Found a trick for stubborn refrigerator ice maker jams

I kept getting service calls where the ice maker was jammed but the auger motor tested fine. After replacing a few boards and still seeing the same issue, I finally figured out the plastic ice mold was warping just enough to bind the ejector arm. A $15 heat gun from Harbor Freight lets me gently reshape the mold back to flat in about two minutes. I've fixed three Whirlpools this way in the last month without needing any parts. Has anyone else run into this or found another fix for those warped molds?

2 comments

2 Comments

cole_robinson13d ago

Gotta love when a cheap Harbor Freight tool saves you from dropping another $100+ on a board that wasn't even broken in the first place. Whirlpool probably knows their molds are crap but figures it's cheaper to let customers and repair guys chase their tails for a while. Three in a month is wild though, almost impressive how consistent that failure is. Maybe they're using recycled yogurt containers for the plastic now or something. I half expect next time I open one up the ejector arm will be made of modeling clay. But hey, at least we get to play with hot air guns like fancy repair wizards instead of fighting with a frozen auger for an hour.

xenarobinson13d ago

Heat guns are honestly one of those tools you don't realize you need until you have one, they fix so many random plastic parts that would otherwise get tossed. You could probably even use a hair dryer on high if someone doesn't want to buy a heat gun (but it takes way longer and isn't as controlled). Whirlpool must have had a bad batch of molds if you're seeing three in a month, makes me wonder if they quietly updated the part number.