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Help! Fridge Freezer is building ice and leaking!

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Deal Addict
Feb 26, 2016
1562 posts
541 upvotes
Vaughan

Help! Fridge Freezer is building ice and leaking!

Recently i bought a chest freezer because were stuffing too much in the fridge freezer. When we had finally set up the chest freezer, we moved a bunch of stuff from the fridge freezer to the chest freezer. The temperature of the fridge freezer obviously went up. In the next couple of days, i noticed my hardwood had actually swollen or bowed and then I realized that there was pretty big puddle of water next to it. When i went to inspect it, I noticed that the fridge freezer had build up a huge amount of ice on the bottom. somehow some of it was defrosting and seeping through the freezer onto my floor. We took out all the frozen food and turned the freezer off. Grabbed a blowdryer (because we didn't have a heat gun) and then started chiseling away at the frozen base. Once it was all dry, we turned the freezer back and when it went back to 0 degrees, we put all our frozen food back. I had thought this had fixed the problem. A week later today, I see another puddle and of course another build up of ice again!! This time, i didn't need to blowdry it as I was able to just chisel it away (it wasn't as thick as the first time).

What's could be causing this issue? do i need to call a repair man to fix this? Will my bowed hardwood go back to normal? should i run a dehumidifier to help the process?

I've posted pictures of the build up of ice in the freezer that's causing the leak (after I had chipped most of it out). Any help would be greatly appreciated. water damage is my worst nightmare.

UPDATE**

So I hope i fixed my freezer!! i took out the rubber duckbill. it was filthy and blocked. it definitely looked like it was the culprit. I cleaned it up and it looks like someone had already cut both the ends or is this how it's supposed to look like? See attached picture. Then I went to take out the tray (which was very difficult and caused me to swear a lot) and the door (which was much easier). I tried to take out the metal backing with the grates because that would allow me to defrost the exit hole to the tray in the back. However, the ice machine was in the way and I did not know how to remove the metal backing without removing the icemaker. Therefore, I just decided to chip away at the ice as best as i could through the grates and by pouring hot water in the exit hole. While chipping, I accidentally damaged the plastic and made a very small incision near the exit hole (see picture). I'm so mad at myself for not being more careful. Does anyone know how to fix this? Is there some type of paste or tape that can block this off? i'm not entirely sure if it's necessary because there's a metal tray that leads to the exit hole and technically there wouldn't be any water going into that small incision i made. However, for peace of mind, part of me wants to just close that incision. Any help is greatly appreciated.
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Last edited by otaknap on Jul 26th, 2017 11:00 pm, edited 5 times in total.
15 replies
Deal Fanatic
Apr 20, 2011
7747 posts
2750 upvotes
ON
Empty the entire fridge, open it up and let it completely thaw. Easy on hot summer day if you don't have the AC on.

The drain is probably blocked by ice.

Once it has sat for a few hours to fully thaw, wash and dry out out if required and plug it back in to start up.
Then reload it, but only about half full.
See if it continues. If not, good to go. And avoid loading it to the max. Use your chest freezer for that.
Deal Addict
Feb 26, 2016
1562 posts
541 upvotes
Vaughan
aqnd wrote: Empty the entire fridge, open it up and let it completely thaw. Easy on hot summer day if you don't have the AC on.

The drain is probably blocked by ice.

Once it has sat for a few hours to fully thaw, wash and dry out out if required and plug it back in to start up.
Then reload it, but only about half full.
See if it continues. If not, good to go. And avoid loading it to the max. Use your chest freezer for that.
ok thanks for the advice! if it happens again, i will definitely let it completely thaw. I wanted to do it the first time around, but my fridge freezer combo is stupid as it doesn't allow me to only turn the freezer off. i guess i'll have to close both and keep hope my fridge doesn't raise too much in temperature

Where is the drain located? and what do I wash and dry out?
Deal Fanatic
Aug 29, 2011
9925 posts
7089 upvotes
Mississauga
Is that a KitchenAid fridge/freezer?

There is a known design flaw with the way the defrosting tray in the freezer connects to the evaporating tray outside the freezer. There is a rubber "duckbill" trap that allows water to drain to the evaporating tray but prevents outside air from coming back inside the freezer. Over time this rubber gums up and seals shut, preventing the defrost water from draining. That water freezes over the drain opening and with every subsequent defrost cycle the layer gets thicker until the water starts draining out into the bottom of the freezer and onto the kitchen floor.

I had it happen to me. Caused damage to the bottom of an adjacent kitchen base cabinet. Whirlpool (who makes the fridge) has a retrofit kit that replaces the duckbill with an actual P-trap, and that's supposed to fix the problem permanently. There are YouTube videos on doing the repair.

I personally just removed the duckbill and left the drain open. Many others have done this without any apparent ill-effects. So far so good.
Deal Addict
Feb 26, 2016
1562 posts
541 upvotes
Vaughan
mrweather wrote: Is that a KitchenAid fridge/freezer?

There is a known design flaw with the way the defrosting tray in the freezer connects to the evaporating tray outside the freezer. There is a rubber "duckbill" trap that allows water to drain to the evaporating tray but prevents outside air from coming back inside the freezer. Over time this rubber gums up and seals shut, preventing the defrost water from draining. That water freezes over the drain opening and with every subsequent defrost cycle the layer gets thicker until the water starts draining out into the bottom of the freezer and onto the kitchen floor.

I had it happen to me. Caused damage to the bottom of an adjacent kitchen base cabinet. Whirlpool (who makes the fridge) has a retrofit kit that replaces the duckbill with an actual P-trap, and that's supposed to fix the problem permanently. There are YouTube videos on doing the repair.

I personally just removed the duckbill and left the drain open. Many others have done this without any apparent ill-effects. So far so good.
yes, it's a kitchen aid fridge/freezer! thanks for this advice... do you know where I can find a replacement for the duckbill? or can I just clean it out? is it easy to install?
Sr. Member
Mar 19, 2013
728 posts
228 upvotes
Prince Albert, Sask.
mrweather wrote: Is that a KitchenAid fridge/freezer?

There is a known design flaw with the way the defrosting tray in the freezer connects to the evaporating tray outside the freezer. There is a rubber "duckbill" trap that allows water to drain to the evaporating tray but prevents outside air from coming back inside the freezer. Over time this rubber gums up and seals shut, preventing the defrost water from draining. That water freezes over the drain opening and with every subsequent defrost cycle the layer gets thicker until the water starts draining out into the bottom of the freezer and onto the kitchen floor.

I had it happen to me. Caused damage to the bottom of an adjacent kitchen base cabinet. Whirlpool (who makes the fridge) has a retrofit kit that replaces the duckbill with an actual P-trap, and that's supposed to fix the problem permanently. There are YouTube videos on doing the repair.

I personally just removed the duckbill and left the drain open. Many others have done this without any apparent ill-effects. So far so good.
I have a KitchenAid fridge. Had the same problem. Did the hair dryer thing, worked for a short time. Pulled the fridge out, removed the back panel. The rubber duckbill was full of fuzz. Cleaned it out, the opening is very small. Snipped the bottom to create a larger opening. Been a couple years, no ice build up, no problems.
Deal Addict
Feb 26, 2016
1562 posts
541 upvotes
Vaughan
Magoo61 wrote: I have a KitchenAid fridge. Had the same problem. Did the hair dryer thing, worked for a short time. Pulled the fridge out, removed the back panel. The rubber duckbill was full of fuzz. Cleaned it out, the opening is very small. Snipped the bottom to create a larger opening. Been a couple years, no ice build up, no problems.
thanks! that's great to know! out of curiosity, do you remember the model number? the one I have is the kitchenaid kbfs25ewms3
Deal Fanatic
Aug 29, 2011
9925 posts
7089 upvotes
Mississauga
otaknap wrote: yes, it's a kitchen aid fridge/freezer! thanks for this advice... do you know where I can find a replacement for the duckbill? or can I just clean it out? is it easy to install?
I never looked into it but you should be able to get the P-trap replacement from someplace like Reliable Parts. But, depending on the age of the fridge you could try contacting Whirlpool for waranty service. That didn't apply to mine because the problem happened when the fridge was a few years out of warranty.

As far as model number goes, the issue isn't limited to a specific one. It's a problem across all models.

It's dead easy to fix.
Member
Jul 4, 2012
211 posts
49 upvotes
CAMBRIDGE
this is the replacement part. It changes the rubber duck bill seal to a water trap design. I bought mine from a local appliance shop and replaced it myself. Just need to pull out the fridge and remove the lower back panel. Make that there is no ice left in the existing port.

https://www.amazon.ca/W10619951-Drain-R ... B0156NFUV4
Deal Addict
User avatar
Jul 29, 2013
2115 posts
1929 upvotes
Ontario
I think because it is a known design flaw that the manufacturer should send you a replacement part no matter how old the fridge is.
Worth a try to contact them and politely ask for the free part.
Sr. Member
Mar 19, 2013
728 posts
228 upvotes
Prince Albert, Sask.
otaknap wrote: thanks! that's great to know! out of curiosity, do you remember the model number? the one I have is the kitchenaid kbfs25ewms3
My model is a KFCS22EVBL2, 7 yrs. old.
Sr. Member
Mar 19, 2013
728 posts
228 upvotes
Prince Albert, Sask.
otaknap wrote: thanks! that's great to know! out of curiosity, do you remember the model number? the one I have is the kitchenaid kbfs25ewms3
My model is a KFCS22EVBL2, 7 yrs. old.
Deal Addict
User avatar
Nov 9, 2003
1528 posts
325 upvotes
Grimsby
Take a look at this thread from May. Especially look at "bubuski's post #2 and my post #4 to fix this issue.

As noted above just throw the useless duck billed piece away, it is useless. Sears parts department could not even find it listed as a part when I visited them.

I ran the hair dryer for 2 hours as you will see but this was my third go around and the fix was going to be permanent this time. Still no issues, everything is just dandy now :) You will not need this long because you can and have already taken the back panel off so can see and access the ice. At 81 I was unable to get in there and do what younger bodies can achieve.
Deal Expert
Aug 2, 2004
38392 posts
12018 upvotes
East Gwillimbury
I just bought a KitchenAid fridge a week ago.

I hope the new ones don't have this problem. Otherwise, I would have selected another brand
Deal Fanatic
Mar 21, 2002
6826 posts
1482 upvotes
Manitoba
This was a widespread problem for Whirlpool and other brands owned by Whirlpool. It probably affected many millions of refrigerators but was identified a few years ago and shouldn't affect any newer refrigerators. It's an easy fix by taking off the back panel on the refrigerator to get at the drain line and the grommet in the drain line which plugs up. There are numerous YouTube videos including this example:

Drain fix refrigerator...
Sr. Member
Sep 26, 2007
704 posts
126 upvotes
Toronto
Had the same problem on a brand new fridge and Whirlpool technician came to fix it.. Apparently mine was a defective sensor and it was replaced today.
We'll see how it goes..
Sears agreed for me to return the fridge and get another one if I want to except that I will be losing my extended warranty.. :(

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