GE Profile

Refrigerator & Freezer Repair
1

Need some help…

I bought a used (but in what seemed to be good condition) GE Profile.

The family had just had a technician on it some time soon before I bought it from them. They did tell me that it had a difficult time keeping temperature sometimes - in both the freezer and the refrigerator compartments.

So… After a few weeks, sure enough, the freezer (set at 0) and the refrig (set at 37) began to climb. The freezer hovered between 15 and 20 and sometimes a bit higher - and the fridge between 43-47.

I first started to use a hair dryer to get the frost off the freezer coils… it would work ok for a day or so and then back to the old behavior.

Then I watched some videos on youtube and tried changing out the freezer temperature sensor (only one) and then changed the defrost thermostat (that clips to the top tube to sense the temp up there).
It seemed to work great - making ice well, staying cold and I thought I had gotten it figured out… Well… I didn’t.

I am back to the elevated temps and the ice in the ice maker melting a bit, then sticking to itself when it does get cold enough so the ice needs broken up before coming out of the dispenser. Sometimes when I set my ice maker on quick ice, it seems to get really cold again for a day or so, makes a lot of great ice, and gets below zero in the freezer. Then, when it stops making ice, it goes back to elevated temps and doesn’t really keep the ice frozen well… it drips water to the lower shelves in the freezer - then all that refreezes…

Is it my motherboard?
Might it be my defrost fan (at top of freezer compartment). I don’t hear that come on like I think it should… because when it is acting up - it sounds too quiet in there (I think).

I’m thinking it’s my motherboard - but that is the most expensive of all the things it could be… so I wanted to check with this DB - before I spent the BIG bucks…
Can anyone help?
Thank you!

2

The evaporator fan motor should be on and running during a cycle when the compressor is running. If this motor goes out, it will cause the temp fluctuations you speak of. It is located in the freezer section to circulate the air between compartments.

3

Thank you, CletusT, I will try checking the fan motor. I was hoping this might be the problem. I will post the results in some days to come to let you and others know if this was it.

4

CletusT,
I checked the voltages on the mothrboard (J12 connector)

The only voltage that seemed out of whack was the fan motor (when it was on - it was reading 13.8V DC when the instruction video told me that it should read between 8 and 12 volts. Is this bad? The fan was on - but I am wondering if it quits or fails to come on when it needs to all the time.

I had the freezer door open the whole time as the compressor was on - and the freezer coils were frosting up nicely -

BTW (I disassembled my ice maker so I could see the fan running from above)

BTW this is a GE profile Arctica with ice and water dispenser. Not sure if any of that makes a difference.??

One other area of suspicion that I have been having are the temperature sensors… I never replaced any in the refrigerator compartment - but did replace one some months ago in the freezer and the thermostat that clips to the top freezer tube (in order to make contact with it.)

Any thoughts (anyone?)
Thank you

5

Can anyone help me figure this one out?

6

It could be one of the temp sensors. The fan will only use a max of 13 volts on average, the control board tells the fan when to come on.
Let me look further at the diagrams.

7

Check part # AP3185407 at appliance parts pros. There are two thermistors ( temp sensors) on your model.