BlueStars W10189703 Refrigerator Evaporator Fan Motor Ultra Durable - Compatible with Whirlpool Maytag Kenmore Refrigerators - Replaces WPW10189703 W10208121 2219647

functional

Take pictures of it before taking it apart

Just What I needed at the right price

First off, thank you to ScottG's review here that helped me find this motor as an option. He wrote a bit about it in his review, but to repeat, this motor can be used in place of the WP4389142.To start off my review, as many others probably have found out, the WP4389142 ( 2183833 ) motor has been discontinued and is hard to find online. If you want a real one, you're stuck buying an old used one for a bad value. Our 2001 Roper(Whirlpool family) top freezer's evaporator fan has been working poorly for a few years now, and I've been trying hard to find a replacement fan, because our new fridge searches haven't stopped. Sometimes the fan would work great, no noise, cools properly. It would go months, weeks, or sometimes only days like this. Then it would be a nightmare, starting by not blowing hard enough making fridge temps fall slowly, begin rattling, then become *extremely* loud, making sleeping almost impossible some days. I had to keep slamming the freezer door or banging the back panel to make it stop by making the fan reset, which didn't always work. Then sometimes we'd get weeks/months of peace until it started up again. When it would be loud, it would basically run 24/7, from both the air not flowing properly slowly dropping temps, and because of that, the thermostat in the fridge compartment not getting proper airflow higher up in the compartment, leading to it requiring lower fridge temps to shut off.I saw Scott's review, and this motor peaked my interest for a while, and I finally pulled the trigger. I chose this one, because while I saw there are other motors that look closer, this one was said to spin the correct direction. I believe the alternative design spins the other way. The motor for this fridge seems to spin counter-clockwise. As mentioned in his review, it's not a direct replacement and modification is required. I'll describe the process below, but keep in mind, I'm not a very handy person, so there may be an easier or better way.When I received the motor, the first thing I did was get a hacksaw and cut off most of the protrusion on the back of the motor, so it would be flatter compared to the original. I cut up to where the crevice ended, and didn't go past it. This wasn't too hard, but it took a little bit of time, but my hacksaw was old.Then came disassembly, which was a pain in the neck. First you unclip the wires at the top of the motor rectangular housing. I removed the existing plastic holders, had to use pliers to remove the stubborn wiring connected to the motor. The frustrating part was removing the bolts connecting the arms to the holder. On my variant of this motor, it has small hex screws, smaller than the ones for the rest of the fridge. Was frustrating getting these off, took a long time with pliers. I probably could've skipped this step, and went to the next. I then removed the same small hex nuts on the back of the old motor attaching it to the bracket. The motor begins to come apart at this point, so be careful. Keep note of bracket directions, etc. Once that is done, the motor is now free from the brackets. I then removed the fan by firming grasping it from behind while pushing and spinning, it takes some time, but you should see it slowly slide off.I then took the new motor, removed the bolts from the back of it(these are basic screws), and slid the brackets into place, but I encountered the issue mentioned in the other reviews, the rivet for the ground connector is right where the bracket will rest. I tried hacksawing on that bracket where the connector will sit. I made a slit starting at the edge and went down, by that point I was tired of it, and I just used pliers to pull the corner I made the slit in the opposite direction of the rivet, so it would pass it. Note, my ground connector was already slightly downward turned when I received the motor, I used pliers to gently bend the ground slightly away from the bracket as well.I then plopped the screws back in after getting the bracket and motor pieces in place, and reattached the bracket screws, I didn't tighten them all down until it was mostly straight(the brackets). Then, I slid the old fan blade onto it and very firmly pressed down to make sure it was secure, and attached the bracket/motor to the housing.I then reassembled everything. I reattached the wires first.It's helpful to have another person hold up the rectangular plastic housing while you screw it in, especially if you don't have a magnetized hex screw driver. I like to start these ones in particular by hand then finish with a screwdriver. It's another job if they fall out, because they'll fall behind the evaporator.I was basically done at this point. I turned the fridge back on(I had unplugged it prior), and checked the fan. It was spinning in the correct direction. This took me(someone who isn't super handy, and didn't have the correct tools) a little over an hour to do for this fridge/replacement. Keep that in mind, because I had to throw some things away due to them becoming unfrozen sitting out that long, despite it not being warm that day.The fan seems to sound a little quieter than the old one. I feel like it's a little rough around the edges(a little more ever so slightly grindy sounding from outside when closed compared to the old working properly), but it seems to be working... knock on wood. I started getting really disappointed about 15 minutes after celebrating the success. It started making the 'moo'ing sort of sounds, like the original motor made not long after the loudness began a few years ago. Those sounds have mostly disappeared, but I think I still hear them from time to time.It took the fridge about 4 hours to reach temp after having been off for that long. The freezer seems to be running a little warmer than before, just something to keep in mind. The fridge shut off point seems to be around the same temperature. It is cycling on and off, but this is an early review. I'll update if the performance/noise suffers over time, especially in the summer. I plan to keep my old motor just in case.I attached photos of what I had to modify on the new motor(the bracket for the ground rivet) and the piece at the back, as well as a photo of the back of the fridge so you know if it's similar to yours. I also added a photo of the old motor, some versions of this motor have a little bit different look, but it should be the same in functionality. The photos with the black motor is the new one.

My old whirlpool refrigerator was getting way too cold in freezer but staying too warm in the fridge section. All my tests pointed to a bad evaporator fan motor. Looked up part and the part is no longer available........Imagine that. Found this replacement motor that looked liked it would work and found another review that gave details on it. Had to grind some off the bracket to fit the ground and grind a hollow piece protruding on the back but put this motor in with the modifications and now the whole refrigerator works perfect. $20.00 part and a little effort and we are up and running again.

Fir my 12 year old maytag except it doesn't have wire and a connector on it. Just flat pin tabs. Luckily I had some crimp in female ends from a previous project and cut off the old wires and connector from the old motor.So be aware. Otherwise great

It fits my Roper Fridge perfectly. Works like a charm!!!...

Half the price and delivered in less than 24hrs. Clutch when your fridge isn't cooling and you need to save your fridge items!