Condenser Fan

Your refrigerator draws heat from the freezer section's evaporator coils and dumps it out into the ambient room air from the condenser coils. The evaporator coils, the compressor and the condenser coils are filled with refrigerant (R-12) gas. The compressor is the "heat pump". It draws the expanded gas from the evaporator coils and compresses it into a saturated liquid and gas which is pumped into the condenser coils. The saturated gas entering the condenser coils is hot (over 120 deg F) and under pressure. As the gas moves through the coils it gives up its heat by radiating it to the cooler ambient air outside the coils. The condenser fan speeds up the radiation of heat by blowing ambient air over the condenser coils. In fact, if the condenser fan doesn't help move the warm air away from the coils underneath the refrigerator, the freezer section won't get much below freezing.

This diagram shows the condensor coils along with the compressor and the condenser fan at the bottom of a refrigerator.

The condenser fan motor bearings frequently seize up. Put your hand down at either end of the kick plate down under the refrigerator door and feel for moving air when the compressor is running. If the condenser fan is not moving air, pull the refrigerator out away from the wall and remove the rear access cover. Check to make sure no paper or insulation has captured the fan blade. If the fan blade is not moving, turn it over with your finger to see it will turn again.Even though you can get the fan to turn again, you will need to get anew fan motor because the next time it stops it will just stick again.

I stock a Whirlpool part no. 833697 condenser fan motor because it has a 1 foot long power cord that be spliced into just about any fridge wiring and a GE part no. WR60X177 motor because it has a set of male spade lugs that will accept female spade terminals. All of the motors turn clockwise and have 3 mounting holes separated by 120 degrees around the motor housing base to attach to a mounting bracket as shown in the diagram to the right:

Unplug the refrigerator. Disconnect or cut the condenser fan wires. Remove the three brackets with the motor. It is easier to reattach the brackets to the new motor when they are out of the refrigerator. Remove the brackets from the old motor and mount them on the new motor. Move the fan blade to the new motor. Remount the condenser fan assembly back in the refrigerator and reconnect the wiring. Plug the refrigerator back in and verify that the fan works properly.

Reinstall the rear access panel as it is necessary for proper air circulation through the condenser coil!