GDS20KBSDCC General Electric Refrigerator - Instructions

I must admit - I thought I'd attempt to do this repair and end up calling a service guy to finish it. I'm not mechanically inclined AT ALL but thought I'd give it a shot after reading others experiences. I'm glad I did. The fix was easy, but there was initial anxiety while reading the instructions that came with the part - as they mentioned the possible need to cut some wires. Fortunately that was not necessary..... Removed three screws from the rear plate to expose the part needing to be replaced. Remove the fittings from the old board (needed plyers to do that - be gentle), take the old board out by using needle nose pliers to squeeze the white plastic tabs and pull the board free. Reconnect fittings to new board and you are done. Works better now than ever - obviously the old board had an issue that GE should have recalled, as many others had the same problem.

Ordered a new Main circuit Board. It arrived next day. Unplug the fridge to take away electrical power. Unscrewed the panel on the back of the fridge near the top. I then pulled the wire connectors off the circuit board. Gently pull the board off the plastic tabs. Push the new board onto the tabs. Reconnect the wire connectors. Screw the panel back on.

Diagnosis of symptoms was condenser fan not running, due to faulty main board.

First: removed the cover over the main board, which was too hot to touch. Bad design flaw, no ventilation for the board, which I believe made it fail. We got another year of service with the cover removed.

Second: after reading people's experiences here, ordered the board and popped it in. (Note: needed a pliers to compress each of the 4 plastic studs holding the board in.) Works like a champ.

Third: did NOT replace the cover. At our altitude the air can't conduct enough heat to prevent cooking the board. Need to allow circulation.

Simply take off the back panel. Remove the old run capacitor which is attached to the compressor by a white part. It pulls right off. You will have to unplug two wires. I took a pic to ensure I plugged the wires back up the correct way. Then I attached the new capacitor to the white part and put on the sleeve that was included, plugged it back into the compressor and zip tied the excess part of the sleeve. Once done plug fridge back up (always unplug electric devices when doing maintenance) to check before replacing back panel. It may take a few minutes before it kicks on.

I removed the board, unplugged all the sockets, took the new board, plugged in all the sockets, and replaced the new board into the refrigerator. I was to applaud this business. I was first able to diagnose the problem by finding this site, then one of the customers explained how to fix the problem ourselves. It save us at least $100. The $25 overnight shipping fee was well worth it. We could have lost $100's of dollars worth of food.

The control board and access panel are on the back of the refrigerator, so you will need to roll/slide the refrigerator away from the wall to gain access to the panel. Be careful not kink the water line if you have an ice maker connection.
Unplug the power cord from power outlet on the wall.
On this model the control board is located behind a rectangular panel that is about 8" x 10". The panel is about 3 feet above the floor on the left side (as viewed looking at the back of the refrigerator).
Using a Phillips (cross point) screwdriver, remove the screws and the access panel cover. Look closely at the control circuit board and you will see 4 small white plastic protrusions sticking through the board -- these are the plastic posts that hold the board in place. There is a small tab that locks the board to the plastic mounting post. Use your needle nose pliers (or other small pliers) to compress the small tab on the post; and while squeezing, pull on the control board until it releases from the post/clip. Repeat this for each of the four posts and the board will now be free from the mounts.
Look at the plugs that connect the wires to the board and note the orientation of each plug. Each plug is a different size, so they will only fit into the socket of the correct size. On my refrigerator, there is one plug that is not connected to the board and is hanging loose, so don't get confused when connecting plugs to the new board - this one remains unconnected.
Firmly pull each plug from its socket on the board -- try not to pull by the wires. If you have a stubborn plug, grab it with your pliers and pull it out. There is a green ground wire connected by a screw into the refrigerator cabinet. Remove this screw and ground wire. (Note: on some models the green ground wire is fastened with a screw that holds the cover in place - just be sure to reconnect the wire when replacing the cover).
Insert all of the plugs into the new board -- be sure they are seated firmly. Reinstall the ground wire. Place the board over the plastic posts and push until the tab locks the board in place. Replace the cover.
On the sheet that comes with the refrigerator they instruct you to remove the lower panel on the refrigerator that covers the compressor motor compartment. They instruct you to look at the power cord connection to the compressor and to locate a green wire from a capacitor. If your power cord does not have a capacitor exactly like the one pictured, there is no need to proceed on this step. Replace the lower panel. If it does have a capacitor as illustrated, follow those instructions and then replace the panel.

Now plug in the power cord to the wall power outlet. Before pushing the refrigerator back into place you want to make sure it is operating properly. To make sure that there is no "Glitch" during start up, I suggest that you set the temperature control inside of the refrigerator to "OFF" and wait about 3 minutes. After 3 minutes, set the control to the desired temperature (about 37 Deg for Refrigerator and 0 Deg for the Freezer).
If the refrigerator is running, you are finished. Being careful not to kink the water line, push the refrigerator back into place.

Pulled out the fridge and unplugged electric cord. Took off the back lower right side panel. Unplugged all the connectors and removed the motherboard. Replaced the motherboard and reconnected connectors. Replaced the panel and plugged it in. Works great!

First, I removed the cover plate from behind the fridge. Next, I carefully pulled the main board out (four little clips holding it in) and disconnected the plug in wires. I connected the wires to the new board, popped it back in place and replaced the cover. Very easy to do.

Unbolted the back cover, pulled out old board, replaced with new bored and powered back on. It is working great now.

Simple directions were provided. It took more to clean and vaccuum than the actual repair. Yes I replaced the motherboard in a referigerator. Just keep not of the connectors and were they came off from on the original board. Dont just rip them off because the new board has some different connections. So follow the directions and take your time if your not sure. But really it a cinch. No more whoooo sheeesh and howling noises from the referigerator. Thank goodness.

Simple; Removed the panel, unplugged the cable connections to the mother board with a rat nosed plier.
Then to remove board you must squeeze closed the 4 plastic retainer clips in each corner, or they can accidentally be pulled off with the board.
Removed the board, re-attached the new board on the clips, then the cable connectors, then the panel.
Plugged in the refrige and it has been silent ever since.
Follow the instructions and anyone can do it.

The back panel was unscrewed, we read the directions with the circuit board and followed them. It was very easy to unplug the old faulty unit and plug in the new replacement part. It was done in 4 minutes flat. Very easy to do yourselves!

The replacement part went in quite easily and quickly. The instructions sent with the part was pretty self explanatory. I have also replaced the defroster element, the defrost thermostat and now the main control board. After having done all this the thing is still freezing up. After disassembling the whole freezer section I found yet another temperature sensor (Also known as Thermistor). I'll replace this part next and if it still freezes up you'll be able to find it sitting on the curb. Thrown enough money at this ten year old fridge and a new one will be in order. Thanks Parts Select for reasonably priced parts, the posts to help with the repair and the fast shipping.

unplugged the old valve and disconnected the water line, then reconnected water line on new valve and plugged it in. It was an easy process but unfortunately that did not fix the problem. It is the ice maker it self so I will be ordering a replacement ice maker.

Finding your site saved me $200.00 ! I thought I needed a new door handle but all I needed was the brackets to hold the handle on the door. The diagram you displayed of my refrigerator helped me focus on what I really needed to fix my problem. I ordered the parts I needed and was expecting the parts I order to come in 7 working days, I received them in 2 days. Thanks for your help, Laura