Why is My Refrigerator Ice Maker Not Working?

Action Mansfield Appliance Repair is experienced in refrigerator repair in Mansfield, including services to fix broken ice makers. Learn about some common ice maker failures below:

Refrigerator ice makers are perhaps one of the greatest inventions of all time. This is a little luxury many people not appreciate. Refrigerator ice makers are simple machines that do not have a lot of complex components that will go wrong with them.

As with any repair, there are basic things that need to be reviewed before thinking the worst. And, remember, if necessary, you can replace your ice maker without replacing the entire refrigerator, dependent on the brand and model. First, let’s take a look at some of the causes for an ice maker breaking.

When the ice maker is making ice but it is not dispensing the ice cubes it is usually means there’s a mechanical problem vs. an electrical issue. This happens when reorganizing things around in the freezer, you might accidentally push or pull the control arm up or down. Most of the time the ice maker will get jammed with something else, even another chunk of ice. First, check to see if there is ice or food blocking this from operating properly.

Before starting the steps of clearing out the freezer, ensure your ice maker is on. This can be done by flipping the metal control arm in the down position. From time to time, moving food around in the freezer can put the control into the off position. If the control arm is clear, then there could be ice jammed inside the ice maker or it’s not receiving a good connection.

Check the Control Arm

When the switch is down and there is ice but it’s not dispensing it, there could be a mechanical or electrical issue. This is going to require some more troubleshooting. Ready to proceed? First, we must check the electrical connection. This could be unplugged from behind the freezer when moving or shifting the food in the freezer.

To check this, first unplug the fridge and pull away from the kitchen wall. Turn off the freezer’s water supply valve. Locate the valve on the back of the inside of the freezer. Essentially this is what plugs the ice maker into the freezer unit. Ensure that it’s plugged in properly.

Next, remove any ice that’s in the ice maker itself. This can be completed by pouring in a bit of water to help to get any ice that is in there out.

Once done, turn on the power to the refrigerator and turn on the ice maker. It could take the solenoid a couple of seconds to engage and fill the mold. Once the mold is 100% full, wait 4-5 hours or so to see if you have cleared the issue.

Check for Frozen Lines

More ice maker issues that might cause your ice maker to not make any ice are frozen lines. The water lines have been blocked with frost. This is an easy problem to fix.

Unplug the freezer and find the water shut off valve. Turn the water off and then grab a hair dryer to heat up the line or just let the refrigerator sit shut off for a few hours until the line is thawed.

Some brands and models that have a water filter that can clog or ice up. For these cases, finding the water filter is the first step. Then repeat the same process that was done for the iced line.

If an ice maker is not making large enough cubes of ice, there is a problem with the ice maker settings. To adjust the settings, take the upper part of the cover off and find a basic dial that has plus and a minus symbols. 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?