6657496000 Kenmore Trash Compactor - Instructions

I pulled the trash compactor out from under the counter.

I took out the four screws that kept the top cover in place to expose the ram.

The gear shafts were turning but the ram would not lower, at first I though the ram drive bolts were stripped and it wouldn't engage the shaft. Then I realized there was a mechanical directional\limit switch at the top that controlled the power and direction the gear shafts were turning, this switch was broken.

Just had to take off the front plate that was held on by a number of screws and replace the switch that was held on by two more screws. It had five wires attached to it, the new switch was clearly labeled as to which color wire went where.

Pulled the Compactor from underneath cabinet, unplugged power. Removed the top plate off compactor to expose the crush piston. Removed the front control panel by removing two phillips screws, wiring and directional (limit) switch is now exposed. Removed the two screws securing switch, removed wiring one wire at a time and replaced on new switch in same position. Replaced switch in same manner as removed, and followed reverse of above to re-assemble. Plugged back in and tested, problem resolved works like new. Only took possibly 30" to repair and saved an expensive service call.

Trash compactor started making "bumping" sounds when the RAM went through a cycle and tried to come back up. Finally, one day heard a "pop" went the RAM traveled to the bottom. The gear broke in half. Purchased the gear parts "KIT" online and repair took 15 minutes. Easy to do. Unfortunately, this was not only problem. The "cause" of the gear breaking was the Momentary Start/Stop Switch was bad. It's failure led to the main switch not working. The unit could not tell when the RAM had reached the top of it's cycle. The other problem was that I didn't put trash in the compactor. Suggest HIGHLY to never operate the unit's RAM mechanism without the compactor being at least 1/2 full per the instruction manual. Running it empty can cause a major problem, such as the gear breaking/stripping.

Pulled compactor out on a piece of cardboard. Used socket set to take top off and evaluate the problem. Power nut was not holding on one side. We ordered two power nuts. Decided to repair only the unlevel side. Fast and easy and cheaper than a new compactor. Whirlpool compactor is 28 years old and working like a charm. Thanks for the diagram and accessibility to parts.

I slid the compactor out of the cabinet space it sits in and unplugged it. I removed the two screws that hold the control plate on and it then lifts up and off to reveal the screws that hold the top down. Then I removed the two screws that hold the top of the unit on and removed the top. I then put the switch plate back on and plugged the unit back in and ran it so I could see it operate from above. It went all the way down compacting the drawer but kept running and did not reverse and come back up. I figured it was the directional switch and ordered that. The plastic power nuts that the unit rides up and down on looked worn so for $10 each I ordered a pair of them also. The parts arrived in 3 days. I decided to install the power nuts first. When I removed the metal casing that holds them I saw that wings on the plastic power nuts that hold them in place in the metal casing were all broken off. I installed the new power nuts then plugged it back in and ran it. It cycled perfectly. luckily I had not opened the directional switch and I was able to return it to Partselect for a refund. In total I had to remove and reinstall 4 very short screws and 4 small bolts. While I had it out and apart I also cleaned out quite a bit of old trash that had escaped to unseen parts of the compactor. It is 26 years old and working fine. I don't think they make them like they used to. Thank You Partselect for a great experience

Moved the compactor out from under cabinet, laid it on it's side, removed bottom casing (two nuts front, three back), remove compression pin from small drive gear shart, replace new small drive gear and install compression pin, loosen motor mounts to allow large gear replacement, remove circlip holding large drive gear to shaft, remove and repace damaged gear, set gear clearance and tighten motor mounts, grease gears, replace bottom casing. .

Replaced the gear and unit worked execpt the plunger hit the side of the garbage container. This appears the be the reason the gear broke in the first place. Defective assembly from the factory.

To correct I had to remove the newly installed gear system remove inside cardboard side cover, Remove the screws that hold the bearing for the lift screw so I could remove the chain. After removing the chain I could adjust the plunger to be level and not hit the side of the garbage container on its way down.

Took the under housing off to see the drive gear. It had broken in half. (Exactly like one of the suggestions said). Replaced the drive gear and re-assembled. It worked great!

Thanks.

I removed the compactor from under the cabinet and unpluged it from the power supply. The ram was in the down position and wedged to one side . The lower side was the broken power nut side. I first removed the good side nut retainer cover and turned it down to a level position before removing the defective power nut cover. Then I went on Google search, got lucky and found PS Parts select's web site. I was Greeted by a very pleasant and knowledgeable clerk named Lacey. I described the part I needed, and gave her the model, serial numbers. She found the part , told me the price, I ordered 2 new ones and they arrived at my home in 3 days as she said they would. Exact Fit. Screwed them on the two power rods, put the covers back on and re-installed under my cabinet, and SHIZZAM !! Back in business.

First i removed 2 screws that holds it to the cabinet,pulled the unit out removed the cover off the bottom of the unit,then i notice the gears were damaged,but was not supprised,because the machine gets over worked.Then i removed one clip,removed one gear,the other gear had a pin,tapped the pin out with a punch ,pulled that gear off.then replaced both gears .Got it back together and it now works like new.i am very pleased with your service,you responded right away and let me know the order had filled.i ordered it on sunday night and i recieved it on tuesday morning .i will surly use your service in the future you guys are great. thanks alot

Took off front panel and replaced the directional switch which I thought was the problem. However, the problem continued. I read on line it could be the "centrifugal" switch on top of the motor. I haven't gotten around to taking it apart yet to see if that is the problem because it is more involved down under and in the back. That switch cost $88.
Any suggestions from others?

My compactor is quite heavy, I moved it onto the kitchen floor unplugged and removed the cover plate from the bottom exposing the drive gears. The small (pinion ) gear was stripped as well as a section of the drive gear. I followed the video and removed the (fulthy) ram. The interior filth was so great I removed all parts to my garage and spent a lot of time cleaning them especially the ram.By the time my parts arrived, it was all clean and ready to go. I had also found that one of the power nuts was broken and had ordered new wheels and power nuts. Assembly was straight forward and it works like new now,

Like others who experienced this problem, I removed compactor from under the counter and laid it on its side. I removed the screws holding the cover plates to the motor and gear/chain box. The larger (4" +/-) plastic drive gear which moves the chain that lowers or raises the compactor ram was broke. Using a socket and ratchet, I turned the shaft the gear was attached to in a counterclockwise direction and moved the compacting ram from the bottom position to the top so I could finally open the door, It takes a lot of turns to move the compacting ram to the top so be patient. I then loosened the bolts, in the base, that holds the motor secure and slid the base toward the broken gear putting slack in the chain. I removed the split ring from the shaft and removed the sprocket which originally is part of the gear but was left on the shaft when the gear broke in three places. I elected to not remove the original washer and spacer and put the new gear with sprocket on the shaft, put the chain on the socket and installed the split ring. Slid the motor base back to original position putting slight tension on chain and a proper clearance between the gear and drive shaft (sheet of paper seperation). Reinstalled the covers, tested and was finished.

The plastic drive gear broke and the unit was locked in the down position. The repair kit contained all of the parts required to fix the problem plus other replacement parts for the gear drive unit. It was very easy (about 20 min.) to replace the gear and other parts. The unit works fine now.

Removed drawer first, then removed compactor from under kitchen cabinet. Removed top cover. Discovered that a small wash cloth was wound around one of the drive screws. I then removed plunger and put it back in position. Replaced top cover and turned on compactor. Plunger went to the top and made a grinding sound. I removed the cover to discover that when I put the plunger back in, I did not have the lever that trips a micro switch in proper position. I needed the replacement plastic gears that were ruined when compactor did not shut off. Relatively easy job if I had noticed the location of the shut off lever, and would have needed the parts.