How to Troubleshoot & Replace Ge AP2061695 / WR9X489 Refrigerator Defrost Timer

We saw that the ice cream in the freezer was soft and the main refrigerator section was not cold enough. Called for repair but soonest appointment was a full week away. So I spent the next few hours online learning how to diagnose and repair refrigerators. When I opened up the back of freezer compartment to access the evaporator coils, I found ice and frost totally blocking the cold air flow. Turns out the bottom one of the two heater bulbs (quartz heater bulbs) was bad, so both heater bulbs (connected in series) were not working and there was no heat to defrost. I shut off the fridge with the main temperature control knob and defrosted the coils with a heat gun, catching the water in towels. Now the fridge could work keeping the food cold until I could get the parts. It would eventually freeze up again, but before that, I would change the parts. I closed the rear panel and put back the shelves and food. I turned back on the fridge and then checked the defrost timer in the main food section. I put a mark on the moving shaft and made sure an hour later that it was turning. It was. For the next few days, it worked great. When the parts came three days later, I first removed the freezer food into a second freezer we have, and I put a big bag of ice into the fridge compartment to keep the food cold. I shut the circuit breaker to the fridge, removed the freezer shelves, and opened the rear panel. The evaporator coils were again frosted up, but not bad enough to stop the airflow. I again defrosted it with the heat gun, catching the water in towels. I then removed the bad heater parts and replaced them with new ones. The parts came pre-wired including the heat bulbs and the thermostat. They just simply plugged into the wire harness. All it took was a few screws to mount everything. I put back the rear panel of the freezer compartment, but just rested it in place (not screwed in yet), so the coils could have proper airflow. This was for the freezer to get cold, so the thermostat would allow the heater to work, to be tested. After turning the circuit breaker to the fridge back on, I let the fridge get cold. I then moved the back panel so I could see the coils. Next, I advanced the timer until it clicked... the compressor shut off and the heat bulbs lit up!! Wow! I fixed it! It will now defrost again! I closed up the panel, put back the shelves, and when it got cold enough, put back the food and removed the big bag of ice. Repair job took time, but it was easy and straightforward! Glad I did it myself! 

Some basic operational facts: Think of a refrigerator as a window air conditioner. If the cold setting is too high, the coils through which cold air must pass will ice up if they are not given time to defrost. So if the defroster isn't cycling on and off correctly, it will fail to defrost the coil and the coil will become ice-covered and the fan will not be able to push air through the accumulated ice (which is on the coil in the freezer section behind the thin metal cover at the back of the freezer). Ironically, the freezer will still be cold, even if the ice covers the coils. But without periodically defrosting the coil, the small fan won't be able to blow cold air from the freezer section to the refrigerator section of the appliance. For the temperature sensing control and the defrost timer to function, the two components of the defroster heater located in the freezer section must also be functioning correctly. For DIY technicians, it makes sense to replace the electrical components on both sides of this freezer/refrigerator combination. The DIY cost of all four parts is less than $150. So, if the compressor, heat exchanger coil, and two fans are functioning correctly, the appliance will run like new when these four new parts are installed. I replaced the two switches controlling the defrost cycle. These are the "defrost timer switch" and the "temperature (sensitive) control switch", both of which are located in the upper portion of the refrigerator section of the appliance just above the light bulb socket behind the housing assembly containing the two controlling slide switches (or knobs on some models) for freezer temperature and fresh food temperature. Appliance Parts Pros show how simple it is to replace the timer. There is no video for the defrost temperature control thermostat, which is more challenging to replace. The reason the defrost thermostat is more challenging is because it must physically link with the geared nylon wheel that connects the refrigerator temperature control lever (slide or knob) to the shaft of the temperature control device. Also, the replacement temperature control is slightly different from the original control The original has a temperature sensing coil attached to the temperature switch and this coil is a spiral shaped thin piece of wire that is part of the switch. The replacement part arrives with this coil correctly attached to the temperature sensor, but it is in an undefined shape looking like a straight but flexible piece of wire. Gently coil this wire in a spiral shape to approximately match the appearance of the original part. It is easier to do this before you install the new temperature sensing control. To access the screws to remove the old temperature sensing control, you will need to move the sliding controller lever to the extreme left and right to access the first one screw and then the other screw. The sliding controller will need to be in the far-right position after installing the new temperature controller. And the controller shaft will need to be in the most clockwise position to match up with the sliding controller lever when you reinstall the cover. Remember that the screws securing the temperature controller to the housing of the controller must go through both the plastic control lever housing and the metal housing for both the temperature controller and the timer. So, if the original screws do not match the threads on the replacement temperature sensing switch, remember the original screws only need to grab about 1/8 of an inch of the metal on the new temperature sensing switch to secure the switch. Carefully tightening and loosening the screws on the replacement part several times should be enough to modify the differences in the thread gauge so the original screws will work. Once you have the defrost temperature control correctly installed, you can replace the timer. The defrost timer is very much like the $6 timer you can buy at Walmart or Target to turn the lights on and off in your house. Appliance Parts Pros provide an accurate and easy to follow install video for this timer. But they don't tell you that the new timer is likely to arrive with a setting that is "off." Consequently, when you correctly install it, reinstall the controller and timer assembly, and put the light bulb back in the socket, the refrigerator may not operate. Relax. Look closely at the small wheel that is visible on the front of the housing for both the temperature sensor and the timer, and you will see that there are two tabs on the tiny wheel that is visible just above the light bulb socket. If you have saved the old-timer you can experiment with it. Look closely at this wheel on the old part and you will see the same small tabs. You could put a screwdriver (or a thumbnail) next to this wheel and if you get the position correctly, you can turn the timer one click at a time clockwise. One-click is all it needs to turn the refrigerator on. It will manage the clock on its own after you start it. Or you can just wait 14 hours and it will start itself. Some basic operational facts: Think of a refrigerator as a window air conditioner. If the cold setting is too high, the coils through which cold air must pass will ice up if not given time to defrost. So if the defroster isn't cycling on and off correctly, it will fail to defrost the coil and the coil will become ice-covered and the fan will not be able to push air through the accumulated ice which is on the coil in the freezer section behind the thin metal cover at the back of the freezer. Ironically, the freezer will still be cold, even if the ice covers the coils. But without periodically defrosting the coil, the small fan won't be able to blow cold air from the freezer section to the refrigerator section of the appliance. For these two parts to function, the two components of the defroster heater located in the freezer section must be functioning correctly. For DIY technicians, it makes sense to replace the electrical components on both sides of this freezer/refrigerator combination. The DIY cost of all four parts is less than $150. If the compressor, heat exchanger coil, and two fans are functioning correctly, the appliance will run like new when new four new parts are installed. Good luck! 

I changed out the heater thermostat and timer I fixed my fridge when I thought I couldn't 

Replaced the Defrost Thermostat and Defrost Control Timer. 

Twin defrost heaters showed continuity so ordered defrost timer and thermostat. Found that one of the heater connector had melted. Replaced section of heater wire, spade connector and timer and thermostat. 23 year old GESide by side works like a new one.u 

Got on AppliancePartsPros.com and they had the exact part number. Ordered part on Friday via second day shipping and I got the part on Monday. Finally I did not have to manually turn the switch on the timer every so many hours to defrost the refrigerator. Thanks to the Pros my refrigerator is defrosting itself now... Easy to look up part and model numbers with their system. Excellent. 

I unplugged the unit and removed the inside cover on the freezer side and saw the coils were full of ice, learning what I did from the videos on Appliance Parts Pros I unplugged the unit and thawed out the freezer, checked the heater with an ohm meter looking for approx 40ohms, the reading I got was an open circuit. which told me that the heating unit was bad. I ordered a heater replacement from Appliance Parts Pros, connected the new heater, turned the refrigerator back on and made sure that the unit was out of defrost mode by turning the slot on the defrost timer with a screwdriver until I heard the compressor come on, (The defrost timer is located on the Refrigerator side) The Unit is Back on-line, working like it should, Many thanks you saved me $1200.00 because My Wife was ready to go buy a brand new unit. 

Replaced the defrost timer on my GE refrigerator, easy to do. I recommend that you check out the freezer coils. They were packed with ice build up. I defrosted them with a hair dryer, you will have to soak up the water because it will probably be more than the evaporator pan can handle. It is working fine now. Very happy with delivery of part, next day. Time to replace part 10 minutes or less, extra time was spent defrosting evaporator coils. 

My defrost heaters and timer went bad. So I thought it would be smart to order the really cheap replacement parts off of Ebay.... boy, was I wrong! At first it seemed to work - the timer cycled and turned the heaters on a couple of times a day. But after 3 months I noticed the refrigerator became warm again. After taking a look at the heaters, I noticed the glass cracked in one of them and was filled with water! So I decided I would NOT replace them with the cheap parts again and ordered the authentic part from Appliance Parts Pros! I replaced the heater and things seemed to work great! But after a few weeks, I noticed puddles on the floor in front of my freezer! Turns out my cheap timer wasn't cycling long enough! The timer would only cycle for 15 minutes... just long enough to melt some of the frost, but the drain became clogged with ice and the melted ice refroze in the bottom of my freezer and some would drip out onto my floor! So I ordered the authentic replacement part and now it cycles for 30 minutes and ensures all of the melted ice drains out into the pan in the back of the freezer! It now works perfectly!! This refrigerator is from the 1990s and now runs like it is BRAND NEW thanks to the high quality parts from Appliance Parts Pros!! AND the parts shipped super fast! :D You guys are awesome!! Sincerely, Jennifer S. :) 

After viewing your "Get repair help" section and following the advice I received from the Repair Forum I determined my problem was the defrost timer. I ordered the part and two days later my refrigerator is working as good as new. Thanks Appliance Parts Pros!