Still looking for help. Any advice? I have done some more research and heard some have had success with greasing the fan motor shaft. I could always try that, but I want a permanent solution that I will not have to mess with, and I am also concerned whether I have an additional problem or not.

Any insight appreciated.

Hello:

My condenser fan is making a horrible noise. I assume the fan motor (and/or an internal bearing or something) is going out (the noise stops if I disconnect the motor electrical connector and/or manually stop the fan, and with the fan off I can feel quite a bit of play in the shaft). I am ready to order a new motor but have a few questions first.

First: I hear this noise almost constantly. My other fridge the condenser motor only runs when the compressor is running, and it doesn't seem the compressor runs all that often (every couple hours probably). However, on this fridge, it seems the condenser fan motor (and I assume compressor as well) runs almost constantly, only turnining off every couple hours for a few to perhaps several minutes. My question is this: is this normal on this model fridge, or could I have another underlying issue in addition to the worn motor, or perhaps causing the worn motor? How often should this fridge be 'running'? Both compartments are cold (seemingly the correct temperature), and there was not what I would call excessive build-up of dust, etc. on the condenser (although I will give it a thorough cleaning at this time).

Secondly: apparently the new motor does not come with the fan blade, and I have heard that the blades tend to break when removing them. I tried removing them to see if I could get them off without damaging and could not figure how to get them off. It does not use the typical square nut or whatever, it is more like a spring. This question is twofold: how do I remove the old fan blades, and if I decide to just order a new blade, does it come with the hardware or whatever is required to install to the new motor, or will I need to still get the blades off the old motor?

So I guess the bottom line is: I am wondering if there could potentially be more problems than just the fan motor, and if so, what? The compressor seems to run frequently, but I am not sure if that is by design or if something is wrong. Is there anything else I can/should check prior to ordering up a new motor?

I am hoping to get to the bottom of this as soon as possible and get the motor ordered. Thanks in advance for any suggestions!