--- title: "Ice maker not making ice" description: "Maytag ice maker not making ice: ice makers produce more calls than any other single part of a refrigerator and almost none of them are documented — this…" url: "https://maytagmiami.support/symptoms/ice-maker-not-making-ice/" date_modified: "2026-09-07" Appliance type: "Ice makers, Refrigerators" --- # Maytag ice maker not making ice ### Water first, temperature second Check the freezer temperature before anything else — an ice maker in a compartment above five degrees will make small, cloudy or hollow cubes and there is nothing wrong with the ice maker at all. Then check the shut-off arm or the on switch, which is easy to knock into the off position while loading the freezer and stops production without any indication. If your refrigerator also dispenses water, fill a glass and time it; a slow or weak stream tells you the fill problem is upstream of the ice maker. And check when the water filter was last changed, because a filter well past its interval restricts flow steadily and small cubes are the first sign. ### What it usually means, by the kind of machine One complaint, several machines. This maker still sells a top-load washer with an agitator alongside one without, a front-loader, and a stacked pair, and it sells the same oven as a range and as a wall unit in gas and in electric. The behavior you can describe is identical on all of them; the first hour of the repair is not. A front-load washer has a drain filter the owner can open and a top-loader has nothing to reach from the front, and that single difference decides how the same afternoon goes. - **Side by side** — The ice maker sits in the freezer half with the water line running up behind. This is the layout where a slow fill shows up first as small cubes. - **French door bottom freezer** — Some of these make ice in the fresh food compartment rather than the freezer, which changes the temperature question entirely. Say which yours is when you book. - **Stand-alone or under-counter ice maker** — A different machine with its own drain and its own cleaning schedule, and it needs both. Scale from this water is the leading cause of a slow one. ### Ice that clumps rather than ice that stops A bin of ice frozen into one solid mass is a different finding from an empty bin, and it usually means the ice is melting slightly and refreezing — a door left ajar, a freezer running marginal, or ice sitting for weeks without being used. It is worth mentioning when you book because it points at temperature and door seal rather than at the ice maker mechanism, and those are two different visits. ### The water here This water carries enough mineral that filters load faster than the six-month interval on the box, and stand-alone ice machines need cleaning on a schedule rather than when something goes wrong. A refrigerator that made beautiful ice for four years and now makes small cloudy cubes has very often just told you the filter is overdue. A restricted water supply An old filter, a crushed line, or a valve that is not fully open. Small hollow cubes are the signature and it is the most common cause. The freezer is not cold enough The ice maker needs the compartment properly cold to complete a cycle. If ice cream is soft, fix that first and the ice usually follows. The shut-off arm or switch Knocked off while loading. Production stops entirely and nothing indicates why. The fill valve It opens partly or not at all. Same picture as a restricted line and it is distinguished by testing rather than by looking. The ice maker module The mechanism itself has stopped cycling. It is a genuine part and it is diagnosed after water and temperature are proved. Read the freezer temperature Zero degrees. Anything much above five and the ice is a symptom rather than the problem. Look at the arm or switch Up, down or off. It is the free answer and it is knocked more often than anybody expects. Time the water dispenser A weak stream at the door means the supply is restricted before the ice maker is even involved. Date the filter Past its interval is enough to cause this on its own, and replacing it is something you can do today. An empty bin, small hollow cubes, or ice that has all stuck together What it usually means Small or hollow cubes mean water arriving too slowly, not a broken ice maker A freezer above five degrees will not make ice reliably no matter what else is right The arm or the switch that says the bin is full stops production silently Water first, temperature second Check the freezer temperature before anything else — an ice maker in a compartment above five degrees will make small, cloudy or hollow cubes and there is nothing wrong with the ice maker at all. Then check the shut-off arm or the on switch, which is easy to knock into the off position while loading the freezer and stops production without any indication. If your refrigerator also dispenses water, fill a glass and time it; a slow or weak stream tells you the fill problem is upstream of the ice maker. And check when the water filter was last changed, because a filter well past its interval restricts flow steadily and small cubes are the first sign. What it usually means, by the kind of machine One complaint, several machines. This maker still sells a top-load washer with an agitator alongside one without, a front-loader, and a stacked pair, and it sells the same oven as a range and as a wall unit in gas and in electric. The behavior you can describe is identical on all of them; the first hour of the repair is not. A front-load washer has a drain filter the owner can open and a top-loader has nothing to reach from the front, and that single difference decides how the same afternoon goes. Side by side — The ice maker sits in the freezer half with the water line running up behind. This is the layout where a slow fill shows up first as small cubes. French door bottom freezer — Some of these make ice in the fresh food compartment rather than the freezer, which changes the temperature question entirely. Say which yours is when you book. Stand-alone or under-counter ice maker — A different machine with its own drain and its own cleaning schedule, and it needs both. Scale from this water is the leading cause of a slow one. Ice that clumps rather than ice that stops A bin of ice frozen into one solid mass is a different finding from an empty bin, and it usually means the ice is melting slightly and refreezing — a door left ajar, a freezer running marginal, or ice sitting for weeks without being used. It is worth mentioning when you book because it points at temperature and door seal rather than at the ice maker mechanism, and those are two different visits. The water here This water carries enough mineral that filters load faster than the six-month interval on the box, and stand-alone ice machines need cleaning on a schedule rather than when something goes wrong. A refrigerator that made beautiful ice for four years and now makes small cloudy cubes has very often just told you the filter is overdue. ### It makes a little ice, just not enough. That is nearly always flow rather than the mechanism. Start with the filter and the supply valve before anybody is booked. ### The ice tastes bad. Filter first, and then look at what is stored uncovered in the freezer — ice absorbs odor readily. It is rarely a repair. ### It stopped after we turned the water off for plumbing work. Then check the shut-off valve was fully reopened. A valve left partly closed produces exactly this and it is the first thing to look at. --- **[Read full article: Ice maker not making ice](https://maytagmiami.support/symptoms/ice-maker-not-making-ice/)**