Ice Maker Not Making Ice

Checks you can do safely before you call

1. Make sure ice making is on. On ice makers with a wire arm, lower the arm to its down position if a tall container has pushed it up. On models with a switch or an Ice Off setting, turn ice making back on. Keep your fingers away from the ejector while the refrigerator has power.
2. Check the freezer setting. Set the freezer to 0°F (-18°C) and give it a day to settle. If frozen food feels soft, the freezer has a cooling fault; see refrigerator not cooling.
3. Check the water supply. Unplug the refrigerator, then pull it out with a helper, taking care not to kink the water line; leave a built-in unit in place. Make sure the supply valve on the wall or under the sink is fully open and the line isn't crushed.
4. Replace an overdue filter. Close the supply valve first if your manual calls for it. Fit a filter made for your model, hold a towel under the housing for drips, turn or push it in until it locks, and open the valve again.
5. Look for ice in the fill tube. With the refrigerator still unplugged, look where the water enters the back of the mold. If the tube is iced, move the frozen food to a cooler, leave the freezer door open with towels underneath and let it thaw. Don't chip at it with a knife or screwdriver.
6. Give it a full day. Push the refrigerator back without kinking the line, plug it in and run water through the dispenser for a few minutes to clear the air. Allow up to 24 hours for the first cubes, then throw away the first few batches.

When to call a technician

• The freezer is cold, the supply valve is open and the filter is new, but the bin is still empty a day later.
• You hear the inlet valve buzz and no water enters the mold.
• The fill tube ices up again after you thaw it, which points to low water pressure or a valve that drips.
• Cubes freeze in the mold and the ice maker never pushes them out.
• Frozen food is thawing, so the freezer itself needs attention.

If cubes still drop but come out small or hollow, see ice maker making small or hollow ice.

What happens at the diagnostic visit

The technician checks the water pressure reaching the refrigerator, tests the inlet valve, looks for a frozen or misaligned fill tube, reads the freezer temperature at the ice maker and runs the module through a harvest cycle. On door ice makers, the compartment and its cold-air duct are checked for frost.

The diagnostic visit is $89 for a standard residential appliance and $129 for a built-in unit or commercial equipment; a premium brand on its own doesn't make an appliance built-in. Any repair is quoted to you before work starts. More on ice maker repair.

Brand and model notes

• Samsung and LG: French-door models with the ice maker in the left-hand door can build frost inside the ice compartment until the bucket freezes in place. Thawing the frost without chipping at it brings ice back for a while, but it can return until the compartment seal, the air duct or a heater around it is repaired. See Samsung and LG.
• Whirlpool and KitchenAid: side-by-side and top-freezer models whose ice maker has a wire shutoff arm stop whenever the arm is raised, and a tall package on the shelf can push it up unnoticed. Rule that out before you book Whirlpool or KitchenAid ice maker repair.
• GE: some GE ice makers have a power switch on the ice maker as well as the feeler arm, and ice only comes when the switch is on and the arm is down and free to move. See GE.
• Sub-Zero: on a Sub-Zero built-in, a stopped ice maker is traced through the same chain, valve to tube to module, with the freezer temperature checked alongside. For Sub-Zero ice maker repair, have the model and serial numbers from the rating tag ready when you book.