Ice Maker water line leaks

[Ron]

Last Year Jerry R. reported the ice maker water supply line on his Dometic refrigerator had developed a leak.  The fix was to replace the water line with a new improved line. 

Because of Jerry's experience I began checking for similar condition more frequently. Well while in Las Vegas on our way to Yuma I found evidence of such a leak by looking in the outside access panel.  Turned off the ice maker and replaced the water line last week.  Talking to Terry B they also had similar experience and had it replaced the same week.  It appears that if you have a icemaker in your freezer compartment that is 3 or more years old you are eligible for the same water leak.  The ice maker water supply line is a plastic line with a heater line running the length of the line and the whole assy has a black plastic covering.  When I examined out line after removal I found that a portion of the water line looked like cookie crumbs.

Might be a good idea to to inspect the ice maker water supply line more often for leaks.

 

[Jim Johnson]

I believe I posted a message earlier this year on the same subject.  Had mine replaced on the way home from Utah.  The tech told me that they were very apt to rot after a few years. 

 

[Alaskansnowbirds]

Is this problem on both Dometic and NorCold?

 

[Ron]

When I was checking for parts the guy asked if it was Dometic or Nocold. Since he was very familiar with the condition I would suspect it may be applicable to both.  For sure Dometic.

 

[jerryarlyne]

Hi Ron,
Glad to hear you found yours early. As you said it is a good idea to check the outside compartment for leaks, I now check mine at least once a month after our experience. Hope mine does last for three more years<g>.

Jerry Ray

 

[Ron]

Guess we were lucky ours lasted since new.

 

[Tom]

I have that same plastic line feeding water to the slide on our dock. The line broke at one of fittings, so I merely repaired it. It proceeded to break several more times in the same place and elsewhere before I realized that exposure to the sun had made it very brittle. I replaced the entire line, but it didn't take too much time in the sun for it to become brittle and break again.

 

[Ron]

The new line is suppose to be improved and it does appear to be thicker walled but it is still plastic.

 

[Tom]

FWIW Ron, last time I bought some was this summer and it didn't last very long. OTOH the same line under cabinets inside the coach won't see the damaging effects of the sun.

 

[Ron]

FWIW Ron, last time I bought some was this summer and it didn't last very long. OTOH the same line under cabinets inside the coach won't see the damaging effects of the sun.

The water line to the ice maker is a clear  plastic 1/4 inch line and it is not exposed to the sun but does have a heater wire running along side of it in the thin plastic sheath that covers the whole line end to end.

 

[rhmahoney]

My line started leaking 2 months ago-lasted 6 years. The repair guy said the fridge would have to be pulledinto the aisle to change it. Is there an easier way?

 

[Ron]

My line started leaking 2 months ago-lasted 6 years. The repair guy said the fridge would have to be pulledinto the aisle to change it. Is there an easier way?

I'm afraid not Russ.  When mine was changed the fridge was not moved all the way out just far enough for a little guy (lets us out) to crawl up through the out side panel to get to the connection behind the ice maker while another person held the fridge from leaning over against the opposite wall.

 

[jerryarlyne]

My line started leaking 2 months ago-lasted 6 years. The repair guy said the fridge would have to be pulledinto the aisle to change it. Is there an easier way?

Sorry, Ron is right. The frig must be pulled out to get to the upper end fitting where it goes into the icemaker. We were able to just pull it part way and tilt the box and were then able to get to it, but it took two people to change it out.

 

[safopax]

We have a Norcold refrigerator in a 2004 Discovery.  I am beginning to suspect that the icemaker hose is somehow leaking water into the driver's side slideout and the water is dripping through the top of the cabinet closest to the refrigerator.  Does this sound possible?  The ice make works great.  We did turn off the ice maker by lifting the bale of the ice maker itself since we had so much ice already in the freezer.  That must of been when the water began leaking from the water line into the cabinet and through the overhead cabinet closest to the refrigerator making a large puddle on the table top over night.  I went outside and turned the water off at the line shutoff of the ice maker itself.  The leaking inside is now just an occasional drip.
Has anyone seen this kind of leak before?  It has not rained lately so we think the leak has to be the icemaker since it has the only water line adjacent to the overhead slide out cabinets.  What a mess!
I'm trying to gather information before taking this rig to Camper's World to get it fixed.  I hate taking it there without knowing exactly what needs to be done since the labor cost is $129/hour to analyze and to repair.
Thanks,
Safopax

 

[John From Detroit]

Possible yes.. Happened to me absolutly.. Now here is the problem (And I would NOT recommend goign to camping world)

Though theory has it you can replace the line from the solenoid to the ice tray without removing the Fridge.. I read that someone did it.  NOT going to be easy.

The job calls for basically disconnecting everything in back that would prevent you from tipping ot into the coach,

Tipping it into the coach, then replacing the line with a new one.. And they used very poor quality lines for that job.


Then you tip everythign back and re-connect and secure.


MY solution:

Pull the )(!@#$2W ICE MAKER OUT AND INSTALL ICE CUBE TRAYS (Rubber maid trays from Wal*mart or in my case Meijer's work very well, I have 4 I think , use 2, makes ice faster (if I use all 4) than the U-Line did, and gives me more room in the freezer).

I also have a silicone tray or two that fit better than the Rubber maids, but I still like the Rm's better.

 

[safopax]

John,
I agree with you that with these coaches less is more.  Wouldn't removing the ice maker require some of the same tilting of the refrigerator as would replacing the line from solenoid to back of ice maker?  I see how to remove the ice maker, but what would be needed to take out the water supply up to the solenoid?  I think the inline cutoff at the back of the fridge would not be enough to prevent future water leak troubles.
Where would you take a motor coach for repair?
safopax

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Where is your water line shutoff?  If you are able to stop the flow of water to the ice maker, that should stop any leak in the water line behind or above the fridge. You could also remove the water feed from the solenoid that controls the supply to the ice maker - just unscrew the connection and put a cap on the threaded connector. I believe it is standard hose thread at that point.

Removing the ice maker is done from the inside - no tilting needed. Removing the water line is perhaps a different story and depends on the model of the Norcold fridge and the routing of the line. Much simpler to just disconnect it and cap it off.

 

[John From Detroit]

Removing the ice maker is easier than it sounds.. I think I had to remove 3 or 4 screws inside the freezer compartment, then the main ice maker simply came out, I unhooked the electrical cords at the connector, Left them, the water line (What is left of it) and solenoid in place.  Did not have to remove or disount fridge at all, all the "Work" was inside the freezer.

IN my case the ice maker was ounted on a L shaped piece of sheet metal.. I removed 2 or 3 screws that held it to the wall, one or two more at the "Back" of the unit (One is partially hidden by the water chute) and ..... it just falls out.

 

[safopax]

All Who Responded,
The leak is not between the solenoid and the icemaker, it is between the supply hose you attach to the faucet at the RV camp and the 1/4 inch ice maker tubing with the cut off valve at the back of the refrigerator.  If I have the coach hooked up to city water with the water on and have the ice maker valve turned off, then water pours out of the top cabinet in the slide-out closest to the refrigerator. I see no water leaking in the compartment behind the fridge with is opened from the outside.  I see water draining down from the top of the "basement" compartment which has the grey water and black water valves and the point at which you attach the city water supply.  So I think the break in the ice maker supply hose is up stream from the solenoid and the 1/4 inch supply line cut off valve.  That water supply must run inside the wall adjacent to the slide out.  How the water gets from the wall to the slide out cabinet, I have no clue.  I have disconnected the supply line from the solenoid and positioned it so that when I turn on the water pump, the water flows out of the outside refrigerator compartment from the ice maker supply hose until I turn off the water pump.  There is very little water flow from a faucet turned on inside the RV, but at least water does not flow from the cabinet in the slide out.  We then turn off the pump as soon as we are finished getting water from the inside of the coach and the water from the ice maker supply stops leaking outside the coach.
I will be in Sacramento, CA for four days.  Does anyone have a suggestion whom to call to get this mess fixed before continuing my journey?
Sorry to be so verbal, but desperate times cause many words.
safopax 

 

[Alfa38User]

In other words, the leak is in the house plumbing and seems to be in a branch leading to the ice maker??  Do you have a drinking water filter installed somewhere? The water supply for an ice maker is often taken from there and the input to such a filter often has a shutoff valve nearby.

The pipe in question is likely 1/2" PEX (a heavy plastic pipe) tubing like all the other plumbing in the vehicle (which may transition to copper) or a fitting on that tubing. If the fridge is in a slide, then the prime candidate for stopping a leak would be underneath the slide where a flexible piece of plumbing material must exist as it has to flex with the movement of the slide. PEX or copper won't do that. If you can find that feed, a temporary repair could be made by cutting the line and inserting a plug or valve at that point. The leak itself may be in a fitting further along but....

Any competent RV repair place could likely help. Campers World???  Will likely depend on the specific outlet....

Good luck, travelling with such a problem cannot be fun!!!