What this means on these models
A leak on the CRH family splits cleanly into two stories: clear water that appears after a defrost cycle, and clear water that appears whenever the ice maker fills. The first is a drain, the second is a supply fitting, and telling them apart by timing saves pulling the cabinet out for nothing.
What you observe
- A wet patch behind the cabinet rather than in front of it — That is the fill line, the shut-off or the pan itself, and it means the floor at the front stays dry while the wall behind stays damp.
- Frost on the food in the top drawer and water below it — Air is moving through a gap that should be sealed, condensing on the food and running down.
- A pool of clear water at the front of the base, below the door — It reappears within a day of being mopped up and is at cabinet temperature rather than warm.
- A musty smell from the base of the cabinet with no visible water — The pan is overflowing slowly into the insulation, and the smell arrives long before the puddle does.
- Water under the crisper drawers, on top of the liner floor — The drawers sit in a shallow tray of water and the salad greens spoil early because the humidity never drops.
Likeliest causes first
- Door seal failing so warm air condenses on the liner — Not a leak at all but it reads as one. Humid air on cold plastic makes water where none was plumbed, and the cure is a seal rather than a drain.
- Fill valve failing to close fully — Rare here and easy to confirm: the water arrives on a fill schedule rather than a defrost schedule, and the ice maker makes hollow or oversized cubes at the same time.
- Defrost drain blocked or frozen at the port — Ranked first on this family: the drain port sits at the back of the freezer floor and ices closed before it clogs, so the failure builds quietly over weeks with no warning.
- Evaporator drain heater open circuit — Last, because it is the only cause on this list that needs a meter to confirm, and because it presents exactly like a blocked drain until the drain has already been cleared once.
The diagnostic order for these models
- Run a sheet of paper around the door seal — Where it slides out with no drag, the seal is not sealing, and that is the leak that is not a leak.
- Pull the cabinet out far enough to see the base pan — Do this second because it takes two people, but it settles the pan, the fitting and the shut-off in one look.
- Feel the floor of the machine compartment for damp insulation — Dry insulation with a wet floor points forward to the drain; wet insulation points at the pan.
- Check the drain trough alignment under the rear panel — Only after the drain port has been cleared: if water still misses the trough, the trough is the fault rather than the ice.
Power down first
Safety
Kill the power before servicing. Two hazards sit close together in these cabinets: mains at the compressor terminals and a sealed refrigerant loop that must never be opened by anyone without the ticket to do it.
Models in the CRH family
Reference| Model number | Family key |
|---|---|
| CRH00901 | bougerv:refrigerator:crh |
| CRH02001 | bougerv:refrigerator:crh |
| CRH02001B | bougerv:refrigerator:crh |
When this becomes a service call
Owner territory ends where the diagnosis needs a meter. If the checks in the order above leave you with a component you would have to test electrically, that is the point to stop and let somebody with the schematic take it.
Nearest pages of this class
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
