Why is My Refrigerator Water Dispenser Not Working?

Is the water dispenser on your refrigerator not dispensing water? If so, you can try to solve the problem on your own or call Appleton Appliance Repair for refrigerator repair Appleton, Wisconsin.

There are a lot of reasons for a water dispenser in a refrigerator to stop working. Again, some of the reasons could sound a bit crazy. However, something as obvious as an on/off switch has been the cause in some instances. Be sure to inspect the more obvious potential issues prior to moving forward with refrigerator repair. Let’s start to cover this appliance repair issue and see all of the reasons we can reference for a broken water dispenser on a refrigerator.

The reason for a water dispenser not working is typically either an installation problem, a filter issue or frozen water lines:

New Refrigerator Installation Problems

You just purchased a brand new refrigerator for your kitchen with a water dispenser, but it’s broken. The water dispenser must be hooked up to the home’s water line. That might be the issue.

If the brand new refrigerator is replacing a prior refrigerator that didn’t include a water dispenser or ice maker, there’s a possibility that you do not have a functioning water line near this area of the kitchen. Most of the time a water line is commonly run from underneath a house either in a basement or crawl space. You can buy this line at almost any hardware store and they are pretty easy for even the average homeowner to install. Usually they have come with a water shut-off valve, which is important so that if you need to move the refrigerator, you can shut off the water.

If you have an attached water line, is the valve on? The valve handle must be lined up with the hose. And, is there water going through the pipe you have used to connect the water line? Simple and common questions, but items that have to be checked.

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

Once the water is hooked up, most of the time there’s air in it. So, engaging and disengaging the dispenser lever on the refrigerator to get the air out is necessary.
Filter Issues

On some of the household refrigerators, there are different filters. These filters could “expire”, clog or become frozen. All of the filters are dependent on the model and type of refrigerator. If your filter is blocked it can cause slow filling or no flowing at all. It is suggested that your filter should be replaced every 6 months. Changing filters can be hard sometimes. If you run into hiccups, go online and find the proper process to change a filter.

One recommendation is to fill the filter with water before installing it. A lot of time the water filters can need a long amount of time to fill up, which might lead you to think the water dispenser on the refrigerator isn’t working. You will want to read the directions if nothing is working. To ensure it’s not air trapped in the water lines, we recommend to depress the dispenser lever for around 5 minutes.

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

ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES

CLICK-TO-CALL