KitchenAid Built-In Refrigerator Not Cooling: Defrost Thermostat and Ice Maker Replacement in San Jose
A 25-year-old KitchenAid built-in refrigerator in Almaden, San Jose, was warm in the fresh-food section. A cracked defrost thermostat had stopped the defrost cycle. We replaced it, replaced the corroded ice maker and cleaned the condenser coil.
Repair at a glance
| City | San Jose (Almaden), CA |
|---|---|
| Appliance | Refrigerator |
| Category | High-End Brands |
| Brand & model | KitchenAid built-in side-by-side (model label not available, about 25 years old) |
| Repair date | |
| Customer complaint | The fresh-food section stopped cooling while the freezer still felt mostly cold. The ice maker had not worked for a long time. |
| Diagnosis | The defrost cycle had stopped: the defrost thermostat had taken in water, swollen and cracked. The evaporator iced over and blocked airflow to the fresh-food section. The ice maker was badly corroded. |
| Repair cost | $937 (parts and labor) |
| Warranty | 6 months on parts and labor |
| Outcome | Repaired |
What the customer told us
The customer in the Almaden area of San Jose called about her KitchenAid built-in side-by-side refrigerator, about 25 years old. The freezer still cooled more or less normally, but the fresh-food section had become warm.
She also mentioned that the ice maker had not worked for a long time and asked us to fix it too, so the whole refrigerator would work properly again.
Diagnosis: the defrost cycle had stopped
This refrigerator has only one evaporator, located in the freezer. Cold air reaches the fresh-food section only from the freezer side.
When the defrost system stops working, frost keeps building on the evaporator until it is covered in snow and ice. Airflow drops, so the freezer still feels cold but cools poorly, and very little cold air reaches the fresh-food section, which turns warm.
A defrost cycle can fail for several reasons. On this refrigerator the cause was the defrost thermostat: water had gotten inside it, and over time it swelled and cracked.
The repair, step by step
We emptied the freezer on the left side and removed the shelves, baskets and the housing that covers the evaporator. The evaporator was still packed with snow, so we fully defrosted it.
We checked the evaporator fan, mounted just above the evaporator. Despite the refrigerator's age it was working properly.
We replaced the cracked defrost thermostat with the same type of new part, then reassembled the evaporator housing.
Ice maker and condenser coil
The old ice maker was eaten by corrosion: its protective coating had peeled off the mold. We replaced it with a new ice maker and checked that water filled it properly.
We also cleaned the dusty condenser coil, completing a full service of the refrigerator.
Result
After the repair the defrost cycle worked again, cold air flowed from the freezer into the fresh-food section, and the new ice maker was filling with water.
The total for this job — defrost thermostat, ice maker, condenser cleaning, parts and labor — was $937. The repair comes with a 6-month warranty on parts and labor.
Photos from this repair
The KitchenAid built-in refrigerator before the repair. 
The condenser coil, covered in dust, before cleaning. 
Both sections emptied for the repair. 
Freezer emptied, shelves and ice maker removed. 
Freezer shelves, baskets and the old ice maker. 
Evaporator exposed and defrosted, with the fan above it. 
New defrost thermostat (left) and the old one, swollen and cracked. 
Old corroded ice maker (top) and the new one. 
Freezer reassembled with the new ice maker.
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