GE Oven F33 Error Code Fix (Straight Talk)

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What This Error Means

On GE ovens, F33 means the oven temperature sensor circuit is bad — open, shorted, or reading way out of range.

The control board is seeing nonsense temperature data, decides things are unsafe, and shuts the oven down with an error.

Official Fix

This is the factory playbook, just translated into real language:

  • Kill power first. Flip the range/oven breaker off or unplug it. No testing with live power on this one.
  • Find the oven temperature sensor. Inside the oven cavity, look at the back wall for a thin metal rod (usually top-left or top-center) held by two screws.
  • Pull the sensor out. Remove the two screws, gently pull the sensor tip toward you until the wire connector appears through the hole.
  • Disconnect the sensor. Separate the plug. Do not yank by the wires — hold the plastic connector.
  • Test it with a meter. At room temp, a good GE sensor should read about 1000–1100 Ω (ohms). If it reads open (OL), dead short (0 Ω), or way off, it is bad.
  • If the reading is bad, replace the sensor. Clip in the new one, tuck the connector back through the hole, re‑install the screws, restore power, and test a 350°F bake cycle.
  • If the reading is good, chase the wiring. With power still off, pull the range forward or the wall oven out enough to remove the rear/top cover. Follow the sensor wires to the control board and look for burnt, pinched, or broken sections and loose connectors.
  • Repair or replace damaged wiring. Any melted insulation, broken conductors, or cooked connectors need to be cut out and repaired with high‑temp wire and proper crimp or ceramic connectors.
  • Test from the board side. Unplug the sensor at the board and ohm it from there; if the reading is now wrong, the harness between the cavity and board is bad even if the sensor itself tested okay.
  • If sensor and harness both check out, replace the control board (ERC). That is the official last step when F33 will not clear even with a known‑good sensor circuit.

After any repair, restore power, clear the code, and run a full preheat to 350°F to confirm the F33 does not return.

The Technician’s Trick

What working techs actually do in the field to save time and sometimes avoid parts:

  • Do a real hard reset first. Kill the breaker for at least 10–15 minutes. Let the board fully discharge, then power back up. If F33 never comes back after a full preheat, you likely had a one‑off glitch, not a dead sensor.
  • Clean the sensor connections instead of instantly replacing parts. With power off, unplug and re‑plug the sensor connector several times (both at the sensor and at the board) to scrape oxidation off the pins. A dirty connection can mimic a bad sensor.
  • Hot‑wiggle test for intermittent faults. Start a bake, then gently tap and wiggle the harness where it passes through the oven back wall and near the control board. If F33 pops when you move the wires, you have a loose or broken conductor — fix the harness, do not waste cash on a board.
  • Sensor swap if you have a double oven. On some GE doubles, you can swap upper and lower sensors. If the F33 follows the sensor to the other cavity, you just proved the sensor is the culprit.

Is It Worth Fixing? (The Financial Verdict)

  • ✅ Fix: Oven under about 10–12 years old and it only needs a temperature sensor (typically $20–$60 part, about an hour of your time).
  • ⚠️ Debatable: F33 needs a control board ($150–$350) but the oven is 10–15 years old and starting to show its age.
  • ❌ Replace: The oven is rusty, inefficient, or over 15 years old and it needs both sensor and board — total repair cost is close to half a new unit.

Parts You Might Need

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See also

Chasing other appliance error codes? These guides break them down the same way: