CSX22GABGWW Hotpoint Refrigerator - Instructions

put block of wood under the door, removed old hinge and installed the new one. about 15 minutes

I simply put the two ends into the slots and VOILA...

Determined that the defrost heater was bad (didn't test the thermostat or sensor) and attempted to replace it first.

Got the part in one day (super fast shipping).

1) Removed back panel on the inside of the freezer compartment using a nut driver.
2) Removed the ground wire clip from the metal panel
3) Used a screw driver to remove the two philips head screws that hold the heater assembly in place.
4) carefully pulled off the wires attached to the assembly.
5) attached the wires to the new heater
6)attached the new heater and screwed the new heater in place
7) attached the inside panel
8) fridge is now working great.

First let me remind you my husband is disabled so it was up to me to do the repair. I'm 70 yrs old. I first removed everything from freezer and then removed the back cover removimg 4 screws,then i removed the old defrost unit which held 2 screws replaced with the new one then i had to put cover back in place..then put everything back in freezer and so far its working...Only time will tell.But the part was so reasonable that if if i have to i will get another..but not for a while i'm hoping,

This is such an easy fix!
1-Unplugging the fridge and emptyi it. Remove all shelves.
2-remove the 2 screws at the top of the back panel with a 1/4 inch nutdriver. You'll have to tilt ithis panel forward and sideways to get it out.
3- DO NOT CHIP AT THR ICE COVERING THE COOLING COILS? Replace one shelf and rest a hair dryer on low heat on the shelf.. Plug the drain hole at the bottom with a rag so all the melted ice water doesn't flood the floor under the fridge. Soak up the water with a rag and bucket- this should take 20-30 minutes.
4-Remove the red and blue power cables from the element. Only 2 philips head screws hold the defrosting element in place. Once it's out you can tell it's burned out because it looks black like a burned out lightbulb.
4-Plug in the red and blue power cables to the new unit. You will need to reroute the blue power cable because the new unit has both power connections on the same end.
5-Replace the cover panel by sliding it in at an angle and replace the 1/4 inch screws.
6-Replace the shelves and plug in the fridge.
That's it!

The most difficult part of the repair was the melting of the ice and preparation. I did change a single element heater for a dual element heater, which required a little manual flexing of the sub-frame, but it assembled with little issue. I was lucky, I did not have to splice the extended harness connection. Rerouting my existing gave sufficent length.
Not sure if the single elements were changed for dual, but it did have the same PN as the unit I replaced.

After reordering a second unit, (because the first one was cracked), I gently pushed in both sides until the unit was in place. It was a snap.

By the time this failure (failed defroster heating element) is evident (top of freezer starts thawing), the entire freezer coil is encased in a block of ice & frost is visble on the back freezer panel.
Empty the freezer & unplug (or turn circuit breaker off) then remove all racks and the light bulb then remove the two lower drawer guides using a phillips srewdriver (2 scrwes each). Use a 1/4" nutdriver to remove the two panel screws on either side of the light bulb socket and pull the panel out, unclip the green grounging wire and set panel aside. this exposes the freezer evaporator coil which is probably encased in ice. If so, use a heat gun or hair dryer to melt the ice away. This takes a half hour of heat application and a bowl or other catchpan should be placed under the coil to remove some of the resulting melting runoff so the evap. pan under the fridg/freezer unit won't be overwhelmed with the excess water.
Replacing the defrost heater & bracket assembly itself is just a matter of removing two phillips screws on either side of the bracket assembly, pulling the bracket free and then uncliping the two electrical terminals. Clip in the new unit to the eletrical terminals & replace the screws, reinstall the rear panel (don't forget to reconnect the ground wire), install the drawer backets, light bulb, shelves and drawer & reapply power. Replacing the bracket itself w/o the defrost proceedure takes about 15 minutes.

Note: If this symptom occurs and is diagnosed (the heater tube will be black and electrically read as "open" using an ohmmeter) and you cannot get the heater assembly & bracket assembly immediately, you can use the heat gun (hairdryer) manual defrost proceedure noted above to get the the unit running while you await the parts arrival. I used the manual defrost procedure and there was just some moderate frost on the coils after five days when I was able to install the replacement part.

I called the repair tech who obviously did not want to come out, thank god. He told me to remove the back panel of the freezer and also check fan on back side. Told him there was alot of ice on freezer condenser and he advised that defrost heater was probably shot, and referred me to partselect.com. I unplugged the frig/freezerer, and removed the heater and saw it was blackened and cooked. I used a hairdryer to thaw the condenser, and the new part arrived the next day. I reattached the 2 plugs, 2 screws, and put the back panel of the freezer back on. I plugged the appliance back in, checked it 6 hours later and the frig is cold again. It was a VERY easy repair and took less than 30 minutes from start to finish. I was quoted between $40-$78 for the part at 3 different places in the phone book, which would have also required a 45 minute drive. I got it here for $38 including shipping and it arrived in 24 hours !
With the "blow-up view" appliance feature on this web-site, and simply being guided to the correct part by entering the model number, it was a very easy ordering process and repair.

Removed cover in freezer over evaporator,unbolted element ,plugged ,and replaced, very simple. Should be first thing checked when theres a problem.

i unplugged the fridge, first i removed the racks, then unhooked the grounding clip. the i tool off two 1/4 nut screws holding the backplate. then i used my wifes hair dryer to thaw out the ice. after it thawed out i unscrewed the element bracket which is secured by two philips screw. after taking the screws off, its just unplug one end at a time and plug it to the new one to avoid confusion. then reverse install to put back together.

I followed the easy instructions included with the replacement part I ordered. I removed the back of the freezer, unpluged the broken heater and replace with the new heater. The heater just plugged in, very very simple. I put the back panel bach on with the two screws and it perfectly. Not back for a girl!

Removed shelves and light bulb cover. Then removed the two screws that hold the back wall of freezer compartment in place and removed cover. Thawed ice jam with hair dryer. Removed the two screws holding heating element in place and pulled element out far enough to disconnect the two wires. Reconnected wires to new element and put everything back together.
Installation instructions which came with new part were accurate and very easy to understand.
It took about 30 minutes total.

I had done this repair almost exactly 2 years ago. I also read in this forum about a guy who said he had to do it every 2 years... bad part design.

However, GE has replaced the original single element with a dual element, and that is what PartSelect sent me. I had to splice one wire, but the instructions were clear and it went like a breeze. Oh, and the part arrived less than 3 days after I ordered it with standard shipping. Way to go, guys! Thanks!

I aligned the back of the controller with the slot in the icebox and it popped right back on. No more frozen vegetables.