Broken icemaker in my refrig

[CGB]

I have a GE refrig that has an icemaker. For some time now I've had probems. The water seems to leak down into the freezer compartment rather than into the cube-sized freezer unit. I get ice in the recepticle tray, i.e. frozen chunks in the container and ice in the rest of the freezer unit. My guess is that this is a common problem but I don't know and don't know what I could do to fix it.

I thought I'd float this by the newsgroup before I called the local appliance store to get a repair.....$50 to arrive, $65 per hour, etc. etc.

Anyone know of obvious problems I might address before bellying up to a big repair bill?

Thanks. Chet

[Joe]

Email repairclinic.com and consult with the folks there about getting ahead of the problem. IIRC, the ice makers are fairly repairable and you could save some $$ with a little help. Make sure you have some decent small tools in good shape. Don't attempt a repair with a rounded over Philips screwdriver and $2 Chinese socket set like too many people keep in a kitchen drawer. HTH

Joe

[evodawg]

Good advice,but how could you say such a thing about the Chinese making cheap shit. We all know their products are much more superior than ours.

[Jerry]

Try to catch the icemaker as it ejects the cubes and refills the unit. Maybe you can see if there is something causing it to overfill.

Here in the Phoenix area there are a lot of minerals in the water, my icemakers seem to last about 3 or 4 years, then its off to the appliance parts store for a replacement. They are very easy to replace yourself - take out a couple of screws, unplug the plug, remove the icemaker, reverse the steps to install the new one.

Jerry

[LouB]

At

[Joe]

[Stormin Mormon]

The refill water comes up the back of the fridge, and then through a plastic tube. That tube may be out of place, or cracked.

[evodawg]

I was kidding Joe, I think most shit that comes from China is shit.

[CGB]

That tube is loose. I'm not sure if it needs slid back onto something from which it might be loose or forward. But, I think you are on the money!

I'm not what sure to do about it, perhaps disconnect it and look for cracks. I thought it was loose but didn't consider cracks.....it might be worth it to remove it and see if it's is cracked and if so, find a replacement (?). If it's loose on where it is supposed to attach, I imagine it might leak. How do I get it to stay without leaking?

Thanks and thanks to others who have replied. Chet

[Stormin Mormon]

Not totally sure, without seeing it. But, duct tape cures a lot of ails.

[DerbyDad03]

It might be as simple as cutting off an inch or so and reattaching it to the same spot. It may just be stretched out a bit.

BTW - someone suggested trying to watch the device fill the tray. If it works the same as my unit, it won't run with the door open. Once the switch for the light closes to turn on the light, the power to the ice maker is cut off. You have to push the door switch to fool the unit into thinking the door is closed. Of course, at that point the light goes off and you can't see the ice maker.

[Ron]

Agreed.

[Phisherman]

Ice makers are probably the first thing that breaks in a refrigerator. You can remove the ice maker entirely and get additional freezer space, especially if the refrigerator has some age. The only time I absolutely required an ice maker was several months following knee surgery (prescription pain killers made me nauseated, and the doctor said no aspirin).

[LouB]

How easy is it to get the puppy out?

Lou

[DerbyDad03]

Typically it's very easy. No more than a couple of screws that it hangs on and one connector. As I mentioned before, when the freezer door is open, the unit gets no power so it won't come on while you're trying to get it out.

Google the manual for your model fridge and you'll probably find the instructions for replacing the ice maker.

[LouB]

Good idea, Thanks

Lou

[Stormin Mormon]

A good vetrinarian can have a puppy out in under an hour. A refrigerator guy can have an ice maker out in about a minute. I know..... had a GE ice maker out today, I was clearing a clogged drain line, and had to pull the ice maker. Took about a minute to put it back.

[LouB]

Thanks

[DerbyDad03]

What the h*ll do vets and puppies have to do with ice makers?

That was a really weird comparison.

[kmy]

LouB wrote: : Phisherman wrote: :> Ice makers are probably the first thing that breaks in a refrigerator. :> You can remove the ice maker entirely and get additional freezer :> space, especially if the refrigerator has some age. The only time I :> absolutely required an ice maker was several months following knee :> surgery (prescription pain killers made me nauseated, and the doctor :> said no aspirin).

: How easy is it to get the puppy out?

Replaced mine last weekend, it took about a total of 5 minutes. My fridge is an Amana and it had 3 screws holding it in, 2 on top 1 on left side bottom. The hardest part was disconnecting power harness plug from icemaker (YMMV on this). Good luck, ps the cheapest place I found was an outfit on ebay, they were almost 50% cheaper than local and most online places.