Why is My Refrigerator Ice Maker Not Working?

Vance Appliance Repair performs refrigerator repair service in Texas, including professional services to fix broken ice makers. Learn about common ice maker problems below:

Ice makers are one of the most convenient inventions ever. An ice maker is a little luxury most people certainly take for granted. Refrigerator ice makers are relatively simple machines that do not feature a lot of complicated components that will cause issues.

Like with any repair, there are basic things that should be looked at before assuming the worst. And, it’s good to know, if needed, you are able to replace the ice maker without replacing an entire refrigerator, dependent on the brand and model. First, let’s discuss a few of the causes for an ice maker failure.

When an ice maker is making ice but it isn’t dispensing the ice cubes it is usually means there’s a mechanical failure opposed to an electrical failure. This can happen when moving things around in the freezer unit, you shift the control switch up or down. Most of the time the ice maker will be blocked with something, possibly a chunk of ice. First, look to see if there’s anything blocking this part from operating the right way.

Before starting the process of clearing out the freezer, be sure the ice maker is on. This is done by pulling the metal control arm down. Sometimes, moving food around in the freezer may put the switch in the off position. If the the switch is clear, then there might be something stuck inside of the ice maker or it’s not receiving a good connection.

Check the Control Arm

If the control arm is down and there is ice but it’s not dispensing it, this might be a mechanical or electrical problem. This will need a bit more diagnosing. Ready to proceed? First, we need to inspect the electrical connection. This could be unplugged from the rear of the freezer when moving or shifting the food in the freezer.

To inspect this, unplug the fridge and move it out away from the wall. Then, turn off the freezer’s water supply valve. Locate the valve on the rear of the inside of the freezer unit. Basically this is what connects the ice maker into the freezer. Ensure that it is plugged in the right way.

After that, remove all of the ice that’s in the ice maker itself. This can be done by adding a small amount of water to help get any ice that’s inside of there out.

Once done, restore power to the refrigerator and then turn on the ice maker. It could take the solenoid component a few seconds to engage and fill the mold. When the mold is full, wait 4-5 hours to see if you’ve solved the issue.

Check for Frozen Lines

More ice maker failures that may cause your ice maker to not produce ice are frozen lines. The water lines have been clogged with frost. This is a pretty simple problem to fix.

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

There are some models that have a water filter that can freeze or ice up. For these cases, locating the filter is the first step. Then repeat what was done for the frozen water line.

When your ice maker isn’t making large enough pieces of ice, there’s an issue with the ice maker settings. To adjust the the ice maker settings, take the upper part of the cover off and find a standard control that displays plus and a minus symbols. To do this, 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?