GE Monogram 48" side by side air circulation question

Seems like it's inevitable that the fridge will be emptied and defrosted; will then check all the air passages (including the return opening which as I see it is convoluted; see pic) and attempt to make a meaningful test of the evap fan.

@jayeff

"manuals specifies 6.3V for the rpm and not a variable one so I assume that it would be constant from the fan."

Don't see any reference to 6.3 anywhere in the doc. Attached is a pic of the J2 connector on page 26 of the PDF.

"correct the logic may be to keep the fan at the same speed regardless as it doesn't know what speed"

The manual says it defaults to high speed

"Check what voltage is seen on it."

Will do"

"Does the fan in the quick chill drawer fan work OK?"

Checked early on and it was working.

"Did you check the refrigerator door seals"

Tested ok a month or so ago; if they were leaking the so called vacuum we discussed previously would not be evident.

@jayeff

Found the page 30 J2 info.

I will confirm all the evap conductor voltages again including the blue wire on J2-1

Here are the readings with J2 plugged in and unplugged:

I have some comments about the readings; I'll get to them soon.

@jayeff

This issue has been very consistent with the deep freeze not occurring when the styrofoam is in place. This morning, for the first time with the temp settings at 0F & 37F, the freezer went to -9F and the fresh food was 36F.

Will use a bore scope to take a look inside the freezer. The only difference I'm aware of is that we've had a lot of rain recently and the humidity inside the house has risen above 60%. Seems like this points to the source of the problem being something other than air circulation; intermittent evap fan??? The damper was open and there was no obstruction. FF temp display seemed to coincide with the digital IR readings.

The old adage that I have found to be true seems applicable: "When something defies analysis, there's probably more than one thing contributing."

Your observation that the correct manual may help solve this, but my experience with the new "GE" is they promise to deliver and deliver nothing.

BTW, with J2 unplugged, there will be no readings available on the harness side; correct me if I'm out in space on that. :0)

Here's the response I got for the wiring schematic. My bad for not recognizing that it was not a GE organization and a commercial enterprise only interested in obtain your IP address tied to your home address and contact info... :0(

Hello Nick,

Thank you for contacting Bodewell, GE Appliances' new premium brand of support.  My name is Sancyrae, and it's my pleasure to assist you today.

 Before I can submit your wiring diagram please provide the required contact details below.

Mobile number

Residential address

Please also ensure the full model/serial number is provided. I look forward to hearing back from you soon.

 ''''

Please email us again if you have any further questions or concerns. I hope you have a wonderful rest of your day! Thanks for contacting us and please reach out to us again for any future related appliance needs.

Sancyrae

Email/Chat specialist, Bodewell

GE Appliances, a Haier company

And here is a new twist on the issue. Up until yesterday there was never an incidence of this issue when the damper conduit/extension styrofoam was not in place; as long as it remained off, the problem was kind of ok, except the the finished area of the FF section was not finished. Lights and ceiling panels were/are removed.

Then yesterday, the FZ temp showed to be -16F; previously the lowest temp recorded was -13f. This new temp occurred without the damper extension styrofoam in place which is also a first. Thinking about this left me a bit confused until I decided to check the opening (the damper door was open). Reaching in toward the FZ I found the opening to be round and not square and blocked by frost buildup by about 35%. After clearing the frost and within a few hours the FZ temp dropped some 5 degrees.

Have to assume this has something to do with humidity, but there hasn't be much rain recently, so it leaves me kind of stumped.

My review of the interior workings with a bore-scope was a bit revealing, but at the same time confusing. The evaporator was clear of ice on the front side just above the ice maker, but the back side looking through the damper opening was all white, apparently clogged with ice. Couldn't really get a good focus on it because of the angle.

Have to assume that the cause of all this is somehow related to the ice buildup.

Anyone have any thoughts?

TIA, Nick

The box is now empty, disassembled and at room temp and I believe the issue is the ineffectiveness of the defrost cycle, which over time causes a buildup of frost on the damper for the FF section. Perhaps other blockages that I have not check for...

Performed some tests with ice on the Thermodisc with no definitive results. Instead of opening and closing, it registers a changing resistance value much like thermistor. Anyone know how to test this unit using ice cubes in a bowl of water? Attached is an online copy/photo if the part.

Found another difference between actual wiring and available schematics. The schematic shows the over-temperature thermodisc to be in series with the Calrod defrost heater wiring, but I find that both are wired directly to the board.

The original Thermodisc shows it to be L65-20F and the current replacement part shows it to be L140-30F (opens at 140F and closes at 30F). Seems like that's a better arrangement than the opens at 65F which would allow the evaporator to get hotter. Appreciate any help with that.