Copied from the Plumbing Section:
My ice maker stopped working. I found the water line (upper right) tube was frozen. I wrapped a hot towel around it for 10 minutes and that worked. Now I can hear water filling the ice maker (i think), but still no ice - after 10 hours....
If I need to pull the ice maker - what's the best way. I assume I'll need to shut off the water line first. Pretty easy job?
Any other ideas?
Amana side-by-side (about 5/6 years old)

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jp1216

update: Haven't heard any water 'filling' the ice maker in the last 12 hours. The ice maker is still running (teeth and metal bar are rotating). The rubber water line still appears unfrozen/unclogged.

applguy

Excellent post! Love the picture! This failure has nothing to do with the ice maker itself. Chances are, the "rubber water line" (fill tube) is still frozen. The tube in this unit is quite long, half of which is inaccessible unless it's removed. I usually use a steamer to thaw the ice in the tube, or you could use a hair dryer. You can pull out the rubber and aluminum extension tubes (fill tube consists of 3 tubes) from the inside and clean out in the sink, but the remaining tube must be removed from the backside of the refrig. Once the tube is reassembled, there are 2 possibilities for this failure. First, if the waterline that brings water to the refrig is connected to the house plumbing with a self-pierce saddle valve, that needs to be replaced with a drill out valve or a stop. Self-pierce valves should never be used for ice makers because they don't allow enough volume for the water valve to close and seal properly. Eventually, every SPV will fail, which begs why they ever get used in the first place. The normal procedure is to replace the saddle valve, clear the fill tube of ice, and let the unit work. If the tube freezes again, then the water valve on the back of the unit needs to be replaced. If you have questions on how to identify a self-pierce valve, you could post a question back on the plumbing page. If you don't have this type of saddle valve, then just thaw the tube and replace the water valve on the refrig. If you get me the model number and manufacturing number off the data plate on the ceiling in the refrig, I can get you a part number for the valve. You should raise the bail arm on the ice maker to stop it until you're ready for it to run, since it can lead to floor damage.

jp1216

I'll try the 'hair dryer test' to see if the line is frozen - deeper in. Here are a couple more pictures 1) water line tapped from the basement 2) water line into the fridge 3) serial information...

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applguy

You won't have to worry about the valve downstairs. That's a stop, and the fact you have one is great. I just found out that your refrigerator has filtered water. How long has it been since you changed the filter? If the filter has restricted itself internally, that can cause the whole thing. If you just changed it, or you have it bypassed, then it is definitely a water valve issue. Most refrigerators only have 1 valve, but due to the filtered water, yours has two. It could be either valve not sealing properly, but I would start with the primary one (the one the waterline attaches to). That part number is R0000242. The part number for the secondary valve, should you need it is 12544101. You can get both new and end this cherade or do them one at a time, giving a week or two between to see if it freezes again.

jp1216

Ran the Hair dryer and got the ice maker working again. Short term solution. Water filter was changed out about 2 months ago - done every 6-8 months. Can this be related to the fact we have VERY slow drinking water pressure? It's been like that for years.

applguy

What do you mean by "drinking water pressure"? Are you referring to the pressure throughout your house, or something else?

jp1216

I meant the drinking water from the fridge. It's always been low.

applguy

Well, the filter will slow it down some, but that's about it. All of the tubing in the refrig is a minimum of 1/4 od tubing. Which, obviously, is the same size as the incoming line. I see the splice between the 3/8 and 1/4 lines after the shutoff. Is it possible the solder may have partially restriced the joint? Anything that reduces the volume that the tubing can carry can and will cause frozen fill tubes and low water volume out the door. As a reference, you could bypass the filter with the bypass plug and then run water out the door to see how much you get then. The water filter should slow it down between 25 to 40% (I would guess).

PalmMP3

Well, it depends what your definition of "low pressure" is. I mean, you can't exactly expect kitchen-sink-style pressure from a little 1/8" copper pipe, can you?

Try this test: take a container of a given size - say, a pint or a quart - and use a stopwatch to test how long it takes to fill the container. Then post back here with the container size and the time it took, and we'll do the calculations.

Cheers,
Moishe