how do i replace the fridge cooling fan in a samsung rs21fcns?

A big thankyou to Kalvin & Kash!

I followed both steps, i was reluctant to remove the spring holding the impellar, and so i however cleaned the fan using hot water (trying to avoid wetting anything around the motor).

Similarly to Kash, i found a blockage of ice in what appeared to be some kind of a vent, so i defrosted the area and put everything back (hovered the dust in the back by removing the rear panel aswell) and it all touch wood seems to be working fine.

Billy
September 2008

I had a similar problem with my Samsung side by side refrigerator, the fan was making a noise - sort of grinding and would stop every time i opened the fridge door and then continue when the door was cloased. Pretty soon the noise stopped and so did the cooling inside the fridge. I thought the fan might have stopped working so i followed the steps in the post above to remove the bottom panel, which also requires removing the top light housing cover.

When i got the bottom cover off, an this is mounted the fan by four screws, remove these and the fan assembly comes off - becarefull of the wires!, i noticed that there was a large lump of ice that was blocking the fan blades towards the bottom where there is also a hole i think for allowing the cool air to come in. So to clear the ice i placed a large amount of salt and warm water, left this to take action, once all the ice had melted i flushed this through with warm clean water, wiped down and reassembled the items in reverse oder.

Thats it, now the whole thing is working fine.

Hope this helps someone else with similar problems.

Kash
July 2007

Remove the lighting panel. Three screws, and ease out the lighting unit. There is a dual plug behind. Unplug and put the panel to one side.
Remove the bottom unit, there are four screws but the top two are hidden behind a couple of pull out trim panels. Unplug at the top and remove.
Take the panel to the kitchen table and remove the four screws holding the fan panel. Undo the screw holding the motor and split the white plastic container open.
Turn over and you will see the impeller held on with a spiral device. Remove this carefully. Open up the slots holding the fan impeller to the shaft then tap out the spidle using a small (tiny ) pin punch.
Replace in reverse order but put a dab of loctite on the impeller/fan shaft. Don't push it on the shaft too far.
You should make sure the drain below the condensor is clear. Pour a cup of water through it. Power off the fridge from the mains for a couple of minutes and it should all work.

Kalvin Withers
November 2006