One-Call Sugar Land Appliance Repair is experienced in refrigerator repair in Sugar Land, including professional services to repair ice makers that aren’t working. Learn about common ice maker failures below:
Refrigerator ice makers are possibly one of the greatest inventions of all time. An ice maker is a small luxury most people might not appreciate. Refrigerator ice makers are simple machines that don’t have a lot of complex parts that can go wrong with them.
As with any appliance repair, there are a few basic things that should be looked at before thinking the worst. And, remember, if needed, you are able to replace an ice maker without replacing the entire refrigerator, dependent on the brand and model. First, let’s discuss a few of the reasons for an ice maker breaking.
If an ice maker is making ice but it is not ejecting it it is usually means there’s a mechanical issue vs. an electrical issue. This happens when shifting food around in the freezer unit, you might push or pull the control arm up or down. A lot of the time the ice maker can get jammed with something, possibly a piece of ice. So, check to see if there is ice or food blocking this from working the right way.
Before beginning the steps of clearing out the freezer, be sure your ice maker is on. This is done by pulling the control arm down. Sometimes, moving things around in the freezer unit might put it into the off position. If the the switch is clear, then there might be food or ice jammed inside of the ice maker or it’s not receiving a good connection.
Check the Control Arm
If the control is down and there’s ice but it is not ejecting it, there might be a mechanical or electrical failure. This is going to require a bit more troubleshooting. Ready to get started? First, we have to check the electrical connection. This could become unplugged from the rear of the freezer when shifting or moving the food in the freezer.
To check this, unplug the refrigerator and move from the wall. Then, turn off the freezer’s water supply valve. Locate the valve on the back of the inside of the freezer unit. Basically this is what connects the ice maker into the freezer. Ensure that it’s actually plugged in correctly.
After that, remove all of the ice that is in the ice maker. This can be completed by pouring in a small amount of water to help to get ice that is in there out.
Once complete, turn on the power to the refrigerator 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 completely full, wait around 4-5 hours or so to see if you’ve solved the issue.
Check for Frozen Lines
Other ice maker issues that can cause your ice maker to not produce ice are frozen lines. The water lines might be clogged with frost. This is a pretty simple fix.
First, unplug the freezer and find the water shut off valve. Shut the water off and then get a hair dryer to warm the water line or just let the fridge sit shut off for a few hours until the water line is thawed.
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 pieces of ice, there’s an issue with the settings. To adjust the the ice maker settings, take the top part of the cover off and locate a standard control that displays plus and a minus symbols. 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?