Samurai Appliance Repair Man's Blog

Y'all gather 'round, ol' Uncle Samurai has another sad tale to tell about how someone thought they were gonna save a buck or two buying cheap, generic parts off of Ebay or Amazon but it turns out the parts either don't last long or don't work at all. I rectum this is an increasingly common story in these tough economic times with everyone pinching pennies so hard you can almost hear ol' Abe screaming. But, as we're gonna see in today's saga, buying cheap, knock-off parts from the online peddlers of phony appliance parts is false economy, what we call "penny-wise and dollar dumb."

I got this email from confused and frustrated Karla who contacted me about a (surprise!) non-functioning knock-off part she bought from some peddler on Ebay. For some reason, she thought she bought it through this website, www.Appliantology.org. Why did she think that? Who knows! People think all kinds of strange and unpredictable things. That's why humans are so interesting and frustrating at the same time.

For the record: all parts sold through the parts links and search boxes at this website are new, genuine OEM parts and all come with a one year return policy, even on electrical parts that have been installed. I do not sell parts on Ebay but there are peddlers there who do using names that sound confusingly similar to this website.

Your Name: karla *******

Your Email Address: karla********@********.net

Your Appliantology Username, if you have one:

What would you like to talk about? Other NON-APPLIANCE REPAIR problem

Talk to the Samurai: Less than a week ago i bougth thru ebay and pay by paypal a part to my fridge apparently it came ok but once intalled only worked for two days, is there a possibility to return it and change the part for one that works please call ***-***-**** i need the fridge to work
Item title
Price
Shipping price
Qty
Item total

NEW GE refrigerator main control board part WR55X10942 ( item: 261174184655 transaction: 1192412668016 )
Paid on Apr-16-13
$89.25
Free
1

$89.25

Shipped on Apr-18-13
USPS Priority Mail

Estimated delivery: Tue. Apr. 23 - Wed. Apr. 24
Tracking number: 9405503699300397360687

The control board she bought for her GE refrigerator is the famous Muthaboard. A genuine replacement Muthaboard, brand new in a GE box with a one year warranty retails for about $165.

Karla paid about $90.

How does that work? Well, in her case, it didn't. The board she bought from the parts peddler on Ebay was probably scavenged from another refrigerator that was junked for a bad sealed system. The parts peddler had no way of checking the board and probably didn't care-- just sell it and let the customer see if it works.

Read more about online appliance parts ripoffs and scams in the March issue of our newsletter, Appliantology: The Oracle of Appliance Enlightenment.

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If you're working on a GE refrigerator that's dead in the water and you've checked for a good 120vac power supply right up to the J11 connector on the muthaboard, then try this troubleshooting tip from Brother BryanS:

Sometimes a shorted fan motor can give you that same scenario. You can try unplugging j2 fan connector and see if the compressor comes on. If it does then you need to just determine which motor is shorted. I've only this happen to me once and it was the evap motor.

The muthaboard diagram below shows the location of the J2 connector of which Brother BryanS speaks:



You can see a bigger version of the muthaboard diagram here.


If it the refrigerator starts running with the J2 connector unplugged, you should replace BOTH the affected fan motor (usually the evaporator fan) AND the muthaboard.   See this topic for a heads-up about getting the correct evaporator fan motor for your model.  


To learn more about your refrigerator or to order parts, click here.


Source: GE Ref PDS22SCRBRSS No control board operation

Brother Durham explains the diagnostic test kit available for GE refrigerators:

If you do a lot of GE fridge repairs, you may benefit by getting a diagnostic aid shown in the following video. It is, in essence, nothing but a control panel that you can use and will bypass the one in your fridge,  whether it is a similar panel, knobs or lcd screen control found at the dispenser. With such a panel, if you connect it and everything works, then you will be certain you have a bad control panel.  

btw, the part numbers needed for the aid have been changed. Instead of the three parts mentioned in the video, you need two WR55X10390 (interface and touch panel kit) and WX05X14999 ( wire harness). I got one a few weeks ago and it paid for itself in a few days.

ps you  can make one of these by removing a 5  key control interface from an otherwise dead GE and then purchase the harness.

To learn more about your refrigerator or to buy parts, click here.


Source: GE Ref PDS22SCRBRSS No control board operation

One of the little secrets in the appliance manufacturing world is that the manufacturers will often build appliances for each other. One example of this is certain models of GE dryers are actually built by Frigidaire but sold under the GE label.

There are two maintenance kits out there for Frigidaire-built dryers:

- part number 5304461262 for the older-style units and

- part number 5304457724 for the newer-style units.

What's the difference? Click each of the links and above and carefully examine the photos of the parts included with each kit and try to spot the difference.

Give up? Okay, Brother vee8power, one of the wise and esteemed Master Appliantologists here at the Academy, explains the difference:

Looking at the parts breakdown for that model, it looks to me like the correct maintenance kit for your dryer is this one
http://www.repaircli...4457724/1198622

Notice in the picture that the upper felt does not have the three plastic glides. That's because the plastic glide on your dryer is attached to the drum, it is the newer design.

The 5304461262 mentioned above is for the older design, with no plastic glide on the front of the drum.
Another thing worth noting is that this is a GE brand dryer but it is built by Frigidaire. The part #'s for the kits are Frigidaire numbers. You won't find them on the parts breakdown for a GE.

Knowing how parts interchange is one way us professionals can save our customers, and our fellow forum members, some dough.

BTW... gas coils... Whirlpool, GE, an Frigidaire all have part numbers for exactly the same part. Guess which one is Generally most Expensive

To learn more about your dryer or to order parts, click here.


Source: Squeeky GE Profile gas dryer model #DPXH46GF