# GE refrigerator defrost problems (with pics)



## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

Open the freezer and rmove the screws holding on the cover on the left side.
Once removed you should see the tube there talking about.
Mine was frozen right at the top of the tube so I used a hair dryer to melt it then a piece of wire down the tube to clear it all out.


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## hardwareman (Oct 9, 2010)

yeah, it has a drain tube. Take the cover off the evaporator and you should be able to find it.


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## Jim F (Mar 4, 2010)

Thanks for the replies so far. I will have to do some more digging tomorrow. The second picture I posted is of the bottom of the refrigerator. This is the area I found to be full of water that is cleaned out before the picture. I could not remove that shelf above the cover so could not see behind it. Is that where the drain hole is? Or is it down in the freezer campartment? 

Are there any tricks to removing the shelf in the refrigerator section. Also, does the freezer pullout drawer come off without too much trouble to gain access to the back of the freezer?


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## Jim F (Mar 4, 2010)

So here is what I've come up with. I was originally thinking there was drain hole in the floor of the refrigerator behind that thing that holds the water for cooling. That is not the case. I did go down into the freezer and open the condenser cover as suggested above and realized that is not my problem.


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## Jim F (Mar 4, 2010)

Apparently my problem stems from the fact that the ducts that bring cold air up from the freezer are aced up. This required me to carefully defrost this area with a hair dryer. I say carefully because if you get into a hurry, you can melt the plastic inside a refrigerator. I have done this in the past, fortunately not on this one. 

This brings me to the real problem of ice building up in the refrigerator which can be the defrost timer or defrost heater. I am hoping that it is just due to overloading the refrigerator and having the temp set too low. It was set at 36 F.
I also pulled the refrigerator out and vacuumed out behind and underneath it where the heat exchange occurs on this model. So, it must be pulled out of its cabinet space and vacuumed periodically rather than having access in the front.

I am hoping this solves my problem but will have to keep an eye on it. As always, I am open to advice.


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## Jim F (Mar 4, 2010)

Update. Already, a day later I am sponging up water in the bottom of my refrigerator. I am just not finding any answers online. Before I call for service, is there any other advice out there? 

One other thing worth mentioning: As you can see from this project picture, the refrigerator is somewhat enclosed in its own cabinet. Is it possible that the evaporator is just not getting enough air exchange?


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## Jim F (Mar 4, 2010)

Is there some sort of drainage channel in that duct in the back of the refrigerator that is blocked? If so, how do I access that? I did take out the screws once and try to remove it but felt a lot of resistance so thought I might cause damage if I persisted.


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## Jim F (Mar 4, 2010)

Two things I found out about this. The first thing is that it is still under the 4 year service contract I bought with it at Lowes. I found that paperwork and called in service. 

The second thing I found out is that there is actually a second evapoprator behidt that duct cover in the back of the refrigerator and there is where the frozevn over dreain tube was found. 

Also they had a design flaw in the refrigerator evaporator fan where it was kicking on too soon and drawing water up to the top after the defrost cycle and refreezing there. So, they replaced cover and duct which also has the fan attached to it. Unfortunately, I didn't get pictures of it when the tech had it apart.


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## Rafael07 (Oct 11, 2012)

Jim F, Have you found the solution to this? I have the same problem that you mentioned. I have been looking on internet for a solution and havent found anything. The only solution that I found is to unload all the food and leave the doors open. It will melt the ice in the back and the refrigerator will work well again but it will just last for a month.


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## Rafael07 (Oct 11, 2012)

Jim F said:


> Two things I found out about this. The first thing is that it is still under the 4 year service contract I bought with it at Lowes. I found that paperwork and called in service.
> 
> The second thing I found out is that there is actually a second evapoprator behidt that duct cover in the back of the refrigerator and there is where the frozevn over dreain tube was found.
> 
> Also they had a design flaw in the refrigerator evaporator fan where it was kicking on too soon and drawing water up to the top after the defrost cycle and refreezing there. So, they replaced cover and duct which also has the fan attached to it. Unfortunately, I didn't get pictures of it when the tech had it apart.


Is this the solution to the refrigerator? Please need and answer. I have been looking for a solution for about 3 months. Plz help


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## hardwareman (Oct 9, 2010)

instead of just letting it defrost manually , shut down the refrig, take the cover off of the evaporator and look at the defrost drain hole. It will be iced up and likely frozen down inside the drain tube. Defrost the tube then find a wire that is flexible enough to slide down the tube and clean it out. Since you did not post your model # it is hard to say if Jims fix would be the same fix for yours


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## Rafael07 (Oct 11, 2012)

hardwareman said:


> instead of just letting it defrost manually , shut down the refrig, take the cover off of the evaporator and look at the defrost drain hole. It will be iced up and likely frozen down inside the drain tube. Defrost the tube then find a wire that is flexible enough to slide down the tube and clean it out. Since you did not post your model # it is hard to say if Jims fix would be the same fix for yours


Same model as Jim F.


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## hardwareman (Oct 9, 2010)

ok, then yes Jims solution should work for you also. GE has had lots of issues with their bottom freezer units. I would take it apart first and clean the drain tube and see how long it last. If it continues to give you the problem then maybe call in a GE tech to service it, as they should have all the latest update procedures for repair.


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

The drain is in that metal pan with the duct tape on it, under the coil.


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## Jim F (Mar 4, 2010)

Rafael07 said:


> Is this the solution to the refrigerator? Please need and answer. I have been looking for a solution for about 3 months. Plz help


It has given me no problems since the service tech replaced the recalled item. I forget what the part is called but it is that cover which has 2 fans intigrated into it. 

There was NO ice in the drain hole. The ductwork iced over before any ice even reached the drain holes. The are two drain holes, one for the bottom freezer and one for the icemaker in the refrigerator compartment. 

Rafael, if yours is out of warranty, check for a recall. They will replace it for no charge. If you need to take that cover off yourself, you need to make sure it is completely defrosted underneath and it takes a long time. The service tech damaged the styrofoam parts taking mine apart but it didn't matter because he was planning to replace it anyway.

Sorry it took so long to notice your question.


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## Jim F (Mar 4, 2010)

*Ssdd*

So here I am again it's 2015 and this problem has reared its ugly head again. The refrigerator evaporator has iced over and the fan was hitting the ice (see pics). It had the freezer evaporator assembly replaced recently because it was leaking and that solved the problem with the cooling situation. That repair cost 600. I know that several things can be causing this. I'm hoping it's mostly that it has been very hot and the refrigerator was overloaded. But I know there must also be a problem with the defrost cycle. I tested the defrost element for continuity but not the bi metal yet or the control board. Any ideas of the most likely cause?


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## DanS26 (Oct 25, 2012)

Replace the defrost timer and the defrost thermostat. Replace one at a time and return the part that is not the problem.


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