LG-819 refrigerator water leakage repair

by Avi SchneorUpdated: Jun 4, 2023diy-miscellaneous6 comments

How did I fixed / repaired LG-819 refrigerator that have stopped cooling ?
How did I solved LG refrigerator stuck fan ?
How did I fix water leakage from LG bottom freezer refrigerator ?
How did I cleaned / removed the ice from the radiator and fan ?

איך תיקנתי תקלת קירור / תקלת מאוורר / נזילת מים במקרר אל ג’י?
איך לתקן מקרר אל-ג’י שנסתם עקב הצטברות קרח על הסוללה / מאוורר / בצינור ניקוז מים?

DISCLAIMER – Important!

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Please note:

There are few refrigerator models with similar model #.
This page and images relates ONLY to model 819, 829, 739 with different suffix such as for example LG-819VTCA-T, LG-GM-819-DTC refrigerators with bottom freezer.
It might also help in fixing similar problem in models ADX73350xxx, LFC23760xx, LCF25760xx, LRFD25850, LRBN22514xx, LBN22515, LRFC22750xx, LFC23760xx, LFX23961xx etc.

LG model 819, 739 general image

As you probably know, refrigerator manufacturers recommend (*) defrosting (de-icing) it once every 6/12 months, especially in humid environment. Yes, this is true to no-frost refrigerators.
But who cares to do that?
Most of us don’t defrost our refrigerator and thus we are facing a fault after a year or so.

(*) Defrost process means:
– Unplug the refrigerator from electricity for at least 24 hours.
– Leaving the refrigerator/freezer with open doors.
– Taking out all the groceries from the refrigerator and from freezer.
– Taking out melted water and drying the inside of cabins.

Over the time ice is building up over the radiator and when it reaches the fan it causes it to stop working. This might also damage the fan and cooling system.
The fan delivers cold air from the freezer compartment to the refrigerator compartment. When fan stops, groceries in the refrigerator compartment gets warm.

Another problem might be that the water drain pipe is clogged (most likely with ice).
Defrosting water that are part of the normal refrigerator operation usually goes through the drain pipe to rear pan where it evaporates. If drain pipe is clogged, water is running to bottom of freezer cabin and ice is starting to built up until water leaks out of the refrigerator to the floor.

The symptoms might be:
A. Refrigerator seems to stop working properly. Groceries are not cold as it used to be.
Internal light works and compressor sounds as working fine.
B. A hard continuous knocking sound is heard every few minutes.
When you open the refrigerator/freezer door it stops, but when closing it the sound reappears.
C. Water leakage on the floor in front side area. On freezer’s bottom surface there is an ice layer.
The above symptoms suggest that the fan is stuck and needs to be cleared and / or
water drain pipe is clogged.

The fix / The repair:

Before continuing with the fix, make sure you unplug the refrigerator from the mains and that there is no internal light when you open the door.

The fix is done in the freezer cabin since the radiator/fan unit is located in this area.

Remove the top shelf and drawer out of the freezer cabin.
Both are sliding forward and upwards at the end of the path to release it from the slides. If your refrigerator is equipped with an ice-maker that is installed in the freezer cabin,
you need to take it out as well and unplug it from the ice-maker electric plate.

This is how the freezer cabin looks after you remove the shelf, drawer and Ice-maker.

We need to remove the fan/radiator front panel which is marked with Red on the following image

1. Unscrew and remove the ice-maker electric plate screw and the main plate screw in the center.

2. Remove partially the ice-maker electric plate by releasing its 4 snaps.
Use a wide screwdriver to press the snaps gently and then pull the plate put

3. This is how the electric plate looks after moving it aside from the main plate

4. Remove the main plate, this is done in steps as the plate is fixed with upper and lower snaps.

a. Pull the plate a little to the front by pulling the right side of the electric plate opening ( #4 on the image)
b. Pull the upper side of the plate to the front (#5 on image) in a diagonal move towards front.
c. Move the plate upwards to release the 3 large snaps at the bottom (#6 on image)
d. Move the plate to the left as far as you can (#7 on image)
e. Remove the plate in a diagonal movement in which the right side (near #7) goes out first.
f. During the removal, allow the electric plate to pass through the main plate opening.

5. After you have removed the plate you will see the radiator and fan unit and gain access to fix it. You’ll probably find the top area of the radiator and fan surrounded by ice.
Remove the ice gently and slowly by melting it with a hair-dryer.
Be very patient and careful so you’ll not damage/melt electric wires and pipes which are buried in the ice. This melting process takes a while but is a safe way to do.
DO NOT use tools such as a knife or a screwdriver / hammer to speed the process as you might damage wires/pipes. When you end the ice melting (and during this melting process), use a cloth to collect and remove the water out of the cabin.

This is how it might look before and after you open the cover. Last image show status after melting.

Plate with ice

Open view with ice on plate and fan

Open view with ice

Ice over fan

Fan clean of ice

6. You need to verify that the drain opening is seen and is open. If it looks like this, than the drain is clogged with ice
and you need to spend more time using hot water or hair dryer to melt all of the ice under the radiator.

7. When you finally reach the drain hole, check with your finger that it is open.
If you feel ice there, continue the melting. Best way is to pour boiled water until ice is melt and until water is going freely through the pipe to the rear pan.

8. To get to the rear pan, remove the 7 screws of the rear panel (lower part of refrigerator back)
Remove the metal panel (pull it upwards and towards you as it is held by 2 additional hooks in its lower part), you’ll see now the pan and the drain pipe on right side.
While you are here, it is advised to vacuum the dust found in this rear compartment and of the rear panel venting holes.

Tip: Since water is poured to the drainage system, it is advised to move the pipe end out of the pan and collect the water used for the melting to a container of your choice.

Don’t forget to return the pipe end to its place when done.

Rear panel screws location

Rear panel screws

Rear components

Main rear components

Rear drain pipe and fan

Rear drain pipe / fan

9. When you’re done with melting, you should see the drain opening and its path clearly, as in the following image.
If you now pour water to the metal pan it should go freely and immediately to the rear pan.
When no ice is left on the radiator / fan and the drain pipe is free, check that the fan moves freely by rotating it with your hand. Also check that the heating element (the black lower U shape pipe under the radiator) was not bent in the process.
It should be straight and close to the metal pan under the radiator.

10. Dry the cabin well with a cloth (pay attention to the metal pan below the radiator) and than assemble the plates in reverse order to steps 1-4 that you made earlier.
Don’t forget the 2 screws.
If you removed the rear panel, assemble it as well. Don’t use excessive force to tighten its screws.

11. Connect the refrigerator to the mains and check that the fan is working.
You do so by opening the freezer door and pressing the light switch with your hand. Light is turned off and you should hear the fan working.
(This refrigerator is equipped with energy-save mechanism that turns the fan off while the door is open).

12. Allow the refrigerator to work for a few hours and check that the groceries in the refrigerator cabin are cold as before and the groceries in the freezer are frozen .

13. 1 day later, remove the freezer drawer and check the cabin bottom. If you find ice there, it means the water drain pipe is still clogged !
You must repeat the above steps until you verify that water is going freely from the drain opening under the radiator to the rear pan.
Remove the ice with a plastic scraper.
Don’t use metal tools for this and be careful while removing the ice as it behaves like a broken glass !

If you didn’t open the drain clogged earlier, be sure that the refrigerator will remind you to do so. After few days you’ll find on the floor a water puddle near refrigerator’s front side. Look carefully at the puddle, you’ll see there is a sign in it saying:
“I told you so …”

Voila – We’re done.
A simple fix to a problem you might avoid by defrosting your refrigerator every 6 months or so.
Have fun and I hope this page saved you the technician visit and repair cost …

Avi

For more How-To guides by Avi, Visit the main DIY page

You might find there useful guides such as :

Fixing Grohe flush system
12V Burnt LED bulb fix
How To convert Makita charger to 220V?

and more…

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6 Comments

Maryna on November 28, 2018 at 21:59

Thank you so much! It saved us so much money! Took few hours to fix but our fridge is working properly again!
Reply
- Avi Schneor on November 29, 2018 at 06:35
  
  Thanks, I’m happy that your refrigerator is working. Glad to help.
  Reply
  - Ali Azimi on January 19, 2022 at 07:11
    
    I have an LG bottom freezer refrigerator, model GR-L730SL.
    Followed your instructions to clean the refrigerator drain pipe, but can’t get a narrow coil to clean it all the way. It seems the drain pipe has a bent that prevents the coil going through. I can’t see any ice in the pipe.
    What should I do to clean the pipe please ?
    Thank you.
    Reply
    - Avi Schneor on January 19, 2022 at 18:09
      
      Hello Ali
      Don’t use a coil as it might puncture the pipe.
      A. Pour hot water to the pipe and let the heat melt the ice that might clogged it.
      B. Remove the refrigerator’s rear panel, the pipe is going to that area and you should check there if the pipe is bent
      Good luck
      Reply
- Tara on January 16, 2021 at 06:11
  
  Thank you! The pictures you included were so helpful
  Reply
  - Avi Schneor on January 16, 2021 at 08:08
    
    thank you
    I’m glad it helped you and hope it will hold few more years/months…
    have fun
    Reply