Why is My Refrigerator Ice Maker Not Working?

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

Refrigerator ice makers are one of the greatest inventions of all time. An ice maker is a small luxury most people take for granted. Ice makers are relatively simple machines that do not have a lot of parts that will cause problems.

Like with any appliance repair, there are a few basic things that need to be reviewed before thinking the worst. And, remember, if needed, you are able to replace an ice maker without replacing an entire refrigerator, depending on the model. First, let’s review a few of the reasons for an ice maker not working.

If the ice maker is making ice but it isn’t dispensing the ice cubes it is usually a mechanical issue vs. an electrical problem. This can occur when moving food around in the freezer, you might accidentally shift the control switch up or down. A lot of the time the ice maker can get blocked with something else, even another piece of ice. So, check to see if there is ice or food blocking this part from working the right way.

Before starting the steps of clearing out the freezer, be sure the ice maker is turned on. This is done by moving the metal control arm in the down position. From time to time, moving food around in the freezer might put the control in the off position. If the control arm is free, then there might be something 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’s ice but it’s not ejecting it, there might be a mechanical or electrical failure. This is going to require a bit more diagnosing. Ready to get started? First, we must inspect the electrical connection. This can be unplugged from behind the freezer or refrigerator when moving or shifting the freezer contents.

To inspect this, first unplug the refrigerator and pull it out from the wall. Turn off the water supply valve. Locate the valve on the rear of the inside of the freezer. Essentially this is what connects the ice maker into the freezer. Be sure that it is actually plugged in correctly.

Next, remove any ice that’s inside of the ice maker itself. This can be accomplished by adding a bit of water to help get ice that’s inside of there out.

Once complete, restore power to the fridge and turn on the ice maker. It could take the solenoid a few seconds to engage and fill the mold. After the mold is full, wait 4-5 hours or so to see if you’ve solved the problem.

Check for Frozen Lines

Other ice maker failures that might cause your ice maker to not produce any ice are frozen water lines. The water lines might be blocked with frost. This is a pretty simple fix.

First, unplug the freezer and locate the shut off valve. Shut the water off and then grab a hair dryer to heat up the water line or let the freezer sit without being on for a few hours until the line is thawed.

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

If an ice maker isn’t making big enough pieces of ice, there is an issue with the ice maker settings. To adjust the settings, take the upper part of the cover of the ice maker off and find a basic dial that displays plus and a minus signs. To do this, 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?