Refrigerator Leaking Water Inside or Underneath: the Five Causes

The call usually starts the same way. Water on the kitchen floor in the morning, a towel under the fridge, and a question about whether the refrigerator is dying. It almost never is. A refrigerator that leaks water has one of five problems, four of them are cheap, and the order you check them in is the order below, because that is the order we check them in on the truck.

1. The defrost drain is clogged

Every frost-free refrigerator melts the ice off its evaporator coil a few times a day. That meltwater runs down a small drain at the back of the freezer, through a tube, and into a pan over the compressor where it evaporates. When the drain clogs with food debris or freezes shut, the water has nowhere to go. It pools at the bottom of the freezer as a sheet of ice, then overflows into the fridge section, collects under the crisper drawers, and runs out the front onto the floor.

Tell-tale signs: water under the crisper drawers first, a slab of ice on the freezer floor, the puddle appearing every day or two, not constantly. This is the cause in more than half of the leaking-refrigerator calls we take in Miami-Dade and Broward. Whirlpool, Samsung and GE have all issued revised drain parts for exactly this. The fix is clearing and treating the drain, fitting the revised clip or heater where the manufacturer has one, and confirming the defrost cycle runs. $130 to $240.

2. The ice maker water line or fill valve

A puddle that appears behind or beside the fridge, sometimes with a hiss, is the water supply. The plastic line to the ice maker cracks where it flexes behind the unit, the compression fitting at the wall valve weeps, or the inlet valve on the back of the fridge has failed and drips. If the leak is inside the freezer, the fill tube into the ice maker has frozen and split, and water sprays where it should not.

Tell-tale signs: the puddle is at the back, it is constant, not daily, and it grows when the ice maker fills. Repair is the line, the fitting or the valve, $150 to $300. Shut the wall valve behind the fridge if the puddle is growing fast.

3. The door gasket lets warm air in

A gasket that has flattened, torn, or stopped sealing at one corner lets Miami’s humid air into the fridge every time the compressor cycles. That moisture condenses on the coldest surfaces and drips. Inside the fridge you see water on the shelves and the back wall; in the freezer you see heavy frost. The door seal is easy to test: close it on a dollar bill and pull. If the bill slides out without resistance, the gasket is done.

Repair is the gasket, $160 to $320 depending on the brand. On French door units the flipper mullion, the strip between the two doors, has its own heater, and when that heater fails the mullion sweats and drips. Same visit.

4. The drain pan is cracked or out of place

The pan over the compressor catches the defrost water so it can evaporate. If the pan has cracked, or it was knocked off its bracket when the fridge was moved, the water drops straight to the floor at the back. This is the leak we find after a move or after somebody pulled the fridge out to clean behind it. $100 to $200 for a pan, less if it just needs reseating.

5. The water filter housing

On refrigerators with an internal filter, the housing cracks or the filter was installed without seating, and water runs down the inside of the fridge from the filter location. Tell-tale sign: the water is at the top of the fridge section, above the shelves, and started after a filter change. Reseating the filter is free; a housing is $150 to $280.

What is not the cause

Not the compressor. Not the refrigerant. A leaking refrigerator is a water problem, not a cooling problem, and anyone who quotes sealed-system work for a puddle should be asked to show you where the water comes from first. The one exception is a fridge that is both leaking and warm, where the defrost drain froze because the defrost system failed; that is still a defrost part, $160 to $340, not a compressor.

Before you call

• Note where the water is: under the crisper drawers, at the back, at the top, or inside the freezer as ice. That tells us which of the five it is before we arrive.
• If the puddle is growing fast, close the water valve behind the fridge.
• Check the door seal with a dollar bill.
• Do not chip ice out of the freezer floor with anything sharp; the evaporator coil is under there.

We repair every brand across Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach, seven days a week, with a $59 service call that is free when you approve the repair. Call (754) 345-4515 or see the refrigerator repair page for full pricing. Brand-specific pages: Samsung, LG, Whirlpool, GE, Frigidaire.