GE Wall Hung Refrigerator LW 11P - Where to find parts

[vintage-stuff]

Hi,
I was here before figuring out how to refill with freon and that went well.

Now I'd like to find out from you guys who have refurbished this type of refrigerator/freezer in the past, where you have found replacement parts. Such as a new condenser, new thermostat and whatever I need to fix it. My refrigerator is not getting cool enough and the freezer needs to be defrosted from a lot of ice build-up inside. The previous owner has replaced the temp control (which I can't figure out how it works...) and I'd like to replace that with something better.
What do you guys suggest I do? I don't seem to find anyone nearby to fix it, so I'll research first to see what parts I can purchase and replace the old ones with and go from there.

Thanks in advance for any advice you might have!
Greg

 

[rp2813]

The freezer door gasket probably needs to be replaced.  That fixed the frost problem on my '57 GE Combination.

 

Cold controls on GE's from this period are notorious for failure.  I'm pretty sure your fridge's control should have a large horizontal thumbwheel as opposed to that tiny pointer knob.  I got a universal fit cold control for mine and it was an easy job to install it, but the supplier I got it from closed a couple of years ago.  You'll probably have to keep checking on ebay.

 

Why do you think the condenser needs to be replaced?

 

[vintage-stuff]

Thanks! I'll look for a replacement control for the fridge.
I'll check on getting a new door gasket for the freezer. Might do the trick!
I actually meant the tI might need a new compressor, not condenser... It seemed to work overtime yesterday and was so hot. not sure if it is functioning properly.
The fridge does not reach more than 46 degrees right now... Something is not right.

 

[rp2813]

Is the condenser fan working properly?  You should feel a good flow of air blowing out past the grille.  A dead or slow fan would cause the compressor to run hot and compromise the condenser both at the same time, resulting in higher cabinet temperatures. 

 

If it's fully charged, you should easily be able to maintain low 30s in the fridge section and zero or lower in the freezer.  Was the compressor doing OK before you recharged the system?

 

There should be a molded piece that finishes off and closes up the cold control opening.  If that's missing, a replacement control will fit, but it won't include that piece or the correct thumbwheel/knob as the case may be.  If you don't have the original control to copy, you may have to try a few different installation configurations to match up to the mounting points.  The control I bought was a universal fit and had lots of extra parts to add, change or remove in order to reproduce the mounting bracket on the original cold control, which I used as a guide.