Why is My Refrigerator Ice Maker Not Working?

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

Refrigerator ice makers are one of the greatest inventions ever. This is a small luxury a lot of people certainly not appreciate. Ice makers are relatively simple machines that do not feature a lot of complicated components that could go wrong with them.

Like with any repair, there are a few basic things that should be reviewed before assuming the worst. And, remember, if necessary, you are able to replace an ice maker without replacing an entire fridge, dependent on the model. First, let’s review some of the reasons for an ice maker breaking.

If your ice maker is making ice but it is not dispensing the ice cubes it is usually means there is a mechanical failure opposed to an electrical problem. This happens when reorganizing food around in the freezer, you might jam the control switch up or down. Often the ice maker will get blocked with something, including a piece of ice. First, look to see if there is ice or food blocking this from operating properly.

Before starting the steps of clearing out the freezer, ensure the ice maker is turned on. This can be done by flipping the control arm down. Sometimes, moving food around in the freezer might put it into the off position. If the control arm is clear, then there might be food jammed inside of the ice maker or it is not getting a good connection.

Check the Control Arm

When the control is down and there is ice but it is not ejecting it, this might be an electrical or mechanical issue. This is going to need some more troubleshooting. Ready to proceed? First, we must check the electrical connection. This could be unplugged from the back of the freezer when moving or shifting the freezer contents.

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

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

Once complete, turn on the power to the fridge and then turn on the ice maker. It may take the solenoid a couple of seconds to engage and fill the mold. Once the mold is completely full, wait around 4-5 hours or so to see if you’ve solved the issue.

Check for Frozen Lines

Other ice maker problems that could cause your ice maker to not make ice are frozen lines. The water lines have been clogged with frost. This is a pretty simple problem to fix.

Unplug the refrigerator and locate the shut off valve. Shut the water off and get a hair dryer to heat up the water line or let the refrigerator sit without being on for a few hours and wait until the line is thawed.

There are some models that feature a water filter that can clog or ice up. For these situations, locating the water filter is the first step. Then repeat the same process that was done for the iced line.

If an ice maker isn’t making big enough cubes of ice, there’s a problem with the ice maker settings. To adjust the settings, take the top part of the cover off and locate a simple knob that displays plus and a minus symbols. For this process, you might need a flat head screwdriver.

ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES

• Refrigerator Noisy
• Refrigerator Water Dispenser Not Working
• Refrigerator Not Cooling
• How Does a Refrigerator Work?