10640212010 Kenmore Refrigerator - Instructions

Our spare 25+ year old Kitchenaid refrigerator (side-by-side model) refused to produce cold air. I could hear mechanical sounds and things "clicking", but the temps kept raising. This specific unit only had cooling coils in the freezer, and some ducts that route cold air into the fridge.

I emptied the refrigerator completely, removed the ice cube bin and shelves, and left it unplugged for two days with the doors open. Once everything was dry, I plugged the unit back in -- within 8-10 hours, the unit was cold again. Lights worked, and fans in the freezer and back of unit worked. However... once the compressor turned off, it never came back on. This told me that the root cause lies with components that control when to turn off/on the cold flowing into the coils.

I looked up my model on PartSelect website, and looked through their "likely to fail" list for my model. The defrost thermostat and defrost timer were at the top of the list, and symptoms made sense. Those two parts arrived within a week. The defrost timer was easy to install -- unplug old, plug in new. The defrost thermostat involved cutting existing wires, stripping a small section of sheathing, and attaching the wires to the new part with crimp caps and electrical tape. The electrical tape was there to cover the exposed area of the crimp cap and bundle the wires together. (I used 3M's "Super 33+".) Finally, reattach the harness to the socket, and attach the other plugs and grounding clamp.

After re-attaching the rest of the required components, I plugged the unit back in. After about 24 hours, it had gone through at least one cycle and was appropriately cold. After letting it churn for another couple days and watching it closely, I felt confident that the problem had been fixed.

** Side Notes **

Definitely use caution around the fins on the coil. For my unit, the harness plug is directly above the fins, and required some effort to safely remove while not slicing up my hands. Extra long screwdrivers and patience helps a lot. Put a wedge behind the wheels of the refrigerator so that it doesn't back away from you while you work. And, of course, do all this while it is unplugged.

** For the PartSelect Website Maintainers **

If possible, please provide some better guidance on where to place the lead coming off the defrost timer. The Youtube video was nice, but some clarity on which pole/spade to attach it to (and where to find that info, besides "consult your manual") would help many people.

remove door pull gasket out put new gasket in replace door

r&r fan blade and motor. with the parts you supplied it was easy. the parts were perrrrfect. thank you very much. job well done. bruce

Found the housing for the thermostat; took housing apart pulled out thermostat and took off the hose put the hose on the new thermostat installed new thermostat and replaced housing.

disconect the power removed the screws with the phillips screwdriver removed the front cover and then removed the rest of the screws. removed the three covers and then removed the thermostat. replaced in reverse order.

It took me less than 5 minutes and I had everything installed myself. thanks for the help in ordering the right parts

replaced

Emptied draw of contents pulled draw out and inserted new drawer....easy pea-zee

I ordered the 2 new drawers, the crisper pan and the meat pan with handle. I took them from the box, wiped them out and slid them right into the spots where my previous drawers were. End of story. This took less than 5 minutes to install. I used the chat feature to inquire as to what number items that I needed to order these 2 drawers, was given the numbers and order the items on line right then. Easy They arrived in record time, like maybe 2 days. They were well packed and arrived in pristine condition.

Used a screw driver to pull old switch. Pulled one wire at a time, only two wires. After wires instlled to new switch push new one back in place where the old one was.

Followed Door Removal instructions by removing the Top Screws from the Cabinet. Lifted Door OFF the Metal Hinge. Unscrewed both Lower and Upper Cams from the Hinge and Door. Replaced with new after coating with Vasoline. Lifted Door back in place with help from Wife. Only problem was guiding the Door back onto the Hinge. Works fine. Two year old Frig. This is a design problem, as the cams should last longer than 22 months.

First I removed all food in freezer.Then removed selves and hanger brackets.Then the back panel and light cover.Then I unplugged motor but before this I unplugged refrigerator from the wall.Removed motor from bracket after pulling of fan. Reversed the order to install motor and put back together

I followed the repair videos that were provided by partselect and installed a bi-metal defrost thermostat in the freezer and a thermostat assembly in the fridge. The installation was not hard and everything is now working as it should. Thanks

Unplug, then on the freezer side, remove the drawers, then remove the screws holding the sheet metal cover, remove the rails (for the drawer) that interfere with removing the sheet metal cover. pull the wires off the motor. There is a big plastic piece that holds a small plastic piece that holds the motor. Remove the plastic piece that holds the motor/fan (you might be able to swap the motor by removing the little plastic piece that holds the motor, or you can remove the bigger piece and then remove the small piece that holds the motor). Pull the fan blade off (to reuse), swap the motor. NOTE - the new motor wire terminals may be on the opposite side of the motor vs. the old motor - that is not a problem - there is plenty of room for the wires. After the motor is installed put the fan blade back on, reinstall the removed plastic pieces in the back of the refrigerator. Now, I'd suggest a quick test. Make sure the new motor works and the fan blows before you button it up. Once you know it works, power it off, and put the sheet metal cover back on, reinstall the basket brackets, put the baskets back in place, close the door, and turn it back on.

The repair consisted of lifting up the drawer cover and replacing it. Why the 60 minutes to do that? It took 58 minutes to clean the refrigerator.