Whirlpool Refrigerator Issues? This DESIGN FLAW Could Be THE SOURCE PROBLEM

[@montiac22]

Someone should start a class action lawsuit. This faulty design is absolutely ridiculous. I was told that it would cost 1400 hundred dollars to fix the problem because you could not just buy the wire harness and you would have to buy the whole door. I have just finished about my 5th and final repair because I have had to cut back the wire wires on the fridge side and the door side so much that I do not have anymore room for repair. This really pisses me off because the fridge is only about 4 years old. Whirlpool sucks!

[@billruggirello1707]

AGREED!!!!!!

[@nickdeliso7026]

I just learned that I have the same issue. Is a class action in the works?

[@doublesharp5795]

@@nickdeliso7026 I bought my whirlpool WRS588FIHZ new in May 2020. Ice maker stopped in summer 2023. Repair man said water line froze up due to heater malfunction and new door was the answer - $1400. Whirlpool denied ever hearing of such a problem. We bought a counter top ice maker, $100 Amazon or Best Buy and it worked fine in the door dispenser, a bit of a pain but still have convenience of door ice. All of a sudden the factory ice maker started working, about a week, so we returned ice maker. Worked for 3 months and now on New Years Eve it's crapped out again. Wife is going to Best Buy for a portable and I'm bitching on the internet.

[@RealRKelly.]

yeaaa I just went to customers house 950 for freezer door plus tax andd the same issue would happen again.

[@nickdeliso7026]

@@RealRKelly. the cost of the door is $1,000, according to Whirlpool. They then want $500 to install.

[@papasquat355]

Found several of my wires broken after seeing this video. Will spend some time reconnecting them and, hopefully, that will fix the ice maker issue. Thanks

[@montiac22]

I have contacted a Lawyer on Friday that I saw on the news. She has filed a class action suit against LG and I am hoping she can get on board for us on this absolutely ridiculous charade of having to spend 1,500.00 on a door when the harness probably cost no more then 30.00 for the part.

[@jeannietaillat6495]

Why LG? They don't own Whirlpool.

[@montiac22]

@@jeannietaillat6495 She filed suit against LG for something entirely different.

[@joshuawiley7200]

I removed the fascia, and laid on the floor with the freezer door open and the unit unplugged, and soldered the (5) wires that were completely severed in two back together. After taping the wires and loom back together, I removed the white ring clamp and the 90 degree snap in elbow that goes into the botton of the door, which were causing it to get pinched between the elbow and the edge of the fascia. I will monitor the harness and add a section of rubber fuel hose or something if needed for a little extra protection, but it DID restore function of the ice maker and removing those pieces seems to have given it the room to move and not get pinched. The harness is about 50 bucks, and it is available, but I would not simply replace it without knowing what the root cause was. otherwise, you will have the same problem again. Hope this helps someone else. I wish I had known to look here first. Spent a few hours troubleshooting all the other normal stuff like the solenoid valves and control board first. I would have never thought pinched wires...

[@laurenlyon9706]

I was considering soldering mine since the clamps don’t seem to be solving the issue. I’ve never soldered before, but would you say that someone could probably do it with a cheap soldering iron and a little practice?

[@joshuawiley7200]

@@laurenlyon9706Yes, the wires are thin and even a low wattage soldering iron would do the job just fine. I would recommend using flux core solder and use some cardboard to protect the floor if you do it with the door in place. I twisted and tinned the wire ends with solder before joining them back together. you may want to look for a basic soldering tutorial on here and practice on some other wires before jumping into the repair. Also, a pair of wire strippers that will do multiple sizes would also be helpful. If I remember correctly, there was (1) 18Ga and (4) 24ga wires that I had to repair, so your wire stripper should probably do at least those sizes. Be safe and best of luck. Hope this helps.

[@joshuawiley7200]

In case anyone is curious, it stopped working. un-taped the wires and found one had broken where the solder meets the braided wire (assuming from the flex). re-soldered and taped it all back up. 2 weeks later, stopped again. un-taped wires and nothing was broken. left it un-taped and it started working again. it is very bizarre. seems like a much better design would have been to have contacts like a steering wheel, or spring loaded contacts like a door jamb switch instead of wires that bend and pinch. I am still not convinced that replacing the pigtail with a factory part is the way to go. seems like someone needs to come up with a real fix/improvement. it is very aggravating to have a fridge with this feature and it arbitrarily stops working constantly.

[@sarahmiller4832]

Thank you!!!!

[@robbydeesolutions2141]

Thank you very much for this information! I am having problems with my Ice maker not making ice. I have discovered that my freezer temp was set wrong for one, and now i will look at the bottom to see if any wires are frayed or if the water tube is pinched. Hope it works!

[@jimwillis176]

I have the same problem. Appliance repair came out three times. Replaced the ice maker water valve and replaced the ice maker. Each time the ice maker world work for a week or two. Then the owner of the repair shop came out and "fixed" six broken wires. About a year later the ice maker stopped working and I inspected the area shown in your video. Another wire (the red one) was broken. It is exactly as you described - a design flaw that leads to broken wires! The design flaw is because the ice maker cable does not go through the hinge. I'm sorry to say - but engineering 101. Now what? Replace the door?? and get another two years? Or replace the fridge with another brand? You mentioned "control panel malfunction, ice maker/water dispenser not working, leaks, slow water flow, and more!" - how about electrical fires? Electrocution? Either are plausible in this situation. Shame on Whirlpool for not owning up to this egregious design flaw!

[@havenridgeadventures]

Thank you very much for this. 7 of my 9 wires were cut. Hopefully now my fridge will cool and my ice maker will work.

[@JB-qv7qt]

How'd you repair the wires?

[@alsayyed2735]

I am in Canada and I have the same problem with the wires ripping. Please share with me any class action lawsuit that you know of. Thank you

[@user-rc6qx7su3j]

Broken wire exactly where he said. Ice maker wasn’t working. It would make ice but the auger wouldn’t turn to drop ice. Green wire was broken. Spliced wire and ice maker works. Thank you so much for this tip

[@kindervelt2005]

I've fought the same problem for years. The problem is just as explained by jimwillis176. It looks like they had the bright idea to move the icemaker into the door itself. That would have just fine if they had redesigned the hinge to allow the icemaker wires to go through the hinge along with all the others. Instead, they brought them out a new extra hole some distance from the hinge. This causes the icemaker wires to flex and bend each time the door is opened, and they eventually break. I've repaired the wires twice in 5 years, and they'll soon need fixing again.

[@Neji513]

any tips on how to repair?😅 my wires are broken

[@mikecook9864]

@@Neji513 I've fixed this several times without taking the door off. It's a bit tight but do-able. Originally, I bought some shrink tubes that had a ring of metal in the middle. You strip both ends of the wire and run them through the shrink wrap so they overlap at the metal ring, then you pinch the ring closed around the 2 wires and use a heat gun to shrink the tubing. That worked OK but the tubing was so rigid they ended up snapping at either end. I eventually bought a soldering iron and learned to solder (not too hard). Since you do eventually run out of slack on the wires, I just get an extra length of wire, cut about an inch and a half off, strip both ends, then solder both ends to either end of the broken wire. use a shrink tube over them or some electrical tape

[@Neji513]

@@mikecook9864 turns out my dad knew how to do it, so he fixed it lol

[@mikecook9864]

@@Neji513 Good to hear. You'll most likely see it happen again.

[@Neji513]

@@mikecook9864 well we had the fridge for like 10 years, never happened before. and the way our fridge is set up, overextension of the freezer door is not likely to happen. so hopefully it wont lol

[@waynemiller6165]

I have couple problems. No water in ice maker and the ice dispenser not churning. I am getting drinking water thru the door. The complete freezer door(under warranty) was replaced 5 years ago for not producing ice. Just checked the wiring at the freezer door bottom hinge and have at least 4 broken wires caused by the pinching action of the hinge. Lots going on at that bottom hinge area(looks like the 2 water tubes and another electrical line going literally thru the center of the hinge/pivot area are in excellent condition). Should have made that pivot hole big enough for one more electrical line. Anyway, will try to solder those wires back soon. Update: Soldered the wires together, water is filling the ice mold, and ice is collecting in the bin. One thing like someone noted, it takes a few hours for water to be injected into the ice mold(does not happen instantly) and ice to form. It definitely took several hours before I heard the water valve click and the acccustomed sound of the water filling the ice mold. 2nd Update: Everything worked for 2 weeks then opening/closing of freezer door broke wires again. Will have to unload the freezer and try again. Read someone had the same issue after soldering wires.

[@montiac22]

UPDATE!!! I finally got to the right person at Whirlpool who could help me with this problem. I purchased a out of warranty policy for around 430.00 for the year that is cancelable after a year. It can also be cancelable if the company comes out and says they will not replace it. I took that chance and they came out and said they would. I'm now waiting on the 1,400.00 dollar door that I will be getting for 430.00. I call it a win-win!

[@chrisolson9716]

I have the same problem on my WRS571CIHZ02 refrigerator. My unit failed at 2 1/2 years. Whirlpool refuses to acknowledge the design flaw or even offer technical support. Calling the "help number" is nothing more than making an appt for repair AND at an unspecified cost. The operator could not even tell me what the basic, initial cost of a repair visit would be. Instead she snidely said "How can I tell you what it would cost if the technician has not seen it?" How is that for rudeness and lack of service? Local applicance repair guy said that the problem is well-known among technicians. The only fix is a new door at about $800. And the door wiring has not been redesigned so the problem will reoccur for sure. The wiring harness alone cannot be replaced because it does not have a connector on the door side so there is no way to remove/replace the wiring. He said he could solder new wire but could not give me his usual warranty on such work because he knows that the problem will reoccur. The hinge on my unit (other door) was also faulty but fortunately the installer noticed that and returned the following day with a hinge taken from another unit. That was when I realized that the door had not been secured and could have fallen off in the interim. Little did I know at that time that the unit had a fatal flaw. Whirlpool is contemptible and this product is junk. A refrigerator should have a longer life than 2 years. I was forced to replace it.

[@hitaylorfamily634]

Same problem here. Totally sucks getting a wire re-connected when its severed closer to the door.

[@philgretz]

I'd recommend adding a 2.5" length to each of the 8 wires in the larger bundle. Solder and shrink tube on each connection, then tape wrap the bundle and slip split corregated conduit over. Finally, cut away any interfering grey plastic at the kick-plate grille back side before re-installing.

[@Thebohorainbow]

Same problem here lights went out ice maker stopped crushing ice

[@billruggirello1707]

I repaired my sisters POS. All 8 wires were broken after about 1.5 years of use. There is a plastic piece that routes those wires out the bottom of the door and parallel to the bottom toward the handle side. But they must turn 90° to go under the fridge. When you open the door, that is where they bend. With the door fully open, they are bent about like this |/ vs |_ when closed. I left that plastic piece off, so now they are left to rotate in the door hole instead of bending. The ideal engineering would have routed those wires thru the top hinge since the water and other harness leave no room for those wires thru the bottom hinge. IF YOU HAVE ONE OF THESE, I would remove that part. I believe the wires will last a lot longer without it. Of course, if you are reading this, they probably are already broken.

[@Arthur-me]

this just happened to me, so frustrating, still reseraching solutions

[@derekadams8958]

So.. has anyone gone after whirlpool on this yet? Because if not I’m happy to start something up. It’s unacceptable that I have a fridge barely over a year old that doesn’t give me ice through an AZ summer..

[@nickdeliso7026]

Have you started anything? Did you fix and how? I am now experiencing the same issue. I can see cut wire. 😡

[@RealRKelly.]

@@nickdeliso7026only way is to resplice them or get new freezer door but in a couple years would be in same position.

[@nickdeliso7026]

@@RealRKelly. The Whirlpool repair guy said the wire was run incorrectly. Stated it should have been run outside the leveling leg, not inside. $1,000 for a new door, and $500 to install.

[@johngraves5698]

Same problem here all 9 wires was broken on my whirlpool fridge

[@xdlyon_lyonxd]

Excellent 👍🏾

[@jerrymelton9338]

Is there a wire harness available or do you just repair the wires? 5/17/2023

[@user-rc6qx7su3j]

Splice wires

[@ranimouf]

No wire harness available to buy and it can not be replaced. You have to buy the whole door.

[@nickdeliso7026]

WTF! A new door? It will only happen again, won’t it?

[@MrTalleywood]

My wires under the freezer section broke. The icemaker is not working. I am trying to piece them together so it can make ice.

[@Jillian1of4]

Same issue. This is ridiculous. Why haven’t they issued a recall?

[@TheSoundmanPete]

This is a common problem with many fridges and services in the door. I am not aware of any positive class action suits. I don't believe the door shell can be split open. I repair the wires with solder and shrink tubing. I don't recommend taping the harness. The harness needs to be as flexible as possible. It's not out of the question to have to extend the wires to make the bend easier. For this flaw... I have never recommended fridges with the services in the door.

[@cherrybomb2252]

Yes, I'll join the pissed off group here with what appears to be 4 broken wires. But had an idea to minimize the problem if caught soon enough. If you go to an auto supply store and buy some dielectric grease and apply a good amount all around the wire harness, it might reduce the friction enough when the door is opened to stop this from happening. Also it seems the 5th wire that has not snapped yet is still operating the ice crusher. If you go out and buy a bag of ice at the supermarket and fill it manually It will dispense crushed ice. For $2.50 every month its well worth the trouble.

[@nickdeliso7026]

How do you actually open the door up to get inside it? I know there is no harness available but if I got one how would I connect to inside of door?

[@garyperkinson8778]

Is there a recall on this or some remedy to get this properly repaired by whirlpool?

[@lin018]

I got icemaker seperately. Bad experience with kitchen with frig with ice maker. Don't ask me why.

[@ramisaaidi3953]

It is sad how a great american company is falling behind bacause of those very bad technical things. You can't find those things with other asian companies. They must fire their technical director and all the technical staff

[@judycoates6743]

FREAKING "A" that is EXACTLY what is happening. WTF........................They will hear from me for SURE. Thank you sir.

[@doublesharp5795]

Hope you have better luck than my wife did. Whirlpool said tough nuggies - too bad so sad

[@Nlyoungblood1]

This has happened to our fridge..

[@bowen53]

why doesn't the water evaporate out of a side by side whirlpool refrigerator

[@hodgesmt]

Ok, I found this when looking for information on my fridge, but all I can think of is making banana bread from those bananas... am I the only one ? :) Thanks for the info.

[@Strekcommandered]

Does someone have the part number for this wire harness?

[@RealRKelly.]

You have to order whole door cant just order wire harness.

[@bowen53]

WRS537SIAMOO why doesn't the water evaporate out of a side by side whirlpool refrigerator

[@NormanSilv]

Being quietly built in Chine by LG?

[@Neji513]

ok.... and how do i go about fixing the broken wires???

[@user-rc6qx7su3j]

Splice back together

[@doublesharp5795]

Kick Whirlpool to the curb - 1st loss best loss - I'm refrig shopping @@user-rc6qx7su3j

[@nickdeliso7026]

There IS a class action suit out there. You can do a Google search.

[@nickieadler1129]

What is the website for the class action lawsuit?

[@nickdeliso7026]

@@nickieadler1129 You need to do a google search. Every time copy and paste KZbin deletes it.

[@donnaflowers1994]

My new side by side gets condensation in closed container ruining my salad😢

[@functionalvanconversion4284]

Whirlpool used to be top notch appliances, not anymore. Four refrigerators new refrigerators with major issues in the last 3 years. Their customer support is garbage just like their refrigerators.

[@Founding-Fathers-NEWZ]

Greetings. I have a similar KitchenAid KSRA25C side by side and I have like replaced everything with the ice maker and water and it’s still VERY intermittent ice production. I finally thought I had it fixed when it started filling with ice and I dumped it and put the bucket back in the door and I swear that action stopped it again from making ice! I even told the family it was fixed and the next day they went to get ice and it’s empty!!! Question. On this model kitchenaid of mine could the wires be not on bottom hinge but instead on upper freezer door hinge? I have not taken it apart yet but I was looking under at lower hinge area just now and there is ONLY a water line down there and I don’t see the wire harness? Thanks for any advice. Matt

[@machinistjeff]

Same problem right now. This fridge is a piece of shit. On my second repair now. Engineers that designed this must have gotten their degrees from wal mart…. What a joke….

[@montiac22]

Your giving them too much credit by saying they graduated from Wal-Mart.