[NA] Refrigerator Leak

SixPapaCharlie

SixPapaCharlie

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POA is the best place for home repair so here goes.

Lately, I have noticed a puddle in front of my fridge.
I inspected underneath to see if I could find the source of the leak.

No tubes, connections, fittings appeared to be leaking.

I noticed when I open the fridge, the bottom portion where the door seal connects is wet.

After further investigation, what I am seeing is the actual fridge door seal appears to be filling with water.

I got under there with my camera and pushed on it and this little geyser seems to be the culprit.

Why would the door seal be filling with water?

_fridge.jpg


My best guess is for some reason, this is filling with water and in the morning someone opens the fridge, closes it and the shifting and pressure splooshes the water out.

But how would water even get in here?
 
How old is it? Do you have ice maker, could be a leak there. There may be some deterioration of the insulation which would cause condensation on the interior of the door. If possible I would pull the door interior panel, the insulation needs to be physically attached to exterior.
 
Condensation, some fridges have heaters under the gaskets to stop this. Brand and model might help.
 
Texas humidity.

Teenagers staring into the fridge looking for "something to eat".

I'm going with condensation too.
 
Have you seen the movie Sausage Party? This is what I'm going with.
 
The other issue could be the humidity in your house. I assume you have and run ac, but if the humidity is above say, 45% you could have issues like this.
 
Neat picture. I would have expected it to look like an arc, since you have the seal tilted, rather than straight with a blob on top. Trick photography?

Anyway, I bet you have another hole where there's a gap causing condensation to run into the seal. Maybe the holes are a design feature to keep pressure constant? :dunno:
 
Is it a side by side with the freezer on the left? See if there’s ice buildup on the bottom of the freezer.

Also, it could just be your wife saying she wants new kitchen appliances…
 
Showing up without any major changes usually indicates normal gradual buildup of dust on coils, or a leaky door seal.

Actual leaking water is easy to eliminate (or confirm) by simply shutting off the water supply.
 
probably one of your renters threw a rager last weekend. oh wait, wrong thread.

btw, after wasting time with a professional appliance repairman once, I have been using repairclinic.com for troubleshooting and maintaining my appliances. Decent instructions on how to identify and make repairs and they sell the parts. Parts don't show up as fast as other on line places but, those other online places don't offer any support.
 
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JOhnH said:
I’m with Rush. I just ax the same problem and it turned out to be a clogged drain.
Click to expand...

Just did the same to mine, a Samsung with a design flaw. They had redesigned drains and heaters available.

Google / Youtube search your model for this issue. Someone else likely has the same issue and a fix.
 
Yup, clogged drain. Happens to my garage fridge all the time since it sits in the heat.
 
Mtns2Skies said:
better go catch it.





oh wait...
Click to expand...
Ya, wrong title. This is more like what sort of information does the fridge have and why is it disgruntled enough to share with the world. I suspected the toaster, it's always been a hot head!

Anyway...the seal is going bad, it's pinched or compressed and won't seal well anymore allowing the room air to get to the chilled inner door. A new gasket or $2k for a new fridge.
You can try a rope of a few MMs to bulk out the seal again. It works on car weather stripping.
 
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TIL cordless leafblowers are AWESOME for dusting under the fridge/stove*






*and redistributing it all over the kitchen
 
GeorgeC said:
TIL cordless leafblowers are AWESOME for dusting under the fridge/stove*






*and redistributing it all over the kitchen
Click to expand...

Yeah, but it's more fun to use the Echo backpack blower just to make sure you REALLY got it clean. The smell of burning 2-cycle mix also covers up the fru-fru smell of the wife's scented candles. ;)
 
eman1200 said:
Is it a side by side with the freezer on the left? See if there’s ice buildup on the bottom of the freezer.

Also, it could just be your wife saying she wants new kitchen appliances…
Click to expand...

Um.... Ok just checked. There sure is a build up f ice on the floor of the freezer.
What do you now my man?
 
Only thing that has changed in the last 10 years is we got new floors put in about a month ago.
They removed tile. They did pull the fridge out to put the new floor under of course. all the water seems to be coming from directly under the doors. It doesn't go back under at all.

Thinking maybe the poster above that said dog hair and dust bunnies might be something. I just cleaned the seal and the paper towel was pretty dirty.
I went ahead and ordered a new seal since this one seems to have a lot of holes in it
 
SixPapaCharlie said:
Um.... Ok just checked. There sure is a build up f ice on the floor of the freezer.
What do you now my man?
Click to expand...
That tells me that either the drain is clogged, or the heater element that is supposed to keep that drain from freezing up is bad. I'd find a you-tube (or other) video on how to clean it first before paying for an element.
 
Ok. Wow. This was in the freezer floor.
Didn't even know it.

20210908_173746.jpg
 
That looks like more than condensation. Plugged drain, leaky icemaker most likely.
 
PaulS said:
That looks like more than condensation. Plugged drain, leaky icemaker most likely.
Click to expand...
Plugged drain. I Gar-un-tee it.
Whether frozen up or clogged up, that is the question.
 
JOhnH said:
That tells me that either the drain is clogged, or the heater element that is supposed to keep that drain from freezing up is bad. I'd find a you-tube (or other) video on how to clean it first before paying for an element.
Click to expand...
This.

Had the exact same thing. Drain tubes were full of schmoo. Replacement drain tubes had more drain holes. Also had an aluminum clip that attached to the heater and stuck into the upper drain tube to prevent ice.

Youtube is your friend. Put in your model number and symptom.
 
SixPapaCharlie said:
Um.... Ok just checked. There sure is a build up f ice on the floor of the freezer.
What do you now my man?
Click to expand...
Our GE did the same thing. Condensate drain I did the fridge froze up every few months. Fills up the bottom, freezes then started leaking out the front.
 
Drain backed up.

possible coupled with a leaky ice maker fill valve, but those usually plug themselves when they freeze up. Maybe a leak in the water line outside the freezer.

still not an identifier as to where the water is coming from.
 
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These were the culprits in mine. They were clogged with slime, and when pulled out, all the water from the tube and trays above them poured out.

We saw the same water and ice problem in the bottom of the fridge section and in the deli drawer.


"This is the number 1 most common issue in a leak situation. If your fridge has water pooling at the bottom, the defrost tube is your MOST likely suspect. Your defrost tube is what carries the water all the way down to the drain pan where it eventually evaporates. When working correctly, it helps make sure your fridge has a smooth defrost cycle. This tube can get clogged with ice or debris which leads to water backing up and leaking back into the fridge."

https://www.happysappliances.com/blog/water-pooling-at-bottom-of-fridge/​
 
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