Perlick Ice Maker Repair in South Side, Hazelwood & Homestead, PA

A Perlick undercounter ice maker builds clear ice by running water over a cold evaporator plate, so minerals get left behind in the water rather than frozen into the cubes. That design works well but it scales, and a scaled plate slows harvest and eventually stops production. The other half of the machine is the drain. Some models drain by gravity and some use a pump, and either one clogging will flood the bin or the cabinet. Outdoor units bring a third factor: a water line, valve or drain that froze. We check water supply, drain path and the plate before looking at refrigeration, because that's where most Perlick ice calls end.

One more point: Perlicks are built to be serviced where they're installed and to keep running for many years.

What we look at first on this pairing: Drain pump failure leaving water in the bin; Scale on the evaporator plate slowing harvest; Water inlet valve not opening; Outdoor unit with a frozen supply or drain line; Cubes melting together from a warm bin.

That's where we start, not a verdict. The same complaint can come from an inexpensive part or a costly one, which is why the cause is confirmed in your home before any price is given.

Rowhouse kitchens in South Side, Mount Washington, Hazelwood & Homestead are narrow, and a modern ice maker is often wedged between a wall and the cabinets with no gap above or behind. Without room to shed heat it runs longer and wears faster, so clearance is the first thing we check.

On South Side, Mount Washington, Hazelwood & Homestead's steep blocks, a ice maker is repaired where it stands whenever possible; if it has to move, we'll plan the route with you first.

Across brands, the ice maker symptom that misleads people most is an ice maker declared dead when the real problem is a line crushed behind the refrigerator, a line frozen along an outside wall, or a fill-valve screen clogged with scale.

In South Side, Mount Washington, Hazelwood & Homestead, the local condition that matters most for a ice maker is long water lines run up from the basement through the kitchen floor, lines that freeze in a cold snap, and scale collecting in the fill valve.

A gas oven whose igniter glows but never lights, a burner that clicks without catching, a gas dryer that tumbles but stays cold: these are among the most common repairs we make, and usually come down to an igniter, a valve coil or a sensor.

Anything on the supply side of the appliance, such as the piping or the shutoff valve, is work for a gas fitter, and we'll tell you if we find a problem there.