GFD180 Caloric Refrigerator - Instructions

Ordered timer-defroster motor and replaced. Very difficult to remove the two screws since there was little room to apply the tools.

Moved fridge out from wall, unplugged power cord. Laid on floor, removed 6 screws from cover. Removed one threaded bolt to allow assembly to slide out. Removed special nut, and took fan off. Removed 3 motor mounting bolts. Unscrewed 2 wire nuts, and untwisted wires. (option 1, no ground) Vacuumed entire area around motor. Used 3 bolts to mount motor to holder assembly, and special nut to install fan. Stripped wires back about 3/4 inch. Twisted two wires together CW, and installed new wire nuts. Slid motor assembly back into slot,(keep wires away from blades) and used one threaded bolt to secure assembly. Reinstalled cover plate with 6 screws. Plugged power cord in to test air flow (out through cover vents). Moved fridge back into place. The loud whirring noise did not stop for a day; then quiet!

Removed the old fan; cut the wire and spliced in the new fan and reassembled. A little over one hour. Refrig is working perfectly now with lower settings. It is definitely off much more than on now.

just had to remove the fan motor the hard thing is getting down to it

First, watched video on Part Select Website. Very good. Pulled Appliance out from wall, Pulled the power plug, and removed the back shield covering the working parts of the unit. Found the fan and it was almost the same setup as on the video except that I could not get to one of the screws holding the motor in place so had to remove the entire bracket with the fan. Not too hard. Cleaned away dust and gunk around the site and noticed that the fan pulled air through a tunnel-like condenser coil that was packed with gunky lint...this is what probably killed the motor. I cleaned out the tunnel with the bottle brushes and vacuum and installed the new motor / bracket assembly. Then replaced the shielding around the fan and the back cover .panel. This is important because these form the channel that guides air flow throughout the condenser coils. This particular refrigerator has a barrier underneath which guides air flow from the front left to the condenser, through the fan, over the evaporator drip pan and out the right front. I cleaned all the lint and gunk from this area as well. I also made an air filter (cut from a furnace filter) and wedged it in front of the air entry section. This should keep the condenser coil cleaner over time but you have to remember to change the filter once a year. Probably should clean the condenser coil every 5 years as well. This unit has been very reliable over 20 years and may well go for another 20. Good luck with your repair.