Stinky ice from ice maker

[Scoot]

I had a leak in my ice maker in my fridge/freezer a while ago-- was getting water on the floor.  I couldn't figure it out, so I called a local place to come work on it.  I apparently had some drain port plugged up, which was common for that model.  Ever since they worked on it the ice my ice maker produces stinks like absolute dog doo doo.  I called the company and wasn't impressed with the response I got from them.  I was told it wasn't anything to do with the work they did and that something in my fridge likely is providing the smell that the ice is picking up.  My wife and I cleaned the fridge/freezer so it was spotless and nothing in it was old, open, or smelly.  It made no difference. 

Any suggestions for what is making my the ice from my ice maker smell like it's being made from septic water?

Thanks,

Scott

[PurpleFloyd]

I would try filling an ice cube tray from the sink tap and see how that smells when it freezes. If they are similar then it's your water. If not then check the water filter in the fridge.

 

Do you have a dedicated RO unit supplying water to the fridge?

[Scoot]

I did just that- ice in a cup does not smell at all. The fridge/freezer does not have a filter. 

I don't know what your last question means. 

[RebelSS]

Can only be one answer to that...there must be something in the lines/system that needs to be flushed. You said you had an area plugged; this leads me to believe stagnant water was sitting somewhere, that allowed bacteria to grow. Is there anyway you can back-flush the system with a mixture of bleach and water? I guess that's my suggestion, for what it's worth. Hope you can solve it.

 

PS....Just found this in a tech column, maybe it will help.

Since the ice is smelling and tasting bad after producing a new batch, then it is possible that you have a build-up of deposits in the ice mold or the water supply lines.

I recommend checking the ice mold first. Unplug the refrigerator to completely disconnect electrical power. Most ice makers are attached to the side wall of the freezer with several screws. Without a model number, I can't tell you specifically how many you will find on your model. Remove the screws and disconnect the wire harness to the ice maker. Pull the module out and check for a build-up of deposits in the ice mold. Clean the ice mold if you find excessive deposits. White vinegar will remove hard water deposits. Rinse the ice maker module thoroughly. Replace the module and plug the refrigerator back in.

If this does not resolve your problem, then you could have a build-up of deposits in the water supply lines to the refrigerator. Turn the water supply valve off and carefully disconnect the water line in back of the refrigerator. Collect some water from the supply line by briefly turning of the valve on and then shut it back off. Reconnect the water supply line to the refrigerator and turn the water supply back on. Freeze the water that you collected from the supply line in the back of the refrigerator. See if it has the same odor and taste as the ice produced in the automatic ice maker. If it does, then the problem is in the water supply to the refrigerator. If not, then the water lines in the refrigerator probably have a build-up of deposits that is creating the bad taste in the ice. To correct this problem, you would likely need to replace the water lines in the refrigerator. A technician would normally be needed to complete this type of repair. 

 

 

 

Edited June 4, 2015 by RebelSS

[Scoot]

Thanks Rebel. I'll try that and see what happens.

[RebelSS]

Let us know how it turns out, Scoot! 

[Cicada]

Most refrigerators that have a water and ice dispenser will have a water filter.  What model number refrigerator do you have?  I think the other guys are correct.  The odor is coming from something either in a filter that hasn't been changed for a long time or some bacteria in the lines.  I work for a company that does service work on home appliances and I can't think of anything a service tech could use that would create this type of problem.  In fact, when someone buys a refrigerator from us, we will tell the customer that they should change the water filter when they notice a slowdown of the water coming out of the dispenser and/or they start to notice a change in appearance or taste of their ice cubes.  The change filter indicator on the refrigerator does not have the capability to go into the filter and see how dirty or clogged it is.  It is usually just a timer.

[Scoot]

Cicada it's an AmanaAmana but I don't see a model number. The service guy I spoke with told me it doesn't have a filter and I definitely can't find one. He immediately said it was a filter issue but after looking up the model realized it didn't have a filter. In going to try pull the ice maker and try clean it really well. 

Would it be possible to disconnect the line coming into it, drain that line, fill it with bleach, the reconnect and run a bunch of rounds  if cubes through it to clean it out?

[Tom7227]

Might be easier to toss the line and buy some new.  The kits to hook them up don't cost that much.

[delcecchi]

It would be pretty hard to fill that tiny tubing with bleach solution.  I don't think pouring it in would work.  

[RebelSS]

I did some research on the Amana's, seems they had some issues with a "Teflon like" coating they use on the inside of the ice makers, that would flake-off and cause foul smelling problems. Might want to check to see if there are any TSB's on that with your local Amana folks. Think I'd do that before tearing into it. As suggested, might be better off replacing those lines. But, I'd do it  AFTER you check out the "flaking" problem. 

Edited June 8, 2015 by RebelSS

[Scoot]

You guys are great!  Thanks very much!!!

[PurpleFloyd]

I did just that- ice in a cup does not smell at all. The fridge/freezer does not have a filter. 

I don't know what your last question means. 

​RO is a reverse osmosis filter. 

[Scoot]

Gotcha- thanks PurpleFloyd. 

[RebelSS]

Let us know when you find the skunk.  

Edited June 10, 2015 by RebelSS

[BartmanMN]

I did some research on the Amana's, seems they had some issues with a "Teflon like" coating they use on the inside of the ice makers, that would flake-off and cause foul smelling problems. Might want to check to see if there are any TSB's on that with your local Amana folks. Think I'd do that before tearing into it. As suggested, might be better off replacing those lines. But, I'd do it  AFTER you check out the "flaking" problem. 

​I don't have an Amana, however I recently had black flakes in my cup with my ice.  I'm wondering if that is what it was from.

[RebelSS]

​I don't have an Amana, however I recently had black flakes in my cup with my ice.  I'm wondering if that is what it was from.

​I did some interesting reading up  on this, Bart, and it looks like a very common problem...here's a link with a good pic. *ick* 

http://fixitnow.com/wp/2008/08/07/ice-maker-ice-mold-flaking-off-crud-into-the-ice/

 

I'll stick to my old way pop-out yourself cube trays....plus, good exercise for my wrists. 

 

[BartmanMN]

Guess I better stick my head in there and take a look.  I haven't seen it in the actual cubes yet, but appeared in our glass and water jug after getting ice from the ice maker.

[Scoot]

I pulled the ice maker out- it looked a little cruddy in the tray, but there didn't appear to be any flaking.  I cleaned it out really good with vinegar and water and rinsed it out thoroughly.  Unfortunately, when I put it back it continues to make foul smelling ice.  My next plan is to manually fill the ice maker right after it dumps out cubes.  If I do that and the ice stinks, it must be in the maker, right?  If it doesn't stink, it must either be in the lines internal to the fridge/freezer or in the water lines before they enter the freezer.  I have some thoughts on how I can go about checking that too, but I'll cross that bridge when I get there.  Thoughts?

[Scoot]

I'm confused as ever. I manually filled the ice maker and found the cubes still smelled like poo. I thought I'd figured it out. I then pulled the ice maker out and found the water that had just been dumped in the tray already stunk like crazy- it had been in there for about two minutes and obviously wasn't frozen yet. I dumped the water out and the ice maker doesn't smell anymore. 

 

How do I get water from the ice maker before it goes into the unit?  I tried to plug in the connection and made sure the arm was down but it's not coming out (with the ice maker otherwise not connected and off to the side). 

 

I now believe the water is bad. My water coming out if my tap is not bad so I assume the line to the fridge or the line in the fridge is bad. This is based on what you folks said above and my testing. I'm thinking I must not have filled it all the way and it filled the rest of the wayway automatically making the ice I dumped in manually also stink too. For the water to smell that foul just a couple minutes after getting in the ice maker and for the ice maker to not smell after I dumped the water seems clear enough to me. 

Thoughts, suggestions, help welcome!!!

FYI I'm heading to LOW in the AM and may not be able to respond until next Monday or Tuesday. 

Thanks for the help!

Edited June 17, 2015 by Scoot

[Scoot]

Couple more questions- can someone tell me what brand this is?  Also where do I find the model number?  Neither is at all obvious to me. 

[RebelSS]

Cripes, tough one to figure out!!! A long shot....water (ice) will absorb ANY odor floating around in the 'fridge/freezer area. Is it possible that somewhere in your 'fridge there is a patch of mold or crud? Doubtful with the cold temps, but is your drain line to your evap pan clear, not backing up? I'm stumped, but I'll keep poking away at it until we get that skunk outta there...

[Scoot]

OK, I've now determined that the water coming into the fridge is fine.  The ice maker itself is fine as well.  That means the lines inside of the fridge must be bad.  Is it easy to replace them?  Can I do it or do I need to have someone come and do it? 

[RebelSS]

I don't know if this will help you, but it might give you some ideas anyway....

 

 

[Scoot]

Thanks Rebel- I think that's the next step.