fridge and evap thermistors are all good using the ice water test. There was no resistance across J1-1 to J1-3 for the freezer thermistor. Before doing this test I replaced the freezer thermistor before knowing to check the resistance at the J1 connector, and this did not fix the display showing -9F. I did verify the replacement thermistor is good by checking the resistance across the wire leads with it uninstalled. I verified the front control board is getting 13V.

[@GraceAppliance]

Hey! Can you verify that the freezer temp is between +10F and +30F? If so, this is too warm. A freezer temp should not be above +5’F and ideally closer to 0F. Does the compressor run full time or have you heard it cycling on and off periodically?

[@GraceAppliance]

Also, have you taken a measurement in the freezer temp sensor from the board after you’ve installed it? I would want to rule out a poor connection after the install causing this issues.

[@jimjohnstone3575]

I should also mention I tested the fan motors. My J2 connector has two red wires in the J2-2 pin as well as two red wires on J2-8. I think this is because I have a CustomCool Fan based on what I can interpret from the wiring diagram. For each pin the resistance is 900 ohms to J2-1. Your video says it should be 1500-3000 ohms. But is mine okay, basically can I double the 900 ohms to get to 1800 ohms? Not sure if this relates to the freezer temp issue I mentioned above, but thought I would mention it. Thanks in advance!

[@GraceAppliance]

Jim Johnstone hey, the fans sounds fine with that measurement. I’ve heard feedback that this is normal for others. So, these don’t sound suspect.

[@jimjohnstone3575]

@@GraceAppliance Hi Andy. Yes, I tested the freezer temp sensor after installing it. I twisted the wires together and then checked at the control board which still showed no resistance as if the sensor was not there.

[@alfonsosanchez7896]

Andy, I found that my mother board is bad it has tow burn spots on the relay. The Condenser Fan Motor is giving me .801 ohms and not the expected 1.5 to 3 ohms. Do I need to replace both the condenser fan motor and mother board, or just the mother board. However i did not see how you test the evaporator motor. I believe the my fridge only has two fans, the condenser fan motor and the evaporator fan motor. Can you advise. Thanks.

[@GraceAppliance]

Hi Alfonso Sanchez, I’ve heard from others that they are getting the same readout as you are so I would not be concerned about the fan. Replace the board and you should be in good shape. If you will order through the affiliate link in the description, it’s a huge help for the channel. Thanks and let me know if you hit any snags with the install. Andy

[@jasonochs8369]

Have you ever thought about doing car videos for repair and replacement parts? hahahaha I swear...I wish 99% of the videos had HALF the knowledge, simplicity, even video quality your vids have! Super awesome job!!!

[@GraceAppliance]

Jason ochs thanks so much Jason! I used to be a teacher and also a Job Coach/procedure writer...so this is right up my alley I guess. LoL If I only had more hours in the day to make videos. Haha

[@jasonochs8369]

@@GraceAppliance Can you look at my other post below this one and maybe point me in the right direction? I have been jumping the terminals on the back of the fridge, and one day I left it on and went to work...OOPS. ran home 2 hours later and unplugged the jumper lol

[@chrisg1302]

Good video!. Thank you for the very detailed info.

[@GraceAppliance]

Hey Chris, you’re most welcome. I’m glad you found it helpful. Stay in touch.

[@merlinxyzzy]

Andy I did find the temperature sensor and was surprised it seemed to be hard wired. But the lead was long enough to allow me to cut and resolder later with heat sink tubing etc. I tried the ice water and warm water resistance test which was fun to do. I am a geek! Anyways I assumed it is a termistor at least it acted like one. So I assumed it was working. I also tested all 3 connections to temp sensors thanks to your great videos. I also found a 20F thermal switch on the light circuit which I am very curious about. At first I thought it was the temperature sensor. Now why would the lights come on at 20F? Maybe it is not a switch. I also found one on the freezer light circuit but don't know what temp is. Anyways just curious.

[@GraceAppliance]

Hey! Here is a video on the correct resistance read outs for the temp sensors, which can be tested from the board... But it gives you a fun excuse to use the soldering iron. Lol, I'm the same way. kzbin.info/www/bejne/eXiQY3mkhplmftU While your sensor is not completely failed, it may be out of spec. The ohm readout will change based on its current temperature. There is not a thermal switch on the light circuit to my knowledge. The only thermal switch that I know of would be the hi limit thermal cut off which would cut power to the defrost heater and would be closer to 120'F. I hope it helps!

[@natnorton5282]

Andy, Great video, and clear information. Much appreciated. I have a GE PFCS1RKZH SS, french door, bought in 2014. Power was turned off on our street and back on for a house connect two days ago. My refrigerator was completely dead that night. I assume when the power turned back it caused damage. Yesterday I bought a control board from local repair shop and installed. All works now except for the refrigerator (interior lights not working, not cooling). Ice, water, lights on the outside, and the freezer are all operating just fine. Can you advise how to test the board for the refrigerator cooling and lights not working? I would like to confirm that the board I installed is working properly. Is it possible that the power surge damaged more than just the control board? Thanks,

[@GraceAppliance]

Hey Nat, Sorry to hear about the issues with your refrigerator. Could you please send the first 5 digits of your serial number?

[@GraceAppliance]

Also, just to confirm please post what the part number of the control board you installed. Thanks!

[@natnorton5282]

Yes, Serial # is TZ 319904. The control board part # is 225D3466G009

[@GraceAppliance]

Hey Nat, Thanks. The part number you gave for the board didn’t make sense to me. It should have been a WR55X11098. Please confirm that. It should have also come with some install instructions. I checked your serial number against these instructions which on certain models will require snipping a wire on the harness as part of the install. I could only find instruction sheets for a different part number than yours so it would be great to double check that. The first thing that comes to mind is I would check for a short in one of your fan motors. The easiest way is to unplug the fridge, and at the Control Board unplug the (if memory serves) J4 connection. You’ll have a blue wire on the left of an 8 pin connector. Has a red wire on the far right. Once unplugged, reconnect power to the fridge and let me know if the fridge then acts as normal (minus the fans running of course). Let me know what you find.

[@natnorton5282]

Andy, I read the part number on the control board. It was the same as the board that I removed. The box that the control board came in has a label - WR55X10956. The box was open when they sold it to me. Said they had it in one of the repair trucks. So I'm a little concerned that the board may not be new... May be that it was a board that they took out of a broken refrigerator.. I will test for the fan motor short. Will let you know what I find.

[@probablywrongagain2151]

I read a comment of yours from the motor test video and you said pull the motor plug and test the voltage with the motors disconnected, sometimes the motors will pull the voltage low. When I did this I got 13v! So the board is good right? Also, mine only had one yellow wire. Not sure what to make of that.

[@kansasnutt]

Great video… Thanks, my board is on the bench now and puts out 13.5 V but will not like display when Inside fridge… I also noticed my 400 V caps Only have 180 V on them… Is this normal? I plan on loading down to 13 V with a 10 ohm resistor to try and put the supply under load

[@David-pj2ro]

Great video, where did you get your test leads?

[@GraceAppliance]

Thanks! I wish I knew the brand name on them because they've done great for me for years. They were an impulse cash register buy at Appliance Parts Depot where I was getting some parts. The only change I made to mine was to peel off the rubber coating on the needles to make them that much thinner for this kind of work. What you're looking for is "needle tip meter leads" like shown here at this affiliate link: (copy and paste that please...it's not wanting to link correctly) www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=as_li_qf_sp_sr_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=graceapplianc-20&keywords=meter leads needle tip&index=aps&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=ur2&linkId=7ec2d1d8b31e58381e9d02f9cc461c68 You'd love them for sure!

[@whatnowok]

your awesome. thanks for explaining in detail

[@wessy6668]

Hey Andy, does the voltage reading applicable to the electrolux french door refrigerator control board as well

[@unioncityhiller]

Hi Andy......Like I'd mentioned, I'd replaced the main board back in May 2019. The freezer ran perfectly fine for nearly 2 months, the freezer led temp started blinking on the front display suddenly. Encountering the same issue again, fan motor stopped running, ice building up at the base of the evaporator coil. Tested the temp sensor in the upper part of the freezer, got 4.5 ohms (room temp) and 12.3 ohms (ice water). Checked thermal fuse, got 0.1 ohm. Should I check my defrost thermostat (yellow wires connected to it) and temp sensor (blue wires connected to it)? Or maybe the evaporator fan motor? Please advise my next step. Thank you!

[@GraceAppliance]

Hi, have you performed the voltage tests for your evaporator fan motor as shown in this video?

[@unioncityhiller]

Unfortunately, My multi meter doesn’t have Hz function. Is there another way to test the fan motor and see if it’s bad. On the other hand, how would I know which wire is connected to the tachometer?

[@GraceAppliance]

@@unioncityhiller starting in 2:20sec of this video it shows how you can test the DC voltage output from your board. Be sure to leave a door open for 3 minutes first so your board will output voltage to the board. You won't need HZ for this function. If you get 13.5vdc at that point your board is fine and you should replace the fan motor. If no voltage I'd replace both the board and the evaporator fan motor as a shorted evaporator fan motor can cause a bad board.

[@danielbison2659]

Great video, can this be done on a Kenmore elite board the same way or are the wires different.

[@poweredbyfaith]

Hi Andy. My connector is a little different that the one you have the photo. It has wires in all 8 of the locations. My model is PSS26SGRASS S/N FG440018. I did all the test and the only one that failed was the second yellow “condenser” fan was not getting any voltage. The fans tested at 1.05K Oms. You said it should be 1.5K Oms. My Evap fan was running after the doors were open for three min but my condenser fan was not. Based on the test I know my board is bad. Do you think my fan needs to be replace to?? Thanks for the help. God Bless.

[@GraceAppliance]

Hi Barry, I'm sorry to hear about the fan issues. You're most welcome for any help I can give. God bless you too. The schematic I'm finding for your model number does show a DC fan motor (as shown in this video, but may have 3 wires instead of 4) However, when I look up your parts by your model number it shows that you have an AC fan motor. If you can confirm which one you've got, I might be able to weigh in a little more in depth if needed. (So, if you have a 120v AC fan motor) Your condenser fan motor is actually a 120v AC motor so the test will differ for you slightly. I'm sorry, I should have called out this situation in the video and reminds me that next time I come across this situation, I need to snap some pictures. but... If your compressor is running, the condenser fan should be running as well. Your condensor fan motor should look similar to this one: WR60X10080 www.searspartsdirect.com/part-number/WR60X10080/0046/363.html?modelNumber=PSS26SGRASS&categoryName=Side-by-Side%20Refrigerator&brandName=GE Between the Orange and Black wires you should be getting 120v AC while the compressor is running. If you are getting 120v there, it's a bad fan motor. Let me know if otherwise. (...and if you have a DC fan motor) I agree, it sounds like you have a failed control board, but wouldn't worry about the replacing the fan motor as well unless you have a burned resistor as shown around the 8:00sec mark in this video. I hope it helps and let me know if you have any other questions, Andy

[@poweredbyfaith]

Hi Andy, Thanks so much for the quick reply. I would like to send you a pic of my board. KZbin will not let me post the pic. Can you please e-mail me at [e-mail] so I can send you the pics. My fan does not run when the compressor is running and the resistor looks burnt. Looks like I need to replace the fan and the board. Thanks and God Bless!!! Barry

[@GraceAppliance]

No problem, just sent you an email. Thanks!

[@abunase2000]

hai, thank you for very good and usefull informative video. my refigerater evaperater fan is not working.as per your video i followe dby tested all voltage level of pin j2..red wire i found 12 v but yellow to eveaperator wire is showing only 5V..can u suggest me any solution?

[@GraceAppliance]

Hey! Thnaks for the kind words. I'm sorry to hear you're having issues with your fridge. Check out this video. It explains that the voltages will vary based on what speed the evelorator fan should be running as it's a variable speed fan motor. See if when you jump it if it speeds up to full speed and let me know what you find. kzbin.info/www/bejne/hqjWoIKmiserrM0

[@unioncityhiller]

Andy......So You don’t think I should replace any of those temp sensors, defrost sensor or even the thermal fuse ?

[@GraceAppliance]

The freezer temp sensor you mentioned does seem slightly out of specifications. It should be 5k ohms at room temp (72F) and around 14.5kohms at ice water temp. I would replace this one for sure. However, this will not prevent the fan from operating after leaving the door open 3 minutes. These are seperate issues it seems.

[@dagrynch]

Nothing except the interior lights worked on my fridge Failed a voltage check detailed on this video Bought a control board from Amazon for $130, way less than the $330 control board from GE parts site Fired right up

[@alangeddis2568]

Hi, Great Video. Based on the test procedure my control bd only has 10.43 vdc output to the condenser fan...to little to operate the fan correct? F an rated at 11.5 vdc

[@GraceAppliance]

I would expect it to still run. Bad fan motor would be my diagnosis.

[@GraceAppliance]

You may disconnect the fan and test the voltage again. You may find it's full voltage at that point.

[@pdlngsqrs9547]

Thanks for the great video. BUT Obviously you know from experience or you have data sheet for this particular fridge. BUT Where do you/ we find the data sheet that identifies which plug goes to which motor. I may case a Kenmore Elite bottom freezer, fans work in test mode but not in normal operation?

[@alfonsosanchez7896]

Hey Andy, I followed your steps in diagnosing my fridge, neither the freezer or the fridge was getting cold. I found that the control board on my GE HotPoint model #HSS25GFPAWW was burned. I purchased the new control board I replaced it, the freezer is working fine, making ice and is at zero degrees. I followed your diagnostic steps and found that the damper door to the fridge side was not opening. I thought I had a bad damper door assembly so I purchased a new one part #WR09X10050 which includes the thermostat. I installed the new damper door. The damper door opened and remained opened for about 5 minutes, then the door closed again and did not open. I did put tape on the door switch to make sure that the fridge did not think that the door was open. The evaporator fan is working, I have a good frost pattern and the heater does not seem to be on when the evaporator fan is on. Do you think I have a defective board or can it be the Encoder Board Assembly. How can I diagnose if the new control board is bad, or if the plug that connects to the damper motor is getting power or how do I check if the encoder board is working. I have looked for info on the internet but did not find anything. Thanks in advance for your help.

[@GraceAppliance]

Hi Alfonso, could you please send the first 5 digits of your serial number? Thanks

[@alfonsosanchez7896]

@@GraceAppliance serial numbers RF2 06939 Thanks

[@GraceAppliance]

@@alfonsosanchez7896 thanks! Based on your serial number, you'll need to make a slight modification to your wiring at your control board. Please see the instructions on how to perform this and let me know if you have any questions! www.scribd.com/doc/115029528/WR55X10942-Installation-Instructions

[@alfonsosanchez7896]

@@GraceApplianceI'm away on work. Will try it this weekend when I'm back home. Thanks

[@GraceAppliance]

@@alfonsosanchez7896 no problem. The issue comes from the fact that you've got 2 temperature sensors in your refrigerator section and the new board requires just one. Once you snip a particular wire on your harness, you will be in good shape. Safe travels. Thanks

[@Measuray]

Hi Andy. It's a pleasure to watch your videos. But, I was concerned about testing J2. The fan motors. You said if you don't get 12-14 volts and the meter is jumping all over the place, its a bad control board. Shouldn't it mean bad fans or fan? Just curious if you misspoke.

[@GraceAppliance]

Hi, Thanks for the kind words! So, the control boards only job is to send appropriate voltages at the correct time. If the voltages are not constant (i.e. not sending full voltage or the meter is showing inconsistent voltage) It would indicate a failed control board. To double check that the fan is not the cause of the voltage variance, you can unplug J2 and measure the corresponding pins on the board directly with no fan attached. Now, there are times when a shorted fan motor can cause the fridge not to run because it robbing voltage from the board. The quick diagnosis for this is to unplug J2 and restore power to the fridge. If the fridge runs as normal at that point, it would be a shorted fan motor (most commonly the evaporator fan motor). To further track down which fan, you can repeat the process of unplugging the fan motor individually to isolate the offending fan. Does that make sense? What issues are you having with your fridge?

[@GraceAppliance]

Here is a follow up to this video after I had replaced the control board: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oImVcqGHgZisn5Y This video would show the correct voltages then being sent to the fan motors and a steady voltage. Keep in mind that the evaporator fan motor is a variable speed motor and thus can get a low, medium or high voltage from the board (something like 6.5, 9, 13.5 vdc for example) depending on what speed the fan needs at that point. Thanks!

[@liemnguyen5264]

My reading for the Condenser Fan Motor is 8.6 volts. So, is the board bad or the Fan Motor bad? The fridge is at 25 on the freezer and 48 on the refrigerator side, also the warmer/colder switch don't work, stay at number 7

[@burrowsandco]

Great video!

[@GraceAppliance]

Burrows & Co. thanks!

[@berto9958]

I have a secondary GE Refrigerator: GTS22KCMBRCCSD302373 with a Control Board: WR55X10151. I am a retired HVAC/R mechanic before our refrigerator's became like TV sets. I have a real dilemma with this unit. A little history. When this problem first surfaced I have followed the diagnostic procedure according to your video which was pointing towards a failed control board. I replaced a bad 47uf 400v capacitor on the board and the fridge worked fine for a month, then the original problem resurfaced but this time everything looked good on the board. I then purchased a supposedly new board on eBay. The new board didn't work, same condition. I even sent the original board out for repair to fixyourboard.com but still had the original condition. Nothing works but lights. When I jump the compressor and hot terminals at the board, the compressor turns on and the evap coil gets cold. When I open the freezer door to send the board into test mode the evap fan runs but not at full speed and condenser fan doesn't run at all. Voltages at the J2 terminal between white and yellow/black (evap) I get around 4.5v and 0v at the white and yellow (cond). When I disconnect the evap motor I get around 13v at the evap fan plug. At that point condenser fan still isn't working until I jump between the yellow and yellow/black. At that point the condenser fan runs at full speed leading me to believe that the evap motor was bad not sending the correct rpm signal to the board. I replaced the evap motor and still have the same condition with nothing running except the evap motor at slow speed when I open the freezer door. I even replaced a freezer temp sensor that wasn't within factory values. It's hard for me to believe that two boards and two evap motors are bad. Can you please help with a possible answer? Any help would be very much appreciated. Thank you.

[@GraceAppliance]

Sorry to hear about your fridge issues! Interesting symptoms! Try this, unplug the condenser fan motor (behind the refrigerator) and tell me if you then get voltage to the condenser fan wires at the main board. I'd assume your board is in good shape. The guys at fixyourboard really REALLY know their stuff and literally have never had (or heard of) any issues from boards they've fixed.

[@berto9958]

Thanks Andy for your input. The details in your videos are excellent. As per my frig issue, I did disconnect the condenser fan wires at the fan as per your suggestion and still there was no power at the fan plug or the J2 yellow wire. I even checked for power at the inlet and outlet of the fan resistors; 0v at condenser and around 4.5v at the evaporator which are close to the J2 values. While doing these tests I left the condenser motor still unplugged. As I was scraping the varnish off the condenser fan resistor leads to make sure it was zero, the refrigerator started and everything was working except the condenser fan until I plugged it back in. There didn't seem to be any problems as far as I could see with the resistors but after the refrigerator started, I rechecked them and they were both along with the J2, over 12v. It has been working so far but I don't have an explanation as to why it started working other than the board being at fault or is it possible that the condenser motor occasionally shows a faulty resistance reading telling the board not to start up? After it started I turned the refrigerator off and then back on a few times using the temp controls, after waiting a few minutes of course, and it started every time even with the potentially faulty condenser motor connected. What are your thoughts? Again, thank you Andy.

[@GraceAppliance]

John Loberto hey, I was trying to research some for your particular model, but do know certain GE French doors were made by Samsung. I’m not certain if yours would be. I think only models starting with PFSS6N and PFSF6N so probably not applicable... But, know that certain fridges will pulse voltage to the fans upon plugging in the fridge. It sends the pulse, waits to receive the RPM frequency feedback from the blue wire on the fan, if it doesn’t receive the feedback it stops sending voltage. Again, this is more of a Samsung thing so I’m not sure if it’s even applicable in your instance, but worth looking in to maybe. If this were your issue, it’s more than likely the tach on the fan motor that’s only intermittently working and thus shutting down the board voltage. Replacing the fan would be the next step if the problem persists. For now though...let’s just keep our fingers crossed that it was a poor connection at the condenser fan plug. Perhaps the removal and reinstall to check voltages freshened up the connection. That’s about the only 2 things I could think would cause your issue given the parts you’ve already replaced. Other fridges have ambient temperature sensors on the exterior of the fridge and only run the condenser fan motor as needed based on the external temperature, but don’t believe this is true for GE. Sorry I couldn’t give you anything a little more conclusive.