Why is My Refrigerator Water Dispenser Not Working?

image of refrigerator water dispenser

 

Is the water dispenser on your refrigerator broken? If so, you can attempt to repair the problem by yourself or call Five Star Appliance Repair for refrigerator repair Yucaipa, California.

There are many reasons for the water dispenser in a refrigerator to not work anymore. Again, some reasons could sound a bit crazy. However, something as obvious as a power switch on the refrigerator has been the reason in some instances. Be sure to check the more obvious potential issues before proceeding with refrigerator repair. Let’s start to tackle this appliance repair problem and see what causes we can come up with for a broken water dispenser on a refrigerator.

The cause of a water dispenser not dispensing is usually either an installation problem, a filter issue or frozen water lines:

Refrigerator Installation Problems

You just installed a new refrigerator for your kitchen with a water dispenser, but it’s not dispensing water. The water dispenser has to be hooked up to the home’s water line. That might be the issue.

If your brand new refrigerator is replacing an old refrigerator that did not include an ice maker or water dispenser, there is a chance that you don’t have a functioning water line near this area. Most of the time a water line is typically run from underneath a home either in a basement or crawl space. You can get this type of water line at just about any home repair store and they’re very easy for even the typical homeowner to install. Typically they have come with a built-in water shut-off valve, which is important so that if you need to move the refrigerator, you can shut off the water.

If there’s a connected water line, is the valve turned on? The valve handle should be lined up with the hose. And, is water going through the pipe that you have installed to connect the water line? Obvious and basic questions, but things that need to be accounted for.

If you removed the doors during installation the water dispenser may not be plugged in. Read the manual to find the wire harness for the particular refrigerator. Ensure that it’s plugged into the refrigerator.

Once the water line is connected, most of the time there’s air in it. So, engaging and disengaging the water dispenser control to get the air out is needed.
Filter Issues

On some of the popular refrigerators, there are different filters. These filters can “expire”, clog or get frozen. All filters are based on the model and brand of refrigerator. If your filter is clogged it might cause slow filling or no flowing period. It’s suggested that your filter is replaced every 6 months. Changing filters can be challenging. If you run into problems, go online and learn the proper process to change a filter.

One suggestion is to fill the filter with water prior to installation. A lot of time the water filters will need a long amount of time to fill up, which might cause you to assume the water dispenser isn’t working right. You will want to read the directions if all else fails. To be sure it’s not air caught in the lines, depress the dispenser arm for around 5 minutes.

A frozen water tank could be the cause of the issue as well in some refrigerators. If the tank is frozen it will leak onto the fresh food bins. Low amounts of food in the fresh food bins could cause freezing.

ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES