Perry Appliance Repair provides refrigerator repair in Ogden, including services to fix broken ice makers. Learn about some common ice maker failures below:
Ice makers are perhaps one of the greatest inventions ever. This is a little luxury most people certainly not appreciate. Ice makers are relatively simple machines that do not have a lot of components that might have problems.
Like with any repair, there are basic things that need to be reviewed before thinking the worst. And, it’s nice to know, if needed, you can replace your ice maker without replacing an entire refrigerator, depending on the brand and model. First, let’s review a few of the reasons for an ice maker breaking.
If an ice maker is making ice but it isn’t ejecting the ice cubes it is usually means there’s a mechanical failure opposed to an electrical issue. This can happen when moving things around in the freezer, you accidentally push or pull the control lever up or down. Often the ice maker can get blocked with something, even another piece of ice. So, look to see if there’s something blocking this part from working the right way.
Before starting the process of clearing out the freezer, check that your ice maker is turned on. This is done by moving the metal control arm in the down position. Sometimes, moving food around in the freezer can put it into the off position. If the control arm is clear, then there may be food jammed inside of the ice maker or it is not getting a good connection.
Check the Control Arm
If the control arm is down and there’s ice but it is not ejecting it, there could be a mechanical or electrical failure. This is going to need some more diagnosing. Ready to proceed? First, we must inspect the electrical connection. This can become unplugged from the back of the freezer when moving or shifting the freezer contents.
To check this, unplug the freezer and move from the wall. Then, turn off the freezer’s water supply. Locate the valve on the rear of the inside of the freezer unit. Essentially this is what plugs the ice maker into the freezer unit. Ensure that it is plugged in the right way.
After that, remove any ice that is inside of the ice maker. This can be completed by adding a small amount of water to help get ice that’s inside of there out.
Once complete, restore power to the refrigerator and turn on the ice maker. It could take the solenoid a few seconds to engage and fill the mold. After the mold is completely full, wait 4-5 hours to see if you’ve cleared the issue.
Check for Frozen Lines
More ice maker failures that will cause your ice maker to not make ice are frozen water lines. The water lines have been 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 heat up the line or let the refrigerator sit without being on for a couple of hours and wait until the water line is thawed.
Some 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 water line.
If an ice maker isn’t making large enough cubes of ice, there’s an issue with the settings. To adjust the settings, take the top part of the cover off and locate a simple control that has plus and a minus symbols. 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?