The short answer
Start with a blocked defrost drain: on Sh refrigerators it outranks the drain pan underneath, and both come a long way before the supply line and its connections. There is very little mass and very little margin in these machines, so where one stands changes how it behaves. Most of what follows is owner-checkable, and the point where that stops is stated plainly below.
What you observe
- Damp under the unit but dry inside — Either the drain pan or the supply connection — both live underneath or behind.
- Water under the crisper drawers — The classic signature of a blocked defrost drain: melt water backing up inside the cabinet.
- A wet patch that comes back after wiping — A continuous source rather than a one-off spill; it is worth finding where it starts.
- NEAR MISS — the floor is wet and the cabinet is warm — Read the cooling page first. A unit that has stopped cooling sheds its ice as water, and that is not a leak.
Causes, most likely first on Sh
- A blocked defrost drain — Every frost-free unit melts frost off its evaporator on a schedule and sends the water down a small drain to a pan underneath. That drain blocks with food debris and freezes, and the water then backs up under the crisper drawers or out onto the floor. First, and the rest of the order follows from it: it leads because water under the crisper drawers has one likely cause and this is it.
- The drain pan underneath — The pan under the unit collects defrost water and lets it evaporate over the condenser. Next, and close behind the first: a wet floor with a completely dry cabinet points here and nowhere else, which is what earns it this position.
- Doors and seals letting humid air in — Warm humid air entering the cabinet condenses on the cold surfaces inside. Third: it is here because water that was never in a pipe needs a completely different fix, and the paper test identifies it in a minute.
- The supply line and its connections — Supply-side leaks do not care whether the unit is running, which is how they are told apart from everything else here. Last, and the placement is the point: it is the only leak here that continues while the appliance is switched off.
Check in this order, and why
- First: Look for water under the crisper drawers — Lift the drawers out and look at the floor of the cabinet, then at the drain hole at the back. It is first because it is the cheapest of the three to settle.
- Second: Is the inside dry while the floor is wet? — Water outside with a dry cabinet is the pan or the plumbing, not the defrost drain.
- Third: Do the paper test on each door — Close a sheet of paper in the door and pull. It should drag everywhere round the seal.
What an owner can safely check
- Clear the defrost drain from inside — Empty and remove the drawers, find the drain opening at the back of the cabinet floor, and flush it with warm water.
Tools: jug of warm water, towelsAbout 35 min
- Test the door seals and level the cabinet — Check the paper drag all round each door, then make sure the unit tilts very slightly back so the doors self-close.
Tools: sheet of paper, adjustable spannerAbout 25 min
- STOP HERE if the next step needs a meter on live terminals — That is the line between an owner check and a service call, and it is not worth crossing.
Before any panel comes off
Safety
Unplug the appliance or switch off its breaker before removing any panel, and treat every capacitor as still charged: a capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off. Do not attempt anything on the sealed system: refrigerant work is licensed work. Never chip ice off an evaporator with anything metal, because piercing a coil ends the appliance.
When to call a technician
The owner side here is the drain, the seals, the levelling and a look underneath. Past that the panels come off.
Nearest pages of this class
What this page does not cover
This is generalized information for Sh refrigerators as a class, not for one family or one model. No family- or model-specific page for this brand and appliance is published here yet, so nothing narrower is linked; when one is, it becomes the more specific answer and this page will point to it. Not here: wiring colours, torque figures, part numbers and panel-removal sequences, all of which differ by family.
