If you see the 33E Error code blinking on the display of your Samsung refrigerator with French doors, it’s the system of your device telling you about the issues with the Ice-Pipe heater. Your appliance keeps working properly, but then control functions for ice or water are unresponsive.
What can cause the 33e Error?
There might be several reasons for the 33E code indication on the screen of your Samsung device, but the most common is the temporary system glitch, caused by power failure. Which is the easiest to solve.
The more serious explanation is the failure of the ice pipe heater, which the main function is to stop the fill-tube from freezing up.
The failure can be a reason for problems with the wiring or mechanical damage, caused during transportation.
Another possible reason is the malfunction of the control unit, which is a serious breakage, that has to be checked and fixed by a professional repairman.
How to fix the 33e Error?
To begin with, try to reset the error in a few simple steps. Switch the device off and unplug it from the power for 5 mins, turn it back on, then press and hold Lighting and EnergySaving buttons (the upper right and upper left ones) for 5–10 secs. This switches the self-diagnostic system of your refrigerator and can reset the error.
But if the code came back on the display, this means something is wrong with one of the inner elements of your appliance and you have to proceed with a more serious diagnostics.
Switch off the refrigerator and unplug it from the mains, closing the water supply to the ice-maker. Take everything out of the freezer and remove its door, to make sure you have better access. Unscrew two fixing bolts in the print and carefully pull the ice-maker out, you will have to disconnect all the wires, but first examine them with the multimeter, as some damaged wires ore loosened contacts might be the reason for the Error code.
If the wiring is ok, detach it and you will see the pipe. After you remove the front part of the hose and the insulation, and wires around it, you will get access to the heater. Unplug it from all the connections.
Now its time to examine the back panel of your device. Find the water connecting hosepipe, which leads to the freezer, and disconnect it from the main tube. Then return to the freezing camera and try to push the water connecting pipe out and a little bit up. Return to the back panel and pull the pipe out of the device.
After the pipe was removed, you can take out the heating element, but make sure you remember how it was connected (it is better to make photos not to confuse anything when installing a new part).
When testing the heater with the multimeter, you should see around 100 Ohm in the display (according to Samsung, it is 105 Ohms +- 7%, so the number can vary from 95 to 115). Don’t forget to also check the wiring, as the reason might be there. If you found the cause of the error, replace the heater with the new one, connect it to the hosepipe, and feed the tube through the backside of the appliance, until it reaches the base. Connect all the contact and wires, insulate the pipe, and assemble the freezer back in the reverse order.
After the fridge is assembled, switch it on, and reset the system. The code has to disappear from the display.
But what if the heater and its wiring were fine and the 33E combination is still indicated on the screen? The two remaining reasons require professional help, as they might be in the broken control unit, which is not recommended to repair on your own, or the damaged door of your appliance (in case it was transported not that long ago).