GT17X8FA Admiral Refrigerator - Instructions

Couldn't believe how complicated this part is with heaters. It is used in at least a billion refrigerators and functions well. But I had to tear it all apart to adopt it. Got it all done and stayed awake all night for waiting for Ice. Nothing! Then a Erika moment! Turn the ice arm full switch off! Then Ice poured out every hour. Expecting many years of ice. Thanks for speedy delivery especially before Christmas..

need instr. to repair

I turned the metal pin to shut off the refrigerator. Then, I put the temperature control knob with the "0" facing out. I had read on the site that a pliers might be needed but it was not necessary. I just pushed it into place. Very simple!

The repair was a lot easier than I thought. I first ordered the ice-maker part from PartSelect. Followed the instructions from the how-to video and I was done within 30 minutes. Unplugged the fridge, took out the two 1/4" nut screws holding up the ice-maker, disconnected the wiring harness and then re-attached the new ice-maker in reverse order. Had to use some of the parts from the old ice-maker, like the cover, ice wire (the wire that moves up and down, letting you know when the ice box was full or starts the ice-making process) The whole process along the PartSelect video made it easy.

Viewed the viedo - it showed what to do

Watch the video and then do the repair.

Unscrewed the right control knob. Removed the left temperature control knob (there is no screw holding it), removed one screw to rear of small panel then pried open from the rear of the small panel, there are two plastic tabs in front of the small panel holding it in place. Unscrewed the failed control unit and replaced it with the new one. Replaced the small panel and screw then the left side control knob, making sure of the alignment in the "off" position as the knob has to be pressured into a clamp arrangement on the cold control thermostat. Re-screwed the right knob into place, as well.

Move refrigerated and turn off water and unplug elect. Remove ice Ben and guide on right side. Move one screw on the bottom and lousen tow screws on top. Remove ice maker to unhook electrical connection. Transfer parts from old one to the new one . Revise the removal of it and when done .Plug in cord and turn on water. If you have done everything very carefully you will have ice in a few hours.Good luck.

Sorry for delay in writing. Part I ordered arrived two days ago and it was exactly what I needed. Knowing that there will be problems even with the smallest job I procrastinated starting. When I did start this morning I foud I had to completely remove the ice maker and disassemble it in order to install the water fill cup bracket. The challenge was reassembling the unit. Not hard for an experienced repairman but a challenge for layman. Everything is thing is back to gether now and power on cooling down the refrigerator. Won't know how successful it was until turn on water and ice is formed. If it works this saved $75 just to get a Sears repairman to come out and tell me what would be needed to fix the refrigerator and $1,000 if I had to buy a new refrigerator. Extremely satisfied with service I received. Thank you.

Researched this problem on the web. Disassembled the main refrigeration unit (slide out freezer floor panel). The cooling coils were completely iced up. Thawed overnight. Tested the coil thermostat with a multimeter and discovered it worked. Note that the activation temp on this thermostat is 15 degrees Fahrenheit so the ice-water bath test on many web videos will NOT work. My test was in another refrigerator freezer compartment (everyone has two, right?). When the temperature went below 15 and stayed there for 15 minutes, the thermostat opened the circuit. Further investigation revealed that the defrost heater was burnt and shorted. Replaced the defrost heater only to discover that the defrost timer was also broken. After replacing the defrost timer and testing each component thoroughly, the refrigerator is back in service. Freezer maintains about 8 F and the main refrigerator stays at about 36. The unit cycles off properly and the defrost timer is correctly initiating a defrost cycle. Further, when the defrost heater is cycled on, the thermostat correctly shuts it off once the coils are defrosted. Watch the youtube videos. Find your parts and note their specifications so you can test them properly. And good luck.