Why is My Refrigerator Water Dispenser Not Working?

defective refrigerator water dispenser

Is the water dispenser on your refrigerator not working? If so, you can attempt to solve the problem by yourself or call Factory Appliance Repair for professional refrigerator repair.

There are many reasons for the water dispenser in a kitchen refrigerator to not work. Again, some suggestions are going to sound a bit crazy. However, something as obvious as an off switch has been the culprit before. Be sure to check the obvious potential issues prior to moving forward with complicated refrigerator repair. Let’s start to cover this appliance repair problem and see all of the solutions we can cite for a broken water dispenser.

The cause of a broken water dispenser is usually an installation problem, a filter failure or frozen water tubes:

New Refrigerator Installation Issues

You just installed a brand new refrigerator for your kitchen with a water dispenser, but it is broken. The water dispenser has to be hooked up to the water line. That could be the problem.

If your new refrigerator is replacing a prior refrigerator that did not have an ice maker or water dispenser, there’s a chance that you do not have a water line near this area of the kitchen. A water line is typically run from underneath the house either in a crawl space or basement. You can buy this line at nearly any home repair store and they’re pretty easy for the average homeowner to install. Typically they have a a built-in water shut-off valve, which is necessary so that if you should need to relocate the refrigerator, you can shut off the water.

If you have an attached water line, is the valve on? The valve handle should be lined up with the hose. And, is there water running through the pipe you have installed to connect the water line? Obvious and basic questions, but items that need to be checked.

If you removed the refrigerator doors during installation it is possible the water dispenser might not be plugged in. Review the manual to see the wire harness for the particular model of refrigerator. Ensure that it is plugged into the refrigerator.

Once the water is connected, usually there’s air in it. So, engaging and disengaging the water dispenser lever to get the air out is needed.
Filter Issues

On some household refrigerators, there are various filters. These filters can “expire”, become clogged or become frozen. All filters are dependent on your model and type of refrigerator. If the filter is blocked it will cause slow filling or no flowing period. It is recommended that your filter is replaced every 6 months. Replacing filters can be hard sometimes. If you have issues, go online and find the proper process to replace a filter.

One suggestion is to fill up the water filter with water prior to installation. Typically the water filters need a long amount of time to fill, which might lead you to believe that the water dispenser isn’t working right. You should read the owner’s manual if all else fails. To be certain it is not air trapped in the water lines, we recommend to depress the dispenser lever for about 5 minutes.

A frozen water tank could be the cause of the problem as well on some models. If the tank is frozen it will start to leak onto the food bins. Limited food in the fresh food bins could cause freezing to occur.

ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES

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