59679519012 Kenmore Refrigerator - Instructions

After watching a couple of YouTube videos I had an idea of what to expect. It is really easy. Simply pull out the old, clean up the track and press in the new. I used a heat gun to eliminate the wrinkles in the material. A hair dryer would work as well.

The part arrived as expected. I detached the existing mullion rail using a socket wrench and disconnected the wires, which was as easy as pulling two pieces apart. Then I connected the wires to the new rail, slid the part into place and used the socket wrench to secure it. As easy as could be and good as new! In total, it took a matter of minutes.

Top bottom then sides took about 15 min

Pop off vent cover remove 2 screws removed cover housing and foam. Removed damper by unclipping tabs on left and right side of control lift up and out. Unplugged power wires reinstalled in reverse order.

Honestly, so simple . Removed the fruit / veggie drawers, glass shelf and the supports for that shelf. Couple of screws and nuts and it was off. As stated before... the most "thought goes into attaching the linkage for the temp adjustment on the right side . GREAT opportunity to CLEAN the up the fridge a bit!! Parts Select made this such a no brainer. Their Customer Service was really an added bonus!!

repair was extremely easy.
Whether it was magnets weakened or seal getting stiff with age not allowing it to seal well, these gaskets improved it. Still not as strong a magnetic pull as it could be though. I will also say that the seals didn't pull tight at first. It seems the seals needed to flatten a bit before the magnets did their job.

I removed and disassembled the broken frame. I cut a six inch piece of coat hanger and folded in half and crimped together. Then I took pliers and made a hook that I hooked into the metal strip in the back of the refrigerator that holds the upper shelves. After replacing the frame, center rail and glass I bent the wire up under the back of the frame to provide a support. The back of the frame is weak and has no center support.

Remove back cover
Remove drip thing from top to tray in the back
Remove fan motor assembly. This is squirrely. Top bends towards you, bottom pushes in to the unit. Not fun.
CAREFULLY remove copper tube that rests on drip tray
Remove tray - there are clips in the front that get released by screwdriver
Clean up
Replace new tray
Replace copper tube
Play with fan motor assembly till it fits. It doesn't look like it's gonna work until it does. See youtube videos on this.
Replace drip thing from top to tray - I forgot this one the first time.
Replace cover.

This is a simple, but squirrely, repair. Right on the border of easy (because so few tools and steps) and A Bit Difficult because of the patience required.

My son (who does HVAC, but not appliance repair) did some investigating by taking front and back panels off and determined that the evaporator coil was freezing over because the defrost wire was not heating up. He and his girlfriend did some real-time internet searching for diagnostic info because NO control diagram was included with the refrigerator. He determined the problem was most likely the electronic control board. Ordered and installed a new board and the refrigerator is back to working fine. Took about 2 hours to diagnose the problem and 1/4 hour to actually install the control board. Kind of disappointing that this control board failed when the refrigerator was less that 4 years old.

First I removed the pantry drawer; then the two crisper drawers and glass shelf. Then I removed the hex screws that held end cap in place. Removal of cap from refrigerator was complicated by the adjustable temperature control - it is loosely attached at the back of end cap and also has to be removed to get cap out. Gentle persuasion accomplishes this. Getting the slider off end cap also a bit difficult. Then I removed the drawer glides. Reversing all steps was fairly easy and the rest of the "fix" went well. I wished that there had been some written directions - or at the very least, a diagram of how all went together. All in all was still cheaper than repair person.

Watched the video on this site, followed the instructions to lay the gasket flat and warm it with a hair dryer, removed the old gasket, and popped the new one in. Easy!

Received gasket. Checked color and size. Because this unit is 33 inches wide one door is 3 inches narrower than the other. Removed shelves from door to provide more room to work. Took 15 seconds to pull out old seal and 1 minute to install the new one. Checked to make sure center sealing flap were on the center side of door. Started in upper corners, worked my way around the perimeter pressing in in with my fingers.
Took longer to R&R and wash shelves than to replace door seal.
VERY EASY

I followed the remove and replace instructions in the Part Sect video when I ordered the seal. Pulled out the old seal by hand and installed the new seal. No tools needed, very easy. Took 10 minutes at most.

When the gasket is delivered it will be folded. You will need to unfold it and leave it on a flat surface for several days. Keep it as square as possible, and heat the kinked portions with a hair dryer on high heat and slow fan while molding kinked portions with your hands for 30 to 60 seconds at a time. Do that 2-3 times per day. When it looks 90% uniform with the non kinked portions, you can install it. Installation takes less than 10 minutes. Clean the metal edge of the freezer well. I recommend taking the door annd frame off (This is remarkably easy. THe door and frame pretty much lifts up and out after you hold the rail clips inward) because the lower edge is so close to the floor. The just pulll off the old gasket. There are no screws or clips. Starting in any corner, press new gasket into place. Go around the perimeter several times to make sure it is pushed in fully and evenly. Then reinstall the door and frame.

Let the ice in the freezer melt while installing P trap drain tube