Why is My Refrigerator Ice Maker Not Working?

Council Bluffs Appliance Repair performs refrigerator repair in Council Bluffs, including professional services to fix broken ice makers. Learn about common ice maker failures below:

Ice makers are possibly one of the greatest inventions of all time. This is a small luxury many people might take for granted. Refrigerator ice makers are relatively simple machines that don’t have a lot of complex components that can cause problems.

As with any repair, there are a few basic things that need to be looked at before thinking the worst. And, remember, if necessary, you can replace the ice maker without replacing the entire fridge, dependent on the model. First, let’s discuss a few of the reasons for an ice maker not working.

When the ice maker is making ice but it isn’t ejecting it it is usually means there’s a mechanical failure vs. an electrical problem. This can happen when reorganizing food around in the freezer unit, you might shift the control lever up or down. Most of the time the ice maker will be jammed with something else, possibly a chunk of ice. So, look to see if there’s ice or food blocking this from working the right way.

Before starting the process of clearing out the freezer, ensure your ice maker is on. This is done by pulling the control arm down. Sometimes, moving food around in the freezer might put the switch in the off position. If the the switch is clear, then there may be something stuck inside of the ice maker or it’s not receiving a good connection.

Check the Control Arm

If the control is down and there is ice but it’s not ejecting it, there might be an electrical or mechanical issue. This will require a bit more troubleshooting. Ready to proceed? First, we must check the electrical connection. This could become unplugged from the back of the freezer or refrigerator when moving or shifting the food in the freezer.

To inspect this, unplug the fridge and pull away from the kitchen wall. Turn off the water supply. Locate the connection on the rear of the inside of the freezer. Essentially this is what plugs the ice maker into the freezer unit. Be sure that it is plugged in the right way.

Next, remove all of the ice that is inside of the ice maker itself. This can be completed by pouring in a bit of water to help to get ice that’s inside of there out.

Once complete, turn on the power to the refrigerator and turn on the ice maker. It could take the solenoid component a couple of seconds to engage and fill the mold. Once the mold is 100% full, wait 4-5 hours or so to see if you have solved the issue.

Check for Frozen Lines

More ice maker problems that could cause your ice maker to not make ice are frozen water lines. The water lines could be blocked with frost. This is a pretty simple fix.

Unplug the refrigerator and find the water shut off valve. Turn the water off and then grab a hair dryer to warm the water line or just let the freezer sit without being on for a few hours and wait until the water line is thawed.

Some models that have a water filter that can freeze or ice over. In these cases, locating the water filter is the first step. Then repeat the same process that was done for the iced line.

When your ice maker is not making large enough cubes of ice, there is a problem with the ice maker settings. To adjust the settings, take the upper part of the cover off and find a simple knob 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?