Repairing a GE WR60X266 Refrigerator Condenser fan

[Bob El Constructor]

My condenser fan has a problem on my GE Fridge, it spins but is squeeling and stopping and there appears to be some misalignment on the motor spindle.

I've pulled it out and am pretty confident I could fix it with new bearings or whatever, the trouble is there is a plastic hub on the spindle below where the fan blades were and I have no idea how to remove this, everything else I've been able to unscrew from the spindle. The assembly opens up at the back but to open it completely you also have to remove this plastic hub which rotates with the spindle, I can't seem to get it off.

Please see the photo in the link to see what I mean, anyone have any idea how to get past it?

 

[Bob El Constructor]

I got past it the cap pulls off.

 

[Tarlow]

Hi, I'm dealing with issues with the same WR60X0266 condenser fan on my fridge: in my case, fan spinning only intermittently, and condenser on all the time. No squeaking or visible misalignment of the motor spindle.
The unit is discontinued everywhere I look, and before I try to find a different motor (and likely hassle with fabricating a new bracket to hold it), I'm considering trying to repair it.
What was the issue with yours, at the end? Bearing? Coils needing to be redone?
This is the second condenser fan motor my 23-year-old fridge was gone through, and I wish I'd kept the first to be able to look into it before pulling the current one out (the symptoms were exactly the same as yours on that one).

Regards, Tarlow

(I've seen this motor referenced as WR60X266 as well, and some cross reference sites indicate WR60X267 as a possible replacement - all discontinued.

 

[Marvo]

Can you post a few pictures of the fan motor and its mountings from different angles please?

If it's running intermittently it's probably bearings or bushes worn out which is A common failure mode for condenser fans which run in higher ambient temperatures. 2 fans in 23 years isn't bad.

From bitter experience repairing these little tiny motors is more trouble than it's worth. Some do have bearings but some have bushes made from what used to be known many decades ago as 'oil lite' which is an oil impregnated porous brass or bronze. I've remanufactured bushings for motors in the past with mixed results, oil lite isn't easy to machine especially when you're dealing with shaft sizes of 3-5mm and it's astronomically priced to buy the raw stock, not something I'd recommend you get involved in. Honestly just buy an off the shelf motor and blades set of similar diameter and make up a couple of mounting brackets from strips of 0.7mm or 0.9mm thickness steel or stainless.

 

[Tarlow]

Hi, and thanks for the reply. If I can find a similar (in size and specs) motor, the wise thing to do would absolutely be to get a new one or two, create brackets to fit if needed, and keep the extra motor on the side for backup.

I did manage to source the new exact same GE motor in the UK, but for 250£ shipped, yikes! (I think that's about 4 times the amount I paid for the last one). The motor, being NOS, is likely to have been sitting around for quite a while as well, which for an item susceptible to issues if the oil dries up, doesn't bode well for its reliability/life expectancy.

Here's a few pics and a video I took when investigating the issue. Sorry for the all the dust; it appears it really collects back there

 

[Tarlow]

I'm still looking for cross references for this WR60X0266 motor. It seems like GE replaced this ecm with other references in the meantime, with similar-looking attachment points but usually slightly different specs. But even the updated parts seem to be discontinued. I found better pics of the ecm below:

 

[Tarlow]

Update: I found an ECM cited as a replacement motor for later references (wr60x0266 was replaced by wr60x0267, then wr60x0268, then wr60x0269). Only differences in specs are:


-replacement is 2w instead of 2.9w
-replacement is 1300rpm instead of 1100rpm.
Are the differences within acceptable boundaries, or should I keep looking? (I'm hoping 2w indicates average consumption, and 1300rpm maximum speed capability, but not sure)

 

[Tarlow]

Update: the condenser fan has been working for a few months now with no issues!