RA186GCD3 Frigidaire Refrigerator - Instructions

Part Select suggested probable causes and supplied videos of how to make the repair of a 25 yr.old refrigerator along with the specific parts to order. I was about to trash the old refrigerator but after replacing the parts for a total of about $40 and 1 hour of time it works fine now.

Ordered new parts, removed old parts, put in new parts. Done.

Replaced the refrigerator thermostat. One hex-head screw in the rear and two tabs on the front hold the thermostat cover on. The temperature knob pulls off by friction, exposing two phillips-head screws that hold the thermostat in place. Two power wires and one ground wire are held on by clips. The replacement thermostat is a different shape than the original, but it is a direct fit. This replacement eliminated the problem. The only thing that made the job difficult was not having any instructions nor any wiring diagrams for the refrigerator.

Turned off Refrigerator by thermostat switch in Freezer Compartment,(allowing for light to work in freezer). Then removed all food from freezer side,then all shelves & basket drawer. Next, unplugged refrigerator from electrical source. Removed back of inside of the freezer. Located the Thermostat for defrosting cooling coil. Removed and replaced with new part.(Tip-unplugged the wires for the original thermostat, remove from freezer and cut off and splice with connectors provided with new part, it's easier because you're not trying to do this in the narrow space of the freezer). Then attach the thermostat with new bracket and plug thermostat wires back in, replace back panel, shelves, plug in power supply, turn thermostat switch in Freezer to normal setting. Wait for Freezer to cool and replace food. It's currently working like new. BTW I thought I need a defrost time as well...however after I ordered that part and received it, I turned the existing defroster timer manually with a straight ended screwdriver very slowly and it cycled and the defrost rods glowed/functioned just fine. Therefore I didn't replace defrost timer. I'll save the new timer for future repair if needed. All in all it was fairly easy, and I didn't have to buy another fridge. I was really pleased with the service of this website...and the parts arrived very quickly via Fedex. Thanks www.partselect.com ! KJ

I original tried to repair the motor but was not able to. I remove the screws on the back plate and removed the the back plate. Removed the shroud for the motor and screws, unplug the power connection and removed the fan motor. Installed the new fan motor and reassembled everything. The refrigerator is working great.

I first thought the defroster heater broke - took the back wall of the freezer off and cooling fins were fine. Then took the defroster timer out and opened it up. The contacts were badly burnt so the compressor and fan ran during only part of the cooling cycle. Replacing the timer took less than 5 minutes - turn off the power, remove one screw to take out the control box, cut the ground wire (new timer housing is plastic and does not have a ground connection), remove two screws to unmount the timer, unplug the old timer, plug in the new timer, fasten with two screws, put the control unit in and fasten with one screw, turn power back on.

Unplug the refrigerator unit from wall. I removed freezer rack, plastic light cover, the ice rack shelf on the right side, then removed the plastic back cover panel, (4) retaining screws, gently tilting the panel toward me, unplug the wiring harness by depressing the clips on the side of the plug, removed panel from unit, set aside. If the unit was froze up, so I defrosted the cooling coils carefully with a common hair dryer until it was thawed. Be careful not to touch or bend the coils , since they are very fragile and SHARP! I located the old thermostat unit attached to a straight length of coolant line. The new unit looked like the old one, so it was easy to locate. I cut the two wires of the old unit close to the round base to make sure I would have enough wire to reconnect. Since my new unit did not indicate a polarity(Neg or Pos), I just wired each wire I cut to one of the new unit. I used the shrink tubing provided and heated the shrink till it was fully melted. I double ck'd to see if the wires were basically waterproof and a good connect. Also, before I replaced the rear panel, I made sure that both wires I had spliced had a drip loop to it so water would not drip down into the newly spliced union. Also made sure the wires will not interfere with the colling fan on the back of the rear panel. Reverse the procedure in reassembling. Plug in unit, and wait and listen for the unit coming back on..I kept a regular thermometer in the upper and lower compartments. Allow 24 hrs. for the unit to return to normal operation. It may defrost several times till the whole operation is back in sync.

I watched the video you had on-line and it was simple. Thank you so much

Emptied freezer, removed fan motor cover (2 screws), removed fan and motor (2 screws), removed old motor from bracket and reassembled with new motor, transferred fan blade from old motor to new), re-installed new fan/motor (2 screws) and reinstalled cover...

You guys at Partselect are the best!!! Went to your site, typed in my appliance symptoms, and received possible fixes. Ordered the suggested parts (under $50) on a Sunday night and got em Tuesday am. Installed the easiest one first and Voila!!!! Frig is working great. Thanks Bob S

Remove 4 screws that hold up overhead controls, this is also the part that holds the light. Unplug the timer and replace. Super simple and runs great now. After you plug it in it may take a few minutes to kick on the compressor but it will. Also I was pleased it was a factory Frigidare part. Price was right.

The drain pan fit to perfection on our Frigidaire refrigerator model FPE19V3AW1 from 1987(!!!).

I went on partselect put in make and model number, a list showed the probable cause. I watched the how to video. When I received the part in short order I loosened 2 screws disconnected the wiring plug (sprayed it with contact cleaner) pluged it in, removed screws from old part put them in new one. Put timer back in its location and tightened the screws. Very eazy, works fine.

I pick up very fast at these kind of small jobs but because of my very busy schedule I decided to call (2 times) technicians about my problem but none of them had any idea. About my repair, I removed the grill at the bottom of the refrigerator, unscrew a small plate (located on the bottom left side) that's holding the defrost timer. I plug on the new part, screw back the plate with the defrost timer and that was it. Don't forget to turn clockwise with your finger the timer until you hear a "click" and then turn it slightly more to the right. There is also a video on U-tube.

open freezer door two screws just below unscrew slide piece to side unplug reinstall very simple.