Why is My Refrigerator Ice Maker Not Working?

Cross Appliance Repair performs refrigerator repair service in CITY, including services to fix ice makers that aren’t working. Learn about common ice maker failures below:

Refrigerator ice makers are one of the best inventions of all time. This is a small luxury many people take for granted. Ice makers are simple machines that don’t feature a lot of complicated components that will cause problems.

Like with any repair, there are some basic things that need to be looked at 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 discuss some of the reasons for an ice maker failure.

If your ice maker is making ice but it isn’t dispensing the ice cubes it is usually a mechanical problem versus an electrical problem. This occurs when reorganizing food around in the freezer unit, you shift the control switch up or down. Most of the time the ice maker will get jammed with something else, even another chunk of ice. First, look to see if there is ice or food blocking this from working properly.

Before starting the process of clearing out the freezer, check that your ice maker is on. This is done by flipping the metal control arm in the down position. Sometimes, moving food around in the freezer unit may put the control into the off position. If the the switch is clear, then there may be food jammed inside of the ice maker or it’s not getting a good connection.

Check the Control Arm

When the control is down and there’s ice but it’s not ejecting it, this could be an electrical or mechanical problem. This will require a bit more diagnosing. Ready to get started? First, we must inspect the electrical connection. This can become unplugged from the rear of the freezer when shifting or moving the freezer contents.

To check this, first unplug the refrigerator and move away from the kitchen wall. Then, turn off the water supply. Locate the connection on the rear of the inside of the freezer. Basically this is what connects the ice maker into the freezer. Ensure that it is actually plugged in the right way.

After that, remove all of the ice that is in the ice maker itself. This can be accomplished by pouring in a little water to help 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 might take the solenoid component a few seconds to react and fill the mold. When the mold is 100% full, wait 4-5 hours to see if you’ve cleared the problem.

Check for Frozen Lines

Other ice maker issues that might cause your ice maker to not produce any ice are frozen lines. The water lines might be clogged with frost. This is an easy fix.

Unplug the fridge and locate the shut off valve. Shut the water off and grab a hair dryer to warm the water line or just let the fridge sit without being on 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 over. For these cases, locating the filter is the first step. Then repeat the same process that was done for the iced line.

If your ice maker is not 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 has plus and a minus signs. To do this, 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?