Why is My Refrigerator Water Dispenser Not Working?

defective refrigerator water dispenser

Is the water dispenser on your refrigerator broken? If not, you can attempt to repair the problem by yourself or call Gold Appliance Repair for refrigerator repair Pearland, Texas.

There are many reasons for a water dispenser in a kitchen refrigerator to stop working. Again, some of the suggestions are going to sound a little strange. However, something as obvious as an on/off switch on the refrigerator has been the culprit in some instances. Be sure to review the obvious potential problems before moving forward with refrigerator repair. Let’s start to cover this appliance repair issue and see all of the causes we can reference for a broken water dispenser on a refrigerator.

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

New Refrigerator Installation Issues

You just bought a new refrigerator with a water dispenser, but it’s broken. The water dispenser has to be hooked up to the water line. That might be the reason for the problem.

If the brand new refrigerator is replacing an old refrigerator that didn’t have an ice maker or water dispenser, there is a possibility that you don’t have a water line running to this area. Most of the time a water line is usually run from under the house either in a crawl space or basement. You can buy this line at nearly any home repair store and they are very simple for even the average homeowner to install. Usually they have include a water shut-off valve, which is important so that if you ever 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 lined up with the hose. And, is water running through the pipe that you have used to connect the water line? Simple and common questions, but things that have to be accounted for.

If you removed the doors during installation the water dispenser isn’t plugged in. Check the manual to find the wire harness for the particular refrigerator. Check that it’s plugged into the refrigerator.

Once the water line is connected, most of the time there’s air in the water line. So, lifting and lowering the dispenser lever on the refrigerator to get the air out is needed.
Filter Problems

On some household models, there are various filters. These filters can “expire”, become clogged or freeze. All filters are dependent on your style and brand of refrigerator. If the filter is clogged it will cause slow filling or no flowing at all. It is recommended that your filter is changed every 6 months. Replacing filters in a refrigerator can be difficult. If you run into issues, go online or call us and learn the right process to change a filter.

One recommendation is to fill the filter with water prior to installation. A lot of time the water filters will take a long time to fill up, which could lead you to think that the water dispenser isn’t working. You should read the owner’s manual if all else fails. To be sure it is not air caught in the lines, depress the dispenser lever for around 5 minutes.

A frozen water tank might be the reason for the issue as well in some models. If the tank freezes it will leak onto the food bins. Small amounts of food inside of the fresh food bins could cause freezing.

ADDITIONAL REFRIGERATOR RESOURCES