2539287213 Kenmore Freezer - Instructions

Removed old thermostat and replaced. really easy.

First I remove the back panel which had 4 screws. Then I removed the ice maker. The icemaker is held in place by the 2 screws that requires backing the screws out just a litter, than lift up and remove the electrical connector. Used a volt ohm meter to check the resisitant in the heater element and the defrost timing switch. Both tested good and that left only the thermostat. Removed and replaced the thermastat swich. I cut the ends of the old switch and crimp the ends of wire with the crimps that came with the swict i purchased from parts select. My refrigerator is working properly and making ice like normal.

Removed the old defrost timer by removing 4 screws on the holding bracket. Disconnected the wire harness. Reconnected the wire harness to the new part. Installed the new part with 2 screws on the top of the molded bracket. I am a 67 year old woman... easy-peasy. (the defost timer is located in the bottom left rear of the freezer.

Bought the defrost timer based on PartSelect recommendations, installed it and no change. Apparently the old one was fine but since the refrigerator was in a flood and this part got submerged in water I kept it rather than returning it. I looked at everything closely and realized all the mechanical functions were working properly. Rarely does a condenser coil fail so I decided to look into recharging the coolant. Bought a 1/4 inch bullet valve, a 12oz. can of R-134a and a cheap resealable can adapter with hose, gauge and R22 to R-134a adapters. After a $30. investment Bingo, after one squirt the refrigerator began to cool and after 4oz. it now works better than new. I understand that PartSelect is in the business of selling only their parts but please consider that there can be other simple problems.

After receiving the part in the mail I removed it from the box and laid it flay on the floor. I had to use a hair dryer to CAREFULLY work it flat from the shipping. This took about an hour and a glass of scotch. I then let it sit over night to get the gasket as flat as possible. The next day I unloaded the freezer, unplugged it, and pulled the old gasket off by removing all the screws. I carefully slide the seal out of the track and did not remove the cover from the door. I left the door open for a couple hours to completely melt all of the ice and clean out the interior. I put the top and bottom of the seal in the track and carefully worked the sides in. It helps if you use a few screws to hold the gasket in place. Then easily pull the gasket to position it correctly. Using a screw gun with a clutch will help since there are quite a few screws. Check the seal by closing the door and see how it seals. It may be necessary to use the hair dryer to get the seal to pull up to the freezer body. Close the door and plug it it. Wait a few hours before putting in any food. Take your time and having a helper will make it go quicker.

tested defrost timer and heater. And then tested defrost timer with ohm test($6 at hard ware store) Closed and would not open replace and tested freezer take 30mins to get switch cold and retest.

From discussions with friends, I determined the problem might be easy to fix. The fridge made a lot of noise, but the compressor DID come on, and inside the freezer was cold, but the main fridge was warming.

After unplugging the fridge, I removed the fan assembly in the freezer (there were about 4 nuts and a couple of plugs to uncouple.

I could see right away the fan blades has broken off, but the motor looked good. The new new fan pushed easily onto the shift and fit perfectly in the housing.

I reinstalled the fan assembly, plugged in the fridge, and right away heard the new fan come on - very quietly. What was a roar became a whisper and the fridge was down to 38 degrees with a few hours.

1. I took out one screw on the ice maker and loosened the other two screws and unplugged and removed the ice maker.
2. Next I took out 2 screws from the bottom of the auger drive box and unplugged the wiring harness and removed the box. The wiring harness was a little tricky. The lock on the plug pushes in to unlock even though it looks like it pulls out,.
3.next you must remove 2 screws from the left side bracket that holds the auger box and remove the bracket.
4.Now take out 8 screws that hold the back panel in place and remove the back panel.
5. now your looking at the evaporator fan blade and motor. The simple way to replace the fan blade is to unplug the motor and remove it from the freezer. It just sits in with nothing holding it. The fan requires a little pressure but should pull right off. Install new fan blade and put everything back in the same order it was removed.

Pulled out the freezer. Unplugged. No freezer back cover was there. The compressor start relay was in a plastic encasement attached to the compressor - wires led me to it. Removed the solid metal spring with a screwdriver and removed the plastic cover. Tried to pull out the defective relay but the freezer was so old I needed a pliers to remove it. When I put pressure on the old relay with the pliers the relay broke and came off in pieces. I then removed the wires from the broken parts and put them on the new relay. I pushed the new relay onto the 2 pins then replaced the cover and spring. After plugging the freezer in the problem was fixed.

Needed a Phillips head screwdriver to remove bottom plate (kick panel). UNPLUGGED FREEZER. Removed plate pulled switch out through the mounting hole and unhooked the two electric wires. Placed wires on new switch, pushed wires back through the hole and seated the switch. Plugged in the freezer and opened the door - magic, the light came on. Replaced the front kick panel (hardest part was to line up the plate holes with the holes in the mounting bracket).

The old defrost timer started making a screeching noise (probably bearings going out). The replacement part was a cinch to install. When I initially spoke to a PartsSelect person, they said the part number I gave them was not consistent with my old '94 Tappan Freezer. They were able to still find the proper replacement part number. The video that was on-line helpful also.

Both end caps were missing on the door side bottom metal shelf. succesfully installed no tools needed

1. Turned off the cooling cycle and unplugged the refrigerator.
2. Removed all of the shelving and bottom basket.
3. Removed rear covering in the freezer section.
4. If frosted over, manually defrost coils with hairdryer.
5. Located original thermostat and after marking the wire locations cut the wires and removed the Thermostat.
6. Connected matching wires using a lighter to melt the wires together. Wrapped repaired wires with electricians tape.
7. Unable to install the thermostat in the recommended location (freezer is a tight fit) the new part was installed at the original location.
8. Replaced the rear cover and shelves.
9. Plugged in the refrigerator and set the cycle back to cooling.
10. Monitored freezer coils couple of days/weeks depending on how fast they freeze over (slots at bottom of cover) to validate if problem solved.

I did watch a repair a utube video which I asked for when ordering. Pretty much followed most of the directions but:

started in left corner an lossed all screws from left to right. took off old gasket in small sections and inserted the new gasket and semi tighten screws

proceeded down left side then right little by little as above. to get to bottom of door.

bottom corners were a little snug to get them into place. the last corner was snug but once connected. tighten screws not too tight. You dont want to strip them.

test door with piece of paper.

if paper is not a snug tug, you can adjust gasket with a hair dryer set to low.

it was easy. freezer is all set.

Partselect was great to deal with, support verified the part number was correct for my freezer and help with that video.

This did not fix the problem. Call a repairman and he cannot come until 9/11. Food is staying frozen. Alarm sounds for awhile and then shuts off for a bit.