Freezer Evaporator Fan Motor

Our 48" Built-In KitchenAid Frig (1999 model)started getting very noisy about 3 years ago. Two different repairmen plus KitchenAid said 'that was the way it was'. I figured out the noise was coming from the evaporator motor/fan but the repairmen said it was just because moisture was freezing on it and replacing the evaporator motor/fan probably would not make a difference plus it would be very expensive. When I discovered PartSelect and that I could order the parts (about $80) myself I thought why not. It was simple to replace. Removed cover inside freezer compartment - detached bracket and electrical wires - replaced with new motor and fan. Now you can hardly hear the frig running and it runs half the time - more efficient. I can't believe we lived with that noise for so long. Thanks to PartSelect I proved KitchenAid and the repaiirmen wrong and did it myself! Thank you PartSelect!

Power down the refrigerator with the disconnect switch under the upper panel. Empty the freezer. Remove the bins and shelves. Use nutdriver to remove the screws holding the back trim panel in place. Remove the panel. Take picture of the wire connections going to the motor. Remove the motor mounting bracket. Remove old motor/fan assembly from bracket. Press new fan blade onto new motor. Transfer each wire from old assembly to matching location on new motor. Mount new motor to bracket. Remount bracket to freezer. Reinstall back panel. Turn power back on. Enjoy quiet refrigerator.

Take pictures of original setup in case you need to refer back and turn off power at the panel. Remove the White panel in the back of the freezer ( 16 screws). Unscrew two screws holding the motor / fan blade and remove. Remove the hot/neutral and ground wires and remove the motor/fan unit. You will have to use the old brackets as the new motor does not come with them so don't throw the old motor just yet. The brackets will have to be removed from the old motor by removing two 1/4 screws and placing the brackets onto the new motor in the same fashion. Once this is complete, just reassemble new motor in reverse order. since the fan has to fit into a tight opening and the mounting brackets have to line up to screw the whole unit in, I assembled everything lightly tightened and mounted the unit to make sure the screws lined up and the fan blade had clearance in the fan opening so that it did not rub. Since the bracket screws are not 100% tightened, this allows some wiggle room to adjust. Once everything is lined up, tighten all bracket screws 100%. Insert the wires and your ready to go. Reinstall the White panel and 16 screws. Motor has been working great since installation.

Turned off power to Frig.. Removed shelving & baskets, then removed cover concealing fan, with cordless drill & proper size bit. All work done with the same size bit. Wrote down where colored wires came from so I could put the back in the right place. Piece of cake!!