Why is My Refrigerator Ice Maker Not Working?

Cherry Appliance Repair performs refrigerator repair service in Virginia, including services to repair broken ice makers. Learn about common ice maker failures below:

Ice makers are perhaps one of the most convenient inventions of all time. This is a small luxury many people certainly take for granted. Refrigerator ice makers are relatively simple machines that do not feature a lot of complicated parts that might cause problems.

Like with any repair, there are a few basic things that need to be reviewed before assuming the worst. And, it’s good to know, if needed, you can replace your ice maker without replacing the entire refrigerator, dependent on the brand and model. First, let’s take a look at some of the causes for an ice maker not working.

If an ice maker is making ice but it isn’t ejecting it it is usually means there is a mechanical problem opposed to an electrical problem. This occurs when reorganizing food around in the freezer unit, you accidentally shift the control arm up or down. A lot of the time the ice maker will be jammed with something else, possibly a piece of ice. First, look to see if there’s ice or food blocking this from operating properly.

Before beginning the process of clearing out the freezer, check that your ice maker is turned on. This is done by pulling the control arm in the down position. From time to time, moving things around in the freezer unit can put it in the off position. If the the switch is free, 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

When the switch is down and there’s ice but it’s not ejecting it, there could be an electrical or mechanical issue. This will need some more diagnosing. Ready to get started? First, we must inspect the electrical connection. This could be unplugged from behind the freezer when moving or shifting the food in the freezer.

To inspect this, unplug the refrigerator and move it out away from the wall. Turn off the freezer’s water supply. Locate the connection on the back of the inside of the freezer unit. Essentially this is what connects the ice maker into the freezer. Ensure that it’s plugged in the right way.

After that, remove any ice that is in the ice maker. This can be done by adding a little water to help get ice that’s inside of there out.

Once this is done, turn on the power to the refrigerator and then turn on the ice maker. It might take the solenoid component a couple of seconds to react and fill the mold. Once the mold is full, wait around 4-5 hours or so to see if you’ve cleared the issue.

Check for Frozen Lines

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

Unplug the freezer and find the water shut off valve. Turn the water off and get a hair dryer to warm the line or just let the fridge sit turned off for a few hours until the line is thawed.

Some brands and models that feature a water filter that can freeze or ice over. For these cases, locating the filter is the first step. Then repeat what was done for the iced line.

When an ice maker isn’t making big enough cubes of ice, there is a problem with the settings. To adjust the the ice maker settings, take the upper part of the cover of the ice maker off and locate a basic control that displays plus and a minus signs. For this process, you could need a flat head screwdriver.

ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES

• Refrigerator Noisy
• Refrigerator Water Dispenser Not Working
• Refrigerator Not Cooling
• How Does a Refrigerator Work?