What causes a fridge to leak water? A leaking fridge would be a nasty situation in your home. It would be best if you fixed a condition like this immediately. You should find the cause of the leaking right away, or you will end up flooding your house and result in more problems.
Refrigerators leak for many different reasons. These issues have a lot to do with ordinary wear and tear over time. However, Your is still fridge repairable, even if it has a slow leak or a sudden breakdown. Before doing anything else, figure out where the leak is from. Following the diagnosis, learn what causes the leak by reading this article.
Reasons Why A Fridge Leak Water
What causes a fridge to leak water? Before you try to fix your fridge, you must first know where the leaking occurs and what causes it. If you are confident that you can solve it yourself, you don’t need to call a professional to do it. Regardless, there are different causes on what and how the water is leaking from your fridge. Here are some possible reasons:
#1. Blocked drain hole
Having the freezer drain hole is what most causes the water to leak from your fridge. The drain hole is located at the bottom back of your freezer. Its purpose is to drain out the water in your fridge.
Modern refrigerators have an auto-defrost cycle where water is discharged through the hole down to the drain tube and the drain pan, where the water evaporates. If you see water leaking from your fridge, check the drain hole for it may be clogged. To know if that is the case, you will find the bottom drawer of your freezer with ice. Check the drain if either the hole is blocked with an object or the drain tube is stopped.
If the drain hole is blocked, take out the stuff in your fridge remove the blockage. You may want to take this time to clean your fridge. Remember to unplug the power cord of the refrigerator before cleaning it. Transfer the food into temporary storage like a cooler. Make sure to remove whatever object that is blocking the drain.
If the drain tube is blocked, defrost the fridge first and drain the hole with warm water. Draining will help defrost any ice that builds up in the spot. If it’s still clogged, try forcing it through with a pipe cleaner or anything small enough to fit through the drain hole. There might be a food particle or small debris that caused it to clog. Finally, clean the drain valve and the drain pan with soap and water. Once you remove the blockage and dirt, it should stop leaking.
#3. Broken drain pan
Another cause is the drain pan may be broken. The water that goes through the drain-hole ends up in the drain pan. Usually, you won’t be needing to remove the water from the pan, for it will evaporate on its own. However, cleaning it for at least a month will help in any dirt build-up.
A broken drain pan can cause leaking. If there is a crack or split on the pan, the water collected will leak on the floor. However, this is a straightforward fix. Just take out the pan, and you may glue or tape the crack, or you can go to your nearest hardware store and get yourself a new drain pan.
#3. Loose fridge door
Refrigerators work 24/7 and take time to cool up.
It would help if you kept the door shut to keep it cool. An unclosed fridge door can cause leakage, for it will condensate when opened for a long time. So always make sure to keep the door shut. If it doesn’t close, try cleaning the rubber seal with soap and water. If it still doesn’t close, lubricate it with a small amount of petroleum jelly. That should do the trick. With that, learn how to fix a fridge door quickly.
#4. Leak on the waterline
Most modern refrigerators have water lines. It allows you to make ice in your fridge and a nice cold glass of water on demand. A fridge with features of a built-in water dispenser and automatic ice maker needs to be connected to a water source.
Despite the convenience feature the fridge had, it would be awful if your fridge started to leak near the rear. It may be because of a loose water line, or it may be damaged. If you notice the ice production starts to reduce or cold water flow issue, that may be the problem.
Examine the waterline of your fridge and the valve connected behind to know what is causing the leak.
If the leaking is near the valve, it may be loose, try tightening the valve and make sure it is securely connected. If the reason for the leak is on the hose, get yourself a new hose and replace it. Upon returning, make sure you secure the hose into the fridge. Or you can re-install the waterline if you can, learn how to install a water line for a refrigerator.
If the leak is not a big issue, you can temporarily cover the leak with tape until you get yourself a new hose as soon as possible. At this point, if you think that these reasons are not enough, you can proceed and read this article to further understand why your fridge is leaking water.
Conclusion
You should be alarmed if you find a leak from your refrigerator. A leak may be the reason why your fridge isn’t working well. Problems that you can fix immediately can prevent you from causing more. Make it a habit to clean your fridge at least twice a month.
Cleaning will prevent any dirt build-up and help you monitor your fridge for any problems as the day goes by. For more severe problems, call for professional help to fix your fridge. Now you know what causes a fridge to leak water? For more helpful articles about fridges, you can read this one about removing scratches from the stainless steel fridge.