RA186GCD3 Frigidaire Refrigerator - Instructions

I first thought the defroster heater broke - took the back wall of the freezer off and cooling fins were fine. Then took the defroster timer out and opened it up. The contacts were badly burnt so the compressor and fan ran during only part of the cooling cycle. Replacing the timer took less than 5 minutes - turn off the power, remove one screw to take out the control box, cut the ground wire (new timer housing is plastic and does not have a ground connection), remove two screws to unmount the timer, unplug the old timer, plug in the new timer, fasten with two screws, put the control unit in and fasten with one screw, turn power back on.

dismantled the top rear panel of the freezer and found I had the wrong part. Hand started the fan motor and it has been working fine since.

we removed the food from the freezer, disconnected the fridge , removed the cover, the evaporater fan was running, condeser fan was running, then we checked heater with multimeter and it was ok. next step we replaced the frostimer, and defrost thermostat . and then the refrigarater was working ok, problm was the frost thermastat damaged.

The repair was straightfoward. The evaporator motor I received from partselect was a different model with different wiring configurations. I cut the wires from the new motor per the instructions I received with the new motor and I did the same with the wires that connect to the fridge. Once I matched the wires and secured them with electrical caps I began to put the evaporator motor to the base and started screwing the screws the way I took them off. Once I connected the wire harness to the back of the freezer and turned it on I noticed a big difference in air flow. I was surprised at how easy it was to fix my refrigirator problem. It's been a few weeks now and the fridge is cold and working like it should. Don't be afraid of this task. it's very easy and will save you a ton of money. Thanks partselect.

followed the video very esay

After some troubleshooting to ensure the thermostat and heating element were working, determined that the defrost timer was the problem. With the defective part, I was able to manually advance the timer to activate the defrost cycle, but it wouldn't do so on its own. Unplugged the refrigerator from the wall. Timer is located in the refrigerator compartment at the very top. The compartment houses the cooling thermostat, the light bulb and the defrost timer. Using 1/4" nut driver, remove 4 screws holding compartment cover to top of fridge. Lower a bit to access electrical wiring. Wiring harness can be unplugged to work on the timer away from the fridge which makes it a bit easier. Timer is mounted with 2 phillips head screws. Remove screws and unplug timer from wiring. Install new timer, plug in wiring, secure with the phillips head screws and remount entire compartment.

1. Disconnected electrical. 2. Removed upper console in refrigerator by removing 2 nuts. 3. Disconnected wiring from console. 4. Removed 2 screws from defroster timer part and pulled off from connector. 5. Replaced with new defroster timer and put everything back together. Thank you Steve for the U-Tube step by step video.

I watched the video online where it described the troubleshooting tips for this type of symptom. So I knew exactly what the problem was which is the defrost timer. After the part came in I just unscrewed (4 screws) the box which houses the thermostat and the defrost timer from top ceiling of the refrigerator section. Then I just unscrewed and unhooked the old defrost timer and replaced it with the new one. After finishing the installation I turned the fridge on. At first nothing happened. So I turned the dial on the defrost timer with a flathead screw until it clicked and the fridge came alive. I waited for an hour or so. The cooling cycle completed and the fridge stopped as expected. When I opened the door I noticed the interior is much colder than before and right after closing the door the fridge hummed back into life again. So I know my fridge is working again. Thanks to PartSelect for providing the right part for my refrigerator. I will definitely buy from them again if anything goes wrong.

with patience

1st. replaced the defrost thermostat pn 5303918214 did not fix it next replaced the defrost timmer pn 215846602 that did not fix it,next replaced the defrost heater pn 5303918247 still did not fix it,has the same problem as when I started I don't know what to do next guess will call for a service tech to come out,or get a new refridgerator. Looks like I wasted my money on these parts. Refridgerators are not as easy to fix as yall make them out to be. I have to say all the parts were easy to install and your instructions and videos were great, they just did not fix my refrigerator Thanks Tom

I followed the advice of many people with the same problem, and replaced the Defrost Thermostat and Defrost Timer. Both repairs were relatively easy, and the problem appears to be solved. The replacement of the Defrost Timer is very easy (about 30 minutes), and I wish I had stopped at that step and waited 48 hours to see if that fixed the problem. But, I wanted to replace both parts that I had purchased - - In my refrigerator, access to the Defrost Thermostat is through the back of the freezer panel. Not too difficult to get to the area, but I had a bit of a problem in replacing the part, and might have been better-off to see if step 1 fixed the issue. The problem that I ran into is that I don't have a crimping tool, and crushed both of the connecting sleeves when trying to 'crimp' them with a set of wire-strippers. Rather than to invest in a crimping tool, I connected the wires and sealed with electrical tape - - Now that the issue is resolved, I will likely re-open and use a proper connecting sleeve (with a proper crimping tool). My advice is to buy both parts, and replace just the Defrost Timer first. Chances are good that it may fix your problem, and you are only out $20 for the second part, which you can leave in your junk drawer until you may need it some day! All in all, it was a great way to spend $40 and avoid a costly service call!

According to the information from the parts select website the thermostat and the defrost timer where ranked number 1&2 as likely to fail and cause the condition experienced. To replace the Defrost thermostat just remove the freezer bins and the lower panel covering the evaporator. Remove the old thermostat, measure the wire lengths and install the provided crimp splices. Note: the heat shrink tubing is WAY over-sized and will not shrink to the size needed. You will need another means of sealing the wire connection. Install the thermostat and replace the panel and shelves. The timer is real easy. On my model it is located under the freezer door under the kick panel on the front. Simply remove 2 Phillips head screws, unplug the old unit and install the new one. Be sure to cycle the thermostat past the defrost cycle on the timer (rotate until an audible click is heard once for the beginning of the cycle and one at the end) so that the unit will start up when power is reconnected. This resolved my problem and the unit is working great!

I needed to determine if the heating coil was ok. I bypassed the thermostat, rotated the defrost timer manually with a flat screwdriver until it clicked. The coil heated up and turned a glowing red. So the coil was ok. After looking at the wiring diagram located on the back, the only parts in line was the timer and the thermostat. So I ordered both, replaced them, and everything is working fine. I went online about noon on Thursday, placed the order. The shipping indicated 2-3 business days. To my surprise, they were delivered to my home on Friday, mid morning. Great service from Part Select.

One of the three top comments from other replys had similar problems, so I took their advice, since the prices were resonable, I went and replaced two parts instead of just the defrost timer. If I had to do it a second time I could probably do it all in about 20 mins.

The temperature was slowing rising in the refrigerator section of a side-by-side. As a precaution, I changed out the defrost timer and defrost thermostat. The parts were not expensive. I then tested the defrost heating element with a multimeter and found the actual culprit was a burned out heater coil. I ordered the part one day and it was delivered by FEDEX the next day. The three parts were much cheaper than a new refrigerator and took little time to install, thanks to the Parts Select website and the how-to-install videos. Now the fridge works great and we saved having to buy a new appliance.