Replacing defrost thermostat

I just posted a question about my fridg portion not cooling and I forgot to ask another question.

I am anticipating maybe having to change the defrost thermostat also. There are two wires coming from the defrost thermostat…an orange one that has a little spade connection that plugs into the defrost element. The other wire, a yellow one, goes into a cloth covered bundle of wires that go to the plug for the icemaker. It doesn’t look like that yellow one has a connection on the end of it. If I replace the defrost thermostat, do I just cut the wire, and splice it together and tape it with electrical tape? Or is there some type of moisture proof connections I can crimp onto the ends where I cut it?

Thanks again.

Alex

Splice it. I would use a bell connector then fill the end with some silicone to keep the moisture out.