Legacy Lawrence Appliance Repair offers refrigerator repair in Lawrence, including services to repair ice makers that aren’t working. Learn about some common ice maker problems below:
Ice makers are one of the best inventions ever. An ice maker is a small luxury most people certainly take for granted. Ice makers are simple machines that do not have a lot of complicated parts that might go wrong with them.
Like with any repair, there are some basic things that should be reviewed before thinking the worst. And, remember, if needed, you can replace the ice maker without replacing the entire refrigerator, depending on the brand and model. First, let’s review some of the causes for an ice maker failure.
If your ice maker is making ice but it isn’t dispensing the ice it is usually means there’s a mechanical issue versus an electrical problem. This occurs when shifting food around in the freezer unit, you shift the control lever up or down. Often the ice maker might be jammed with something else, even another chunk of ice. So, check to see if there is anything blocking this from working properly.
Before beginning the process of clearing out the freezer, be sure your ice maker is on. This can be done by moving the metal control arm in the down position. Sometimes, moving food around in the freezer unit may put the switch into the off position. If the the switch is clear, then there might be something stuck inside the ice maker or it’s not getting a good connection.
Check the Control Arm
When the switch is down and there’s ice but it’s not dispensing it, there could be a mechanical or electrical failure. This will require a bit more troubleshooting. Ready to get started? First, we must check the electrical connection. This could become unplugged from behind the freezer or refrigerator when shifting or moving the food in the freezer.
To inspect this, first unplug the freezer and slide from the kitchen wall. Turn off the water supply valve. Locate the valve on the rear of the inside of the freezer. Essentially this is what connects the ice maker into the freezer. Be sure that it is plugged in correctly.
Next, remove all of the ice that’s inside of the ice maker itself. This can be completed by pouring in a little water to help to get the ice that’s inside of there out.
Once complete, restore power to the fridge and then turn on the ice maker. It may take the solenoid component a couple of seconds to engage and fill the mold. Once the mold is full, wait 4-5 hours or so to see if you have cleared the problem.
Check for Frozen Lines
More ice maker failures that might cause your ice maker to not produce any ice are frozen water lines. The water lines might be clogged with frost. This is an easy fix.
First, unplug the refrigerator and find the water shut off valve. Turn the water off and grab a hair dryer to warm the water line or let the freezer sit turned off for a couple of hours and wait until the water line is thawed.
There are some brands and models that have a water filter that can clog or ice up. For these cases, locating the filter is the first step. Then repeat the same process that was done for the iced water line.
When your ice maker isn’t making large enough cubes of ice, there is a problem with the settings. To adjust the the ice maker settings, take the upper part of the cover off and locate a basic knob that has plus and a minus signs. For this process, you could need a flat head screwdriver.
ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES
- Refrigerator Noisy
- Refrigerator Water Dispenser Not Working
- Refrigerator Not Cooling
- How Does a Refrigerator Work?