BlueStars Upgraded 4387503 Refrigerator Bimetal Defrost Thermostat Replacement - Compatible with Whirlpool & Kenmore Refrigerators - Replaces WP4387503 343917 61002113 PS11742474 AP6009317

The refrigerator is a 1995 KitchenAid mod# KTRS21MDAL02 and the parts fit like a glove.After the 2nd timer failed I knew there was another problem. Heater element ohm'd out ok,(if it works it'll get hot and you'll hear water drops steam off when they hit it, the meter was overabundance of caution but be careful!), when I changed it so I assumed the first timer was bad. Well, turns out the timer and limit switch are available as a kit. I guess those failures are common enough to sell both parts together. I suggest changing both. Yes, taking the freezer apart is no fun but it also isn't difficult, just time consuming and timers aren't free. May as well have a bowl/pail of warm soapy water and a rag handy, there's more behind the floor panels than I ever would have guessed... The limit switch is hard wired direct so it will need to be cut and the new one crimped or nutted in. There are videos if your nervous (don't be nervous but DO unplug your unit). Not hard, just pair up the wires to their matching mates and attach them to each other. So now my fridge has been running just like the old days and I have ice cubes again! This is a mid level repair that doesn't require any intense knowledge but some mechanical aptitude will go far. You can disassemble everything for inspection (unplug 1st) and then, plug back in, advance the timer manually and observe/inspect everything in operation. Especially convenient when you're looking at the heater element. This is for the girls too, you can do it as easy as anyone else can so don't be afraid to try. Watch a vid or 2 and save yourself some hard earned cash! You can do it!

Got our Fridgidaire MRS20HRAW9 back working properly again! After ice build up in the freezer I found this part needed replacing and this one did the job.

This worked great as a replacement for an old defrost thermostat we have in our garage fridge. The freezer started filling with frost and I finally figured out this was the part that had stopped working. It took maybe 30 minutes to replace after I got the part from Amazon. There are several videos online on how to change it. It saved me a service call and hundreds of $$$ for such an inexpensive part.

I have a Kenmore Top Freezer Refrigerator that had heavy ice formed in the freezer section and the refrigerator section is not cooling. I had similar problem with my GE side by side in the past so I suspect it is the defrost thermostat that has gone bad. I ordered the Bluestars defrost thermostat to replace mine which is equivalent for the Whirlpool model. It took a full day for the freezer to defrost the sheets of ices in the freezer and I still have to spend 45 mins just to clear the ices and remove the frozen foods from the freezer section. After cleaning up the remaining ices and frozen water from the freezer, I have to remove the ice maker and the rear panel of the freezer to get access to the defrost thermostat. I checked the defrost heater for continuity and replace the defrost thermostat. Once it is replaced, I put everything back and turn the refrigerator back on. It took 8 hours later for the refrigerator section to cool down while the freezer section get really cold in about an hour but no ice build up. My frig is working again after 1 hour of labor and less than $10 for parts including the butt connectors. The Whirlpool part would have cost $20, there is no disconcernable different than this part. On the GE Artica that I had problem with, I had to change both the heater and the thermostat. Apparently, the GE has a different heater element that could be burned out. In both cases, I could not tell if the defrost thermostats are bad until I cut them out of the frig and test them. The new ones look identical but they are normally close where the defective ones are always open. So I ordered another spare one just in case, they are cheap enough to keep them as spare, just like the capacitors for the central HVAC.

Bought these multiple times. Great part

Easy install my fridge kept icing up and after install no more issue with that. This from what I understand is a sensor that turns on a heating element in fridge so it doesn't ice up at the back of the fridge and cause ice to build up. Easy fix if you are a d.i.y person. Like me.

Last time this happened about 10 years ago the Sears repairman told me what he was changing. And I watched him replace it. I wasn't sure if it was the same problem again. The refrigerator was warm and had ice blocking the back cooling ports. The freezer was fine. Sears quoted me $425.00 for repairing a 1999 Kenmore frigerator. So I declined that quote and looked online for the part. Found part # and ordered it from Amazon for $7.99. Fridge works fine now.

My old Kenmore (rebranded Whirlpool) refrigerator’s freezer section started frosting over while the refrigerator got warm- often a sign that either the defrost timer or the defrost thermostat have gone; I decided to replace the defrost thermostat first when the self-test in the tiny service manual included with the refrigerator was inconclusive. That did the trick. I used waterproof wire nuts; other than the time spent defrosting the freezer section with a hair blower to get at the thermostat in the back, it was a ten minute job.