Why is My Refrigerator Water Dispenser Not Working?

defective refrigerator water dispenser

Is the water dispenser on your refrigerator broken? If so, you can try to solve the issue by yourself or call Acclaim Appliance Repair for professional refrigerator repair Indiana.

There are a lot of reasons for a water dispenser in a kitchen refrigerator to not work anymore. Again, some of the suggestions could sound a bit crazy. However, something as simple as a power switch on the refrigerator has been the cause before. Be sure to inspect the obvious potential problems prior to moving forward with complicated refrigerator repair. Let’s begin to tackle this appliance repair problem and see all of the reasons we can come up with for a broken water dispenser on a refrigerator.

The cause of a water dispenser not dispensing is commonly either an installation problem, a filter problem or frozen water tubes:

Refrigerator Installation Problems

You just bought a brand new refrigerator with a water dispenser, but it’s broken. The water dispenser has to be connected to the home’s water line. That might be the reason for the issue.

If your new refrigerator is replacing a previous refrigerator that did not include an ice maker or water dispenser, there is a chance that you do not have a water line running to this area of the kitchen. A water line is usually run from underneath a home either in a basement or crawl space. You can buy this line at just about any home repair store and they’re very easy for even the average homeowner to install. Usually they have include a built-in water shut-off valve, which is important so that if you need to relocate the refrigerator, you can shut off the water.

If there is an attached water line, is the valve turned on? The valve handle must be in line with the hose. And, is there water running through the pipe you have used to connect the water line? Obvious and basic questions, but things that need to be accounted for.

If you had to remove the doors during installation the water dispenser may not be plugged in. Check the owner’s manual to find the wire harness for that particular model of refrigerator. Check that it’s plugged into the refrigerator.

When the water line is connected, usually there is air in it. So, lifting and lowering the water dispenser lever to get the air out is necessary.
Filter Problems

On some of the popular models, there are different filters. These filters might “expire”, become clogged or get frozen. All filters are dependent on the style and brand of refrigerator. If the filter is clogged it might cause slow filling or no flowing period. It is recommended that your filter is replaced every 6 months. Changing filters can be hard sometimes. If you run into issues, go online and find the right method to change a filter.

One suggestion is to fill the water filter with water before installation. Typically the water filters can take a long amount of time to fill up, which might cause you to think that the water dispenser isn’t working. You will want to read the owner’s manual if all else fails. To ensure it is not air trapped in the lines, we recommend to depress the dispenser lever for about 5 minutes.

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

ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES