GSS20DBTACC General Electric Refrigerator - Instructions

i used the video it showed on the site or iwould not have been able to do it

I ordered the part on Sunday and had it by Tuesday. It only took a few minutes to install. Basically, I unplugged the unit and removed the cover over the motherboard with a nutdriver. The wires were easy to unplug and reinstall. There was no way to incorrectly install since they could only fit in the correct position. I reinstalled the panel pluged it back in and now the fridge is working great.

First I unplugged the refrigerator, then I had to open up the back of the freezer, use the hair dryer to defrost the ice that had built up in it. Then I unscrewed the screws on both ends of the existing heater unplugged the old heater and plugged in the new one. Then with the sensor, I cut and stripped the 2 wires attached to the old sensor 1 inch away from the sensor. Then I spliced it with the wires on the new sensor, applied wire nut and black tape tightly. Then I put it all back together.

Unplugged the refrigerator and removed inside back panel from the freezer compartment and left doors open to allow all ice to thaw. I chose not to use a hair dryer and speed up the process as this could possibly cause more damage if not done with caution. After all ice was melted i took both screws from heat element assembly and followed the simple instructions that came with the new part. Since meters an i dont really work well together and since defrost thermostat and temp sensor were so inexpensive. I opted to purchase those as well in my initial order. They were as simple to replace as a lightbulb. Unscrew the wire nuts from existing sensors and screw wire nuts back on to the new sensors. Buy purchasing all three items at once i felt it just ensured the fiz was complete and the unit has been operating for 7 days like new. One thing i would pass on. If it is the heating element that is burned out, the glass tuve on mine was very black and charred looking. Also when you take it out of the assembly the element was actually in two pieces. Did something cause the element to stay on until it burned out or just old age i dont know. Again, for less than 20 bucks i purchased the additional parts that would seem most obvious to replace and i would recommebd the same. Part select saved us a lot of money not only in parts but in allowing someone with no considerable knowledge in this areato make repairs without hiring an expensive repairman.

Disconnected power. Removed evaporator cover in freezer. Removed the bad defrost heater. It is a glass tube about 10" long. The tube was black since the internal heater wire burned out. Use a hair dryer to melt ice in evaporator. Since there was excessive water coming from melt ice, I removed the back panel and took out the white plastic drain tube and collected water from the tube in a bucket. I put everything back and used the refrigerator for three days without problem, before the new heater arrived. Then I put on the new tube and everything was fine so far.

Took the three screws out of the cover, took the six plugs off of the board and removed board.

I replaced the three sensors, 2 in the freezer 1 in the refrigerator. This was rated as the most common problem. Did not fix the problem. I then checked the ohms on the new sensors then the old sensors they were all within .5 of each other. So I got smart and went down the list of causes on their list. I emailed partselect and asked what the parts should read. They replied with that information and it turned out to be the voltage converter on the compressor. I ordered the part on friday payed for overnight delivery and it arrived tuesday. This as you can imagine makes me angry. But the part was easy to install and my refrigerator started working right away. I would advise anyone with this problem to start at the top of the problem list use a multi meter check everything on the list and only replace part or parts that don't come up to standards. This will save time and money and hopefully fix the problem the first time as you are not switching out parts and hoping that it solves the problem.

A second person is necessary to help prop up the refrigerator. One person will need to insert a 6 inch support under the front of the refrigerator base while another person rocks the refrigerator back to provide access for the support to be inserted.

The front refrigerator panel was removed to reveal the refrigerator base and provide access to the front wheel assembly adjustment screw (screw mobility). The front of the refrigerator was propped up on a solid support about 6 inches above the floor to provide access to the front wheel assembly and allow removal through the base of the refrigerator. The front wheel assembly was dislodged from the base by first removing the pivot pin by hand and then prying the wheel assembly loose with a screwdriver. Normally the pivot pin would need to be released by prying it loose with a screwdriver and then pulling to free by hand. Once the front wheel assembly was dislodged the adjustment screw was removed with a socket set and the front wheel assembly fell out of the refrigerator base. The new front wheel assembly was then inserted into the refrigerator base, the new pivot pin was inserted and aligned with the support holes and pressed into place to secure with locking mechanism. The new adjustment screw was then inserted into the refrigerator base hole, aligned with the front wheel assembly and hand tightened to set the first threads. The adjustment screw was then tightened with a socket set to seat the adjustment screw. The refrigerator was then lowered and the adjustment screw was adjusted to level the refrigerator. The refrigerator was then pushed back into its normal position and a final adjustment performed to assure the refrigerator was level. The front refrigerator panel was then pressed back into place.

Unplugged frig. Emptied freezer shelves of food, removed ice container, removed all shelves, removed light bulb cover and light bulb, removed rear panel over coils (2 phillips on bottom and 2 1/4" hex on top/staggered. Used hair dryer hung on a wire to defrost the "ice block" over the coils. Used heavy towels to catch the water in the bottom so the condensate drain didn't just overflow. Removed the 2 screws holding the old element. Unplugged the quick disconnects. The new 2 element heater purchased at partselect is not "encapsulated" like a florescent tube as was the original. Much greater efficiency with exposed element coils. Re-routed blue wire on left of coil bank to the right-used the same split insulator that pink wire is in to keep it safe, did not need to use the jumper extention that comes with the kit. Plugged in both the blue and pink wire quick disconnects, installed the new defrost element with the 2 screws. Cut the old thermostat right up against it's sensor pot. Stripped existing wires, used my own wire nuts to mate the new thermostat, wrapped tight with electrical tape, then tucked them up underneath. Snapped the new sensor on the evaporator line at original location. Replaced panel, plugged frig back in, turned control in frig side to 1, and it works like new now. No more freezer burn. Ice cubes better. Still, this design is poor and no more ge major appliances for me.

As it turned out much of the electronics is driven by 13.5 volts off the Main Control Board. The Ice Dispenser caused the problem because it over currented the depleted board power. You could hear a clicking noise from the board which was the main relay short cycling and not staying energized. While waiting for the replacement board I unpluged the condenser fan which is a DC motor and uses the Board power. In place of that fan I use a small table top fan to keep the condenser cool. As it turned out I only needed it for 3 days because Parts Select did a super quick job of delivering the new board. Thanks for the super service!!!!!! Removal of the board only required unpluging the electrical connections squezing the retaining board pins with pliers and pulling the board out, pushing on the new board and connecting the electrical plugs. If the board locks like mine did, just unplug the main board power plug, let the memory clear and replug the power plug. The unit should then start and run with no problems.

I opened the back panel of the fridge and exposed the compressor. Unplugged existing run capacitor and installed new one with the addition of the sleeve that is stated must be installed around the run capacitor.
Everything I read and on this web site says that based on these symptoms, that the problem is the run capacitor. I searched and search for a part called a start relay which plugs in to the compressor. This run capacitor plugs in to this other part which I take as the start relay.

Installing this run capacitor did not solve the problem. The fridge compressor keeps cycling on and off. Freezer doesn't keep as cold as it should.

I am a 45 year old woman who is pretty handy but with no prior knowledge about appliance repair. I do have the attitude that if someone else can do it, so can I, which is helpful. I was able to watch a video on this website that showed me exactly how to replace one of the three parts that I replaced. It totally made it easy so that I knew what to do with the wiring. So far, my side by side is working great. I'm the champion! This repair cost me about $75. Who knows how much a repair man would have charged just to look at it.

i removed srews from area until i could access the fan unit and removed it. wires were not identical so i had to splice some together, most likely could not have been avoided. the exploded parts diagram helped me to be sure that i would have all replacement parts on hand so i wouldn't have to wait for something i had forgotten.

I pried the switch casing out of the fridge panel with a butterknife, then unplugged the old switch. I plugged in the new one and popped the casing back in. Easy!

The repaire guy came in tooke it out and told me it is goin to coast $20 for the part and $50 for the labor..... So I looked, It was soooo eeezzz ALL you have to do is get the switch out( with help of my butter knife :) it plugs in to a little outlet on the wire (on the botom side) so take out the old one and plug in the new one wich I got for $8 + $6 shipping = $15 THANK YOU PART SELECT for saving me $55 Im a 36 y/o stayathome mom and Ihave never don this before, Im very proud of my self. well... it was very easy!