KBRA20ERSS01 KitchenAid Refrigerator - Instructions

I removed the 5/16 inch hex head nuts holding the rear access panel where the power cord was connected. Once removed, I released the Molex plug and ground wire. I connected the new cord, screwed in the ground and installed the rear panel. Having the exact OEM part made the job quick and easy.

First, turned off the circuit breaker. Then: 1. Removed all food, , wire sliding baskets, and the ice bin.
2. Removed ice maker by removing the electrical connector from the socket in the rear panel, removed the single bottom screw with a 1/4” nut driver, loosened the 2 top screws with a 1/4” nut driver, and lifting the unit up and off the 2 loosened screws.
3. Removed the freezer door by loosening the 4 screws( 2 on each side) with a 1/4” nut driver and then lifting the door face off the loosened screws.
4. The next task is to remove the panel at the rear of the freezer compartment: use a flat blade screw driver to compress the side clips that hold the ice maker electrical socket, pushing it into the space behind the rear panel, then removing the rear plastic cover in the center of the rear panel, and finally removing the thermistor cover on the right rear upper corner of the rear panel( separate the thermistor from this piece, threading it through the slot in the top of the plastic cover.
Now, the rear panel can be removed by removing the 4 1/4”” hex head screws with the nut driver and gently easing the panel from its position.
5. Now comes the hard part: the defrost thermostat and most of the surrounding “plumbing” was encased in ice. I used a hair dryer to melt the ice, which created an overflow of water drawing into the collection pan; get ready to mop up this water.
6. With ALL the ice melted( this took over an hour), I simply cut the 2 wires, stripped the feed ends, removed the defective unit, clipped the new thermostat to the copper tube where the old unit was clipped, cut excess wire/stripped the new wires and used 2 orange wire nuts to connect each wire.
Now all the parts and pieces can be reinstalled in the reverse order

The vents at the back of the freezer were constantly getting packed with ice. A repairman failed to spot the problem. I used Partselect's web site to do my own analysis and determined that it was the defrost thermostat.
I followed the web site's instructions, which were exceptionally good. Behind the rear wall of the freezer was a lot of ice on the cooling fins and heavily encrusted over the old thermostat. (It was not really difficult, but I am in my 70s and no longer do things like this on my own.)
After replacing the part, I checked the ohms of the old part and found it to be faulty. Since then, the refrigerator has been working great. I wish I had started here. The repairman I had hired replaced the "control board" at significant expense. I doubt very much that anything was wrong with the old control board.
Many thanks to Partselect for an exceptionally helpful web site.

Info on your site allowed me to determine the most likely cause of the problem, defrost thermostat, and that fixed it. Good installation instructions on the site too. Part was super easy to install. Hardest part was removing the snap-in/screwed-in plastic parts that held the sliding baskets and back panel in place. Didn't break any.....Thank You!

Followed the video on parts page. I was worried I would brake the cover but learned from the video the right way to remove the front plate. I found the video very informing. Thank you for saving me a service call and the part cost was minimal compared to a new refrigerator .

CHECK DEFROST THERMOSTAT WITH VOLT OHM METER AND FOUND THERMOSTAT BAD ALSO OHMED OUT HEATER AND HEATER CHECKED OK INSTALLED HEAT SRINK CONNECTORS ON NEW DEFROST THERMOSTAT PUT SYSTEM BACK INTO O
PRATION ALSO CHANGED WATER FILTER ON REFERGRATOR
SYSTEM WORKING OK AND NO ICING OF COILS THANKS WADE BOYLES

We came home from a long vacation to discover a warm refrigerator with its contents in various stages of decay.

Turning the freezer thermostat to its warmest setting then back to cold generated clicks, and after a few tries the compressor started and cooled the refrigerator to its normal cold temperatures. But… later the compressor again failed to start, and everything warmed back up again. With persistence and turning the thermostat up and down several times a day, we could keep the fridge cold.

It was time to order parts. We needed a new start relay and capacitor for the compressor. For our Amana ARB2214CW a start relay (WP12555902) and capacitor (WP65889-4) were listed on the first page of the Partselect parts list for my refrigerator. I ordered them, received them, removed the old capacitor and start relay (which rattled when shaken). and prepared to install my new parts. The new start relay did not match the old. The old start relay fit my wiring which had a single plug with two small female spade connectors in the plug. The new start relay required wiring with two separate female spade connectors; one the normal size and one larger. Phone calls to Partselect and to Westinghouse shed no light on the discrepancy. On the second page of the Partselect parts list was a combination of a start relay and a capacitor (W10613606) that matched my electrical connector. I could see the connection in the photograph. I ordered it and it fit. Easy peazy. That fixed the compressor start problem. Every time the freezer thermostat clicked on, the compressor started. Success.

But… from our troubleshooting we now had a thermometer the freezer, and it was obvious that the temperature difference between the cold point where the thermostat turned the compressor off and the warm point where the thermostat restarted the compressor was much too wide. In addition, the knob was hard to turn and was sticky as it turned. Oiling it fixed the sticky knob problem but not the wide temperature difference problem. I ordered a new freezer thermostat (WP67003000), received it, installed it, and all is now fine with my refrigerator. The new thermostat was physically a little different from the original, but it fit and worked.

I returned the first compressor start relay and capacitor and received a refund including the shipping charge.

Followed instructions and installed dual water valve. Did Not Solve Problem! ... Then replaced Water Filter. This fixed "water flow problem" and "no, or hollow" ice cubes.

Unscrew filter. Screw on filter bypass

Replaced the left side endcap for the drawer. Three screws and it popped out. Easy process once I actually looked at it. Drawer cover now works as designed. Replaced inline water filter. Not problem there.

The repair was very simple, you just remove the existing part that is held in place by two holes in the lid and insert the new lid. very easy.

Removed the door and replaced the broken door closure bushing. I had courteous help and responce from Parts Select people. Excelent turn around time on parts delivery.

First, I shut off the water going to the refrigerator, then removed the ice bin. Then I loosened the two screws on the top of the ice maker (the one toward the front was a little tricky, since you can't see it at all), then removed the screw that fastens the lower bracket to the side of the frig. Then I lifted up on it slightly to remove it from the two upper screws, then unplugged the wiring harness from the side of the refrigerator and lifted the whole unit out of the frig.

I then removed the plastic cover on the front of the ice maker, pressed on the tab to remove the wiring harness from the old ice maker, and installed it on the new ice maker. I then removed the metal arm from the old ice maker and installed it on the new unit as well. The last part that I moved from the old ice maker to the new one was the lower bracket, as the bracket on the new ice maker was bent during shipping.

Once those parts were swapped, I put the plastic cover on the new ice maker, plugged the wiring harness back into the side of the frig, routed the fill tube into the back on the ice maker assembly, and set the unit back on the two upper screws. I then put the screw back in the lower bracket, tightened the two upper screws, and then put the ice bin back in and turned the water back on. After a couple of hours, I threw out the first couple of batches of ice and it is now working as it had in the past.

I also noticed, when looking at the old ice maker, that the black plastic coating was coming off the ice cube tray, so it was a good time to be replacing it anyway. Overall, a very easy job (I was prepared for swearing, parts being slightly off, etc.) and it would have been a shame to have paid someone to do it.

Used socket set to remove screws. Removed the wire harness, then removed lift arm from old ice maker and then put lift arm on the new ice maker. Reinstall wire harness then installed back in freeze with the screws. Video was very helpful. I will do business with Partselect in the future. Shipping was very fast. Thanks Partselect

This kind of repair makes me love the internet. Thank you. Follow advice of my fellow posters but beware, all your plastic parts are very brittle from the cold. Proceed slowly. As mentioned by others but worth stressing is...do resist the temptation to force any piece...I could just see myself snapping one of these pieces and having to order another part! Take your time to work out the sequence to disengage each piece in turn. It's a bit of a puzzle but take your time. Also suggest starting the job with a nice bowl of warm baking-soda water to gently and effectively clean everything as you go.