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JasonF  
#1 Posted : Monday, December 31, 2012 1:57:01 PM(UTC)
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JasonF

Rank: Member

Groups: Registered
Joined: 12/31/2012(UTC)
Posts: 1

So like many others my Ice Maker stopped making ice. It occurred right after an 8 hour power outage, so I think that somehow is related. When I first realized this issue, there was ice in the mold, and the ejector fingers were resting against the ice, but it was stuck and could not eject the ice. I removed the ice maker, thawed and removed the ice, and then reinstalled the ice maker. Now the issue was that the unit would not fill with water. I waited a day or so and often when I would check it, the ice maker was spinning because the thermostat was saying the ice was ready, but there was no ice. It was not filling with water.

So next I swapped the water solenoid wires in the rear and used the door water switch to confirm the ice maker valve was dispensing water and that there was no clog in the line. Everything was fine. The optical switch was also giving the correct indications based on flapper position, so the only thing left was the ice maker itself. So I removed it again, and despite common recommendations, I opened up the business end of it. Inside, I found that one of the conductive pathways that touched the heater terminal was burned away. So the failed heater connection explained the original issue of the ice not ejecting.

So, rather than just ordering a whole new ice maker, I decided to try and repair it. First I tried soldering a wire right to the heater terminal. This didn't work as I was unable to get it hot enough to make the solder stick. So I dug through my junk box and found a small set-screw collar that was sized just right for the heater terminal. I dremeled away the burned out contact so there would be room for the terminal with the collar on it when it was put back together. I then soldered a 3" wire onto the conductive pathway for the heater terminal, and then clamped it inside the collar to make the connection to the heater. I carefully tucked the wire inside the unit, clocked the gear properly and reassembled everything. The moment of truth: I hooked it up to the freezer and the ice maker started turning back to the home position. When it got to 10 O'clock the ice maker water turned on! Somehow the lack of power at the heater contact was also keeping the water from filling. I reinstalled and it's made 2 batches of ice now, so I think it's back. I attached a couple photos of the burned terminal.

If you're fairly handy, you may be able to save yourself a 100 bucks or so if this is your issue.
JasonF attached the following image(s):
IMG_8780.jpg
IMG_8776.jpg
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