23 replies to this topic

[sluggo0018]

The fridge side of my side by side is too cold and freezing vegetables, etc. I have not yet recorded the temperature, but frozen lettuce, carrots and cucumbers are a dead give away.   I initially tried setting the temperature to the warmest setting without success.  Still too cold.  After researching, I learned that this setting controls the damper door between the freezer and fridge.  I am going to try increasing the freezer setting to hopefully get the damper door to shut and see if this helps with the fridge temperatures.

 

A little background info:  The unit was making a very audible fan noise before the problem of being too cold surfaced.  The noise sounded very much like a plastic fan blade rubbing against another another piece of plastic.  That noise was quite noticeable and would come and go periodically.  It reminded me a little of how I used to use baseball card rubbing against the spokes of my bike to make it should like a motorcycle when I was a kid. Then suddenly the noise stopped and the fridge started getting too cold.  I am assuming the stopping of the fan and temperature condition are related, right?  Is the fan in question the evaporator fan?  Could it be that without circulation, the temperature control is now ineffective and the compressor is working extra hard to cool the unit?

 

I could use some help from those wiser than me to troubleshoot this issue.  How can I visually see if the damper door is moving as it is supposed to?  Where is the evaporator fan located and how do I access it?  Any other help would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks in advance.

[Vets Appliance]

Sometimes the best thing to do is to take one thing at a time. Odds are that the damper assembly in the top left of the fridge is jammed open and letting too much cold air through, which almost always means it needs to be replaced. The noise may or may not have to do with that but, for now, let's focus on that.

 

Most other fan noises that suddenly stop end up with the fridge getting warm, not cold. This has me leaning towards the noise being from the damper. Go ahead and pull it out and check that little flapper and the "pin" that pushes it open. While it's out, turn your temp knobs to 0 and wait 30 seconds to be sure but that flapper should move, and then move again when you turn the dials back up from 0 to something else.

 

If anything rattles, clicks or is just plain old stuck in that assembly, replace it.

[Anytime Nick]

http://www.repaircli...9X10091/1055112

those little damper doors break off the motor all the time. problem is, the motor is continued to be energized for a short time after the door is fully open or fully closed, and it stressed the plastic too much on the corner where it attaches to the motor. the replacements are made with stronger plastic doors to prevent it from happening again.

[maytagman]

The WR49X10091 is most likely the problem, but when you say you noticed vegetables frozen, is it just stuff in the crisper drawers?  When the evaportator freezes up you can get frozen food in the crispers, but usually things @ the top of the fridge are pretty warm.  I doubt that is the case, but just thought I would mention it.

[DurhamAppliance]

Those damper doors fall off so much that I keep at least one damper assembly in stock at all times. That's the first thing I check when I get a too cold problem now. Problem is most of the time it is a pta to get to it. I never go on a too cold GE profile sxs without a damper assembly on my truck. You don't want to take the fridge apart to check for a bad damper door, reassemble it , come back with the part, take the damn thing apart again...install the new damper and reassemble the fridge again. uh...that is unless you charge for all the dis and re assemblies. btw if you think you can take the bad assembly off and only reassemble the fridge in a few days when you get the part, think again.  The assembly also blocks cold air from the freezer from blowing directly on the water filter housing. If it freezes and cracks, you may be paying for a new floor.  It may be possible to use some extreme tape to partially block the air vent and deflect air from the filter housing. I've never tried it but it will probably work. Keep a wr49x10091 and knock it out in one visit.

[maytagman]

It is a pain in the ass, and that is what I have done the few times I have been caught without the part in my van.  I take the assembly apart, remove the broken damper door and use foil tape to block the airway but leave about a 1/4" gap and it seems to work well.  It took a couple days to get the part and get back to one customer and he didn't want me to put the part in because the fridge temp had been fine.  I explained that the tape most likely wouldn't hold up and he would have the same issue again. It will definately work in a pinch though.

[DurhamAppliance]

  It took a couple days to get the part and get back to one customer and he didn't want me to put the part in because the fridge temp had been fine. 

this happened to me a while back when I used a desk fan to keep a compressor cool while waiting on a condenser fan motor.  He wanted to pay me but did not want me to "mess things up". lol  I told him ok  but he changed his mind when I told him my warranty would not cover any damage and gave him an estimated price for a compressor replacement.  btw  now when I use a desk fan in this method, I explain to the customer all the risks and have him sign off on it if he wants me to do it.

[Samurai Appliance Repair Man]

Great topic, guys!  Just ordered me a GE damper assembly for shelf stock based on the wisdom in this topic.  I checked the pricing at Marcone, supposedly wholesale priving, and they wanted $90 and they only give a 30 day warranty.  RepairClinic sells it for $110 with a one year return policy.  Bought it from RepairClinic same as I do all my electronics boards.  

[vee8power]

0n the ones I've seen you can remove the light bulb cover and the light bulb(s), lower the light sockets(two screws). Peer down the hole in the styrofoam and see the damper door just laying there broken off. No need to take apart that whole mess. The new part has that hole blocked.

[DurhamAppliance]

0n the ones I've seen you can remove the light bulb cover and the light bulb(s), lower the light sockets(two screws). Peer down the hole in the styrofoam and see the damper door just laying there broken off. No need to take apart that whole mess. The new part has that hole blocked.

I remember seeing the broken door once before I removed it. Most of the time I could not get my eyeballs on it. I will try your method the next time....thanks!

[sluggo0018]

Figured I would post an update.

 

I ordered the wr49x10091 part and replaced it last night.  I was able to find the part for 60.75 plus $5.99 for shipping,  Arrived in two days. 

 

Sure enough, the damper door on the old one was broken off.  I am guessing that the fan noise I heard was the fan blades striking the damper door after it broke off..

 

Installation was fairly straight forward.  Temperatures seem to have normalized in the fridge and freezer.  Changing the fridge temperature setting now actually causes the internal temperature to change.

 

Everyone is happy except for the wife.  She wanted to replace this white refrigerator with a shiny stainless unit and saw the temperature problems as her key to getting a new one.  This is the second time I have fixed it, crushing her dreams of replacing it.  Same thing happened with the oven last year when a simple igniter replacement brought the unit back to life.  She had already picked out the stainless model to replace the white one.  With a kid in college and another to start shortly, we are better off fixing things than replacing them.

 

Thank you everybody for the help and advice.  The diagnosis was spot on.

[Samurai Appliance Repair Man]

Figured I would post an update.

 

I ordered the wr49x10091 part and replaced it last night.  I was able to find the part for 60.75 plus $5.99 for shipping,  Arrived in two days. 

 

Good info, Sluggo!  Where'd you find the damper assembly for this great, low price?

[DurhamAppliance]

Everyone is happy except for the wife.  She wanted to replace this white refrigerator with a shiny stainless unit and saw the temperature problems as her key to getting a new one.  This is the second time I have fixed it, crushing her dreams of replacing it.  Same thing happened with the oven last year when a simple igniter replacement brought the unit back to life.  She had already picked out the stainless model to replace the white one.  With a kid in college and another to start shortly, we are better off fixing things than replacing them.

We really appreciate the update.....If the problem reoccurs, however, no need of posting it here.  A spy cam would probably serve you better.  I have a sneaky suspicion that if your damper fails again and you check out your spy cam...you may see an image of someone, now armed with the knowledge that these dampers break often,  frantically jabbing a coat hanger  in the top of the fresh food section. If this happens, just laugh and break out the cash. If they're happy, so are we... Ya gotta love em! lol

[sluggo0018]

Good info, Sluggo!  Where'd you find the damper assembly for this great, low price?

 

Hopefully, I am allowed to mention my source.  Some forums like this get upset when specific retailers are mentioned.  But if that was the case, you probably wouldn't have asked me.  You certainly have enough posts to know the forum rules.  I have no affiliation with the retailer.

 

I found the part through Amazon.com.  Looks like the specific retailer is a place called Partshouse.  You can see the offer at this website: 

 

http://amzn.to/ZUJ1x6

 

So far, it is still working.

[DurhamAppliance]

Hopefully, I am allowed to mention my source.  Some forums like this get upset when specific retailers are mentioned.  But if that was the case, you probably wouldn't have asked me.  You certainly have enough posts to know the forum rules.

Yeah, especially since he IS the forum rules. Lol

[Samurai Appliance Repair Man]

Daf right!  I wouldnta axed if I didn't want to know the answer!  Just curious: Did the part come in a GE bag?  Reason I ask is because in the past I've bought parts through Amazon that were advertised as OEM parts but, when they arrived, I saw they were generic, unbranded knock-offs.  OEM parts will always come in a branded container, usually plastic bag.  

[RegUS_PatOff]

... retailer is a place called Partshouse.

shipped from PA.

it may be this place

http://www.partshous...servlet/Service

 

and it's "parent" site

http://www.mccombssu...ales-flyer.html

 

and their "current" parts flyer

http://www.mccombssu...March Flyer.pdf

looks like some Supco part numbers

[sluggo0018]

Daf right!  I wouldnta axed if I didn't want to know the answer!  Just curious: Did the part come in a GE bag?  Reason I ask is because in the past I've bought parts through Amazon that were advertised as OEM parts but, when they arrived, I saw they were generic, unbranded knock-offs.  OEM parts will always come in a branded container, usually plastic bag.  

 

The part was in a generic bubble wrap bag.  No GE logos on the bag.  When the website said the part was OEM, I believed them.  Maybe the price was too good to be true.  Live and learn.

 

Hopefully the part will hold up even if it is not a true GE part.  We'll see.  Have you experienced durability or performance issues with non-OEM parts?  The original unit lasted 10 years and had questionable design based on all the replacements needed.  At least if it breaks again, I can diagnose and fix it quickly.  I am still way ahead of the game versus having a service tech come out.  We'll see how it holds up.

[maytagman]

Maybe they get them in bulk from the same supplier that Supplies GE. It's a pretty specific part and not used in the majority of their side by side refrigerators, I can't believe that the demand would be high enough for a company to setup and manufacture their own. I doubt the quality could be any worse. It's just a cheesy little computer type cooling fan and mechanical damper. I've never took 1 apart, looked at it and said wow, I can't believe that broke that's some high quality stuff.

[DurhamAppliance]

Daf right!  I wouldnta axed if I didn't want to know the answer!  Just curious: Did the part come in a GE bag?  Reason I ask is because in the past I've bought parts through Amazon that were advertised as OEM parts but, when they arrived, I saw they were generic, unbranded knock-offs.  OEM parts will always come in a branded container, usually plastic bag.  

Good to know....Just watched a dvr'd episode of the History Channel's "The Vikings" and it has me thinking. There's a a scene where the King caught one of his advisers looking at the Queen. After the adviser finished giving the King the info he needed, the King went to him and asked if he was looking at the Queen. He said "of course not, majesty." The King then said..."If the queen wants you, who are you to refuse her..you have my blessings." The Queen then invited the Adviser to her bed. As soon as he got in it, the king appeared with his guards, told the Adviser  "now I know who to trust and who not to trust.  Never betray me, even if I ordered  you to do so" and the guards quickly killed him.

 

Recently, in another post, the Samurai asked about other supply houses we would recommend. It confused me at first....I waited for others to respond....see what happened....nothing negative appeared to have happened then....so I chimed in and offered another company as well.  Now as I think about it, his post was about the same day that episode of Vikings originally appeared on tv.....be right back....I got some editing to do....(changing response in that post to "no...I no of no other parts houses better than the one you use....majesty")