Ice makers are a convenient appliance for any refrigerator. Whether you need ice for the big game or a special celebration, they give you the ability to access cubes at the touch of a button. But when ice makers fail to run efficiently, it’s a major inconvenience. Before making a call to a repair technician for ice maker repair services, you may be able to diagnose and repair a defective ice maker yourself.
Common Ice Maker Problems
When troubleshooting ice makers, there are a number of different components you’ll need to inspect. If your refrigerator’s ice maker isn’t producing ice properly, here are the most common problems and their solutions.
When ice no longer ejects
Cause: Your dispenser may not be ejecting ice due to clumped up ice cubes.
Solution: For a short-term solution, gently break up the clumps with a utensil. To prevent ice cubes from clumping up in the future, make sure the temperature is within the adequate range. Additionally, if you don’t use a large amount of ice, the pressure from the weight of the cubes can cause fusing and clumping. To prevent this, we recommend allowing the unit to continue making ice but dumping the bin every few weeks.
Cause: Most ice makers have a control arm that is designed to sense the level of ice in the ice bucket. When the bucket is full, the control arm activates a pause feature. If your ice maker fails to eject ice, chances are, the control arm may have moved or possibly fallen off.
Solution: Fortunately, adjusting the control arm is a simple solution. Simply move it to the down or on position. If the arm won’t lower, don’t force it, as it could break.
Cause: If there’s ice in the mold and the control arm is in the proper location, the issue may lie with the electrical circuit, which activates the ice maker’s motor.
Solution: First, turn off the power to the refrigerator before performing this test. Slide your fridge out and make sure all electrical connections are properly fitted. Remove any ice from the mold, restore the power, and wait several hours to test if the ice now ejects. If this doesn’t work, you may need to replace the ice maker or call for additional service.
When it no longer makes ice
Cause: If your ice maker is no longer producing ice, a frozen water line may be the culprit.
Solution: To repair a frozen line, unplug the refrigerator, turn the water supply line off, and close the shut-off valve. To thaw the line, pour warm water over it. Once you restore the power and turn on the water line, you should be able to hear the water running into the ice maker.
Cause: There is also a possibility that the water valve isn’t sealing causing the line to freeze.
Solution: To solve a clogged water filter, simply replace it. Filters for ice makers are typically located inside the refrigerator.
Cause: The ice maker won’t produce ice cubes efficiently if the freezer temperature is too high. Ideally, it should be set at 0 degrees Fahrenheit. If it’s above 15 degrees, there’s likely something wrong with the appliances cooling system. This can be caused by accumulated debris on the condenser coils, which prevents the coils from properly dissipating heat.
Solutions: Locate the condenser coils on the back of your fridge. Using a coil cleaning brush and vacuum, sweep or vacuum up any dirt, dust, pet hair, etc.
Ice cubes are too big or small
Cause: If the cubes of ice are too big or small, your ice maker likely needs an adjustment.
Solution: Remove the front of the ice maker to uncover the gear drive and the water level adjustment screw. Above the screw should be a positive and negative indicator. If you want to decrease the water per dose, rotate the head of the screw toward the negative indicator. If you want to increase the water per dose, loosen the screw in the direction of the positive symbol. These adjustments are very sensitive and should only be moved a tiny amount.
Since ice makers are fairly simple appliances, ice makers are often repairable. However, of these troubleshooting steps do not resolve the issue, it may be time to contact a professional repair technician.
If these steps don’t work to fix your ice maker, Contact iFiX, LLC
Ice makers can sometimes be temperamental. If you have gone through many of the solutions above and you are still having issues with your icemaker, give iFiX, LLC a call and we can visit you in Ogden, Utah and surrounding areas.
Call iFiX today at (801) 731-4349. We are in the business of keeping people happy, and we’re here to help. Contact us today to learn more!
