The short answer
Read the machine before you read the manual — on a Black+Decker refrigerator, a machine that has produced nothing in a full day has a hard stop somewhere, not a slow one. The arm, the supply and the compartment temperature cover almost all of these, and each is free to check.
What you actually see
- The ice maker fills but never harvests — Water goes in, the mould stays full, and nothing drops into the bin.
- Water on the freezer floor under the ice maker — Overfilling shows as ice sheets under the maker rather than as cubes in the bin.
- A buzz on a schedule with no water arriving — The fill valve is being asked to open and nothing is reaching it.
Causes, ranked for this refrigerator
- Ice maker switched off or the arm parked up — Top of the list: the arm is also what stops production when the bin is full, so anything resting against it reads to the machine as a full bin. Confirm it before moving on, because the entries below read differently once it is ruled out.
- No water reaching the fill valve — Next: a compact refrigerator is frequently installed without plumbing at all, and where it is plumbed the saddle valve is often barely open. Rule it in or out properly here; a maybe at this position costs an hour further down.
- Bin sensor or arm misreading a full bin — Then: on units with an optical sensor, frost across the window does the same thing. Getting a definite answer here is worth more than a quick look at the three below it.
What to check, in order
- First — the on/off arm or switch — Find the wire arm or the switch on the ice maker and confirm it is in the run position with nothing leaning on it.
- Second — the supply line and shut-off — Look for a kink where the line passes behind the unit. Pushing a cabinet back against its own supply line is common.
Checks an owner can do safely
- Step 1. Empty and inspect the bin — Take the bin out, tip out any fused block, and check the arm swings through its whole travel with the bin back in place.
Tools: noneAbout 10 min
- Step 2. Measure the freezer compartment temperature — Leave a thermometer in the compartment for several hours. A freezer holds food safely at 0 °F (−18 °C) or below, and a harvest cycle needs that cold.
Tools: freezer thermometerAbout 20 min
- Step 3. Look for ice in the fill tube — Shine a light on the small tube that feeds the mould. Clear any plug of ice with a warm damp cloth, never with a tool.
Tools: flashlight, warm damp clothAbout 15 min
Before you open anything
Safety
Isolate the water at the valve and the power at the breaker before starting. A capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off. If water has run under the cabinet or reached the outlet, leave it isolated and have the circuit checked before it is used again.
When this becomes a service call
The line is not about confidence, it is about what the next step needs. If the ice fault turns out to be a freezer section that will not hold temperature, the cooling checks are the right page and the ice maker will recover on its own once they are done.
Sources
General guidance- The Control of Hazardous Energy (Lockout/Tagout) — OSHA 1910.147 and manufacturer service manuals, fetched
- Refrigeration and Food Safety — USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service, fetched
Nearest pages
What this page does not cover
Generalized by design. Everything here holds across Black+Decker refrigerators, which is the reason it stops short of model detail: a specific page will beat this one on wiring, on part numbers and on anything a service manual would list. Follow Related pages to reach the page written for a single family or model.
Related pages
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
