Ideal Appliance Repair performs refrigerator repair in Boston, including services to fix ice makers that aren’t working. Learn about some common ice maker problems below:
Refrigerator ice makers are perhaps one of the best inventions of all time. An ice maker is a small luxury many people might not appreciate. Refrigerator ice makers are simple machines that do not have a lot of components that will cause issues.
As with any repair, there are some basic things that need to be reviewed before assuming the worst. And, remember, if needed, you are able to replace your ice maker without replacing the entire refrigerator, dependent on the brand and model. First, let’s discuss a few of the causes for an ice maker not working.
If the ice maker is making ice but it isn’t dispensing the ice it is usually means there’s a mechanical failure versus an electrical problem. This can occur when moving food around in the freezer, you might jam the control lever up or down. A lot of the time the ice maker might be jammed with something, even another piece of ice. First, check to see if there is ice or food blocking this from working the right way.
Before starting the steps of clearing out the freezer, ensure your ice maker is on. This is done by pulling the control arm in the down position. From time to time, moving things around in the freezer might put the switch in the off position. If the control arm is free, then there might be ice jammed inside the ice maker or it is not receiving a good connection.
Check the Control Arm
If the switch is down and there is ice but it is not ejecting it, there might be a mechanical or electrical issue. This is going to need a bit more troubleshooting. Ready to proceed? First, we have to check the electrical connection. This could be unplugged from the back of the freezer when shifting or moving the freezer contents.
To check this, unplug the freezer and slide it out from the kitchen wall. Then, turn off the water supply. Locate the valve on the back of the inside of the freezer. Basically this is what connects the ice maker into the freezer. Be sure that it is plugged in properly.
After that, remove all of the ice that is in the ice maker. This can be done by adding a bit of water to help to get any ice that is in there out.
Once complete, turn on the power to the fridge and turn on the ice maker. It may take the solenoid a couple of seconds to engage and fill the mold. Once the mold is 100% full, wait around 4-5 hours or so to see if you have cleared the issue.
Check for Frozen Lines
Other ice maker failures that might cause your ice maker to not produce any ice are frozen water lines. The water lines have been clogged with frost. This is a pretty simple problem to fix.
First, unplug the fridge and find the water shut off valve. Shut the water off and get a hair dryer to heat up the water line or just let the freezer sit shut off for a few hours and wait until the line is thawed.
There are some models that feature a water filter that can freeze or ice up. In these cases, finding the water filter is the first step. Then repeat what was done for the frozen water line.
If your ice maker is not making big enough pieces of ice, there’s a problem with the settings. To adjust the settings, take the upper part of the cover of the ice maker off and locate a basic dial that displays plus and a minus signs. For this process, you may need a flat head screwdriver.
ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES
- Refrigerator Noisy
- Refrigerator Water Dispenser Not Working
- Refrigerator Not Cooling
- How Does a Refrigerator Work?