16 replies to this topic

[caspery]

1988 vintage Subzero 550 moved to our current home. Plugged it in. Hooked up the water. Icemaker filled and dumped a load of very white ice. Then the ice taped out. The second batch were tiny cubes and not numerous. No it's down to nothing.:shock:

I read your FAQs and changed out the self-tapping water supply valve and the solenoid filler valve. Nothing.

Since this icemaker is tight to the top of a bottom freezer there is no access to look in the top of the trays, etc. Somebody suggested filling the icetrays with a turkey baster  but there is no access.

Cap Offutt

[Samurai Appliance Repair Man]

This could be a water pressure issue or a module that's flaking out.  If I were on the service call, I'd loosen the water supply tube at the water inlet valve underneath the fridge-- it's right behind the grill on the floor, tight space to work in but it's do-able and beats the snot outta pulling the whole fridge out!  If I get water starting to spray out, I know I have good pressure.  Towel off, tighten up, onward...

Next, I'd unhook the icemaker so I could access the front module head.  If I'm not mistaken, the icemaker is sidemounted on this fridge, so the whole icemaker has to come out to work on it.  It's a pain, but that's Subzero fer ya.  Then jumper T to H to initiate a harvest.  Catch the water that comes out at the end of the harvest and pour it into the icemaker mold to see how it fills.  Dump this and repeat a couple more times.  Chances are pretty good that if you've gotten this far in the diagnosis, that inadequate water volume is the problem == bad module. 

[caspery]

Water pressure's good. I checked that.

Arrgh.. I'll have to empty the freezer and demount the icemaker.

 

Later...;)

[caspery]

I finally got time to empty the freezer and check out this icemaker. It is a 1987 component "old-style" Whirlpool icemaker. It had cubes frozen in place. It is just no ejecting often. Friday night it dumped 8 cubes, the first in months.

I attempted to cycle the unit by gently lifting the "fingers" but nothing happened. I removed the icemaker and tested the heated- got continuity. Tested the switch attached to the wire bail and could not get continuity. With an old unit like this, should I just drop $125 and buy an all new icemaker unit?

Cap

[Samurai Appliance Repair Man]

[user=284]caspery[/user] wrote:

It is a 1987 component "old-style" Whirlpool icemaker.

Fuggetaboutit. Buy a new icemaker.

[caspery]

:D Roger-that.

Thanks for your help.

Cap

[caspery]

:DSensei:

Since we last communicated I successfully replaced the icemaker in our 1988 model 550 Subzero bottom-freezer refer. The new icemaker worked flawlessly until the plumber came to fiddle under the sink. He also replaced the saddle-tee icemaker watersupply valve with an in-line valve. However, 4 days later it started to leak and I had to shut it off until I could get to it 2 weeks later. I repaired the leak , bled th eline to the icemaker and... nothing. I emptied the freezer and got in to hold the wire bale up and the over-ride switch ON and manually turned th egear on the front of the icemaker, gently, until it started to run through the cycle itself. The water filled and I replaced all the baskets etc. Next morning- nothing. I again reached in and manually started the cycle , ice cubes ejected, water filled. After work that day, nothing.

   Any ideas...?

Cap

[Samurai Appliance Repair Man]

[user=284]caspery[/user] wrote:

The water filled and I replaced all the baskets etc.

What does that mean, you "replaced all the baskets, etc."? What baskets?

Also, what is your freezer temperature?

[caspery]

The "basket" is the plastic ice bin that catches the cubes under the ice maker.  The temp. is plenty cold - just above 0

Cap

[caspery]

:? Any ideas ? This is a new icemaker and a new water valve.

Cap

[Samurai Appliance Repair Man]

[user=284]caspery[/user] wrote:

and manually turned th egear on the front of the icemaker, gently, until it started to run through the cycle itself.

Does the front of your icemaker look like Fig. 1 or Fig. 2?

[caspery]

It is like Fig. 1.

Cap

[Samurai Appliance Repair Man]

Based on the symptoms you describe, I think the plumber's work and your current icemaker troubles are unrelated; it's just coincidence that the icemaker failed when it did.

Sounds like the thermostat inside the icemaker is bad.



You can test it with your ohm meter. Make sure it's at freezer temp (~0F) before checking continuity.

[caspery]

Thanks- I'll check it out.

Cap

[caspery]

:shock: I removed the icemaker and tested the thermostat and it checked out fine. While the icemaker was out I checked out the water supply tube and saw a small amount of ice that I removed with a chopstick. Reinstalled icemaker. I started the cycle by turning the drive gear. It cycled through the fill cycle and I turned on the freezer and waited.  By morning I had 5 icecubes. Normal size but only 5??? It never cycled again. What prevents this from reccyling and filling again?

Cap

[Samurai Appliance Repair Man]

[user=284]caspery[/user] wrote:

What prevents this from reccyling and filling again?

Given the history with recent work done on the water supply, I have to suspect that either something is clogging the screen of the water inlet valve or the inlet valve has coincidentally gone flaky (I've seen this several times on Sub-zeros).

[caspery]

The water valve is new. I'll tear into it tonight and see what is what. I haven't checked the screen since the water filter was reinstalled.

Cap