I just return home from vacation, I turned my ice maker back on and it delivered one set of partial cubes and has not made any since. It is getting water, but does not seem to be making ice cubes, Is there something I can check to see if it is working? Thanks for your help.
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Be sure an ice cube hasn’t jammed in the ejecting cycle. If you have a thermometer, check the temperature in the ice maker compartment. I think it should be around 8 degrees F. Be sure the electrical plug from the ice tray is firmly attached to the socket in the side of the freezer. Be sure the arm is down in the ice bucket. Be sure there isn’t any water frozen in the water tube feeding the ice tray which can block the water flow to the tray.
Ice makers do fail. I’ve had to replace mine many times. The gears fail in them fairly commonly. They aren’t terribly expensive, mine was about $110 last time I had to buy one. You just have to find an appliance parts place that sells ice makers. If you can’t find one locally, Sears Parts is likely to have them online along with parts diagrams for your specific refrigerator. You need to be specific about the model number of your refrigerator or you might end up with the wrong ice maker.
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Thanks to all that answered my request for help. I found that I had frozen water in ice maker. Removed it with warm water and all is fine now.
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The thing you may have been having trouble with is when you warmed the ice maker up, then turned it back on, the area was too warm. It gives the water a chance to pool up and clog areas. After you de-ice the unit, put the ice bin detection arm up and give the area a chance to freeze up completely. An hour or two ought to do the trick. It needs to be really cold in the ice maker section for the ice maker to work correctly. Putting the arm up stops the ice making cycle and will stop water from flowing until you put the arm down again. Be sure the ice maker area is at least 8 F degrees or below before dropping the arm.
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Has been steadily dispensing ice now for over 24 hours with not a blip. After two weeks of me fooling with it my husband was ready to stuff me in the freezer but I was so sure I knew what the problem was I kept at it. Thanks for setting me on the right track by suggesting it was water freezing around the auger, and several others who offered advice, I was able to do the repair myself and save a couple hundred dollars at least. Once I knew the questions to ask, I kept going and along the way I learned a lot. It was Eric at www.affordableappliances.com who gave me the final solution. He suggested placing the motor near a heat source for a minimum of 24 hours then replacing it. I removed the motor, it is a sealed unit, replaced the plate to hold the auger in then used a microwavable heat pack to keep the motor warm and every few hours I shook it good and drops of water would drip out around the wiring connection. Did this for a couple of days, dried everything up, put it back together and it’s been working fine ever since. Since it was my husband who left the freezer open and repairing it saved us so much money, I’m back in his good graces :)