Manitowoc Ice Machine Not Making Ice

[@catherinelachance2239]

A proper cleaning will often make the machine happy again. 😊 For the removable parts, I have had success using phosphoric acid to soak them and get off much of the mineral build up. Harbor Freight carries a nylon brush set that gets into a lot of the nooks and crannies. The set was $6 last time I bought it-prepandemic. Used to buy it in the store but now I have to get them online.

[@daviddesilva4971]

That's why I order a drink with no ice. Thxs for the vids!

[@HVACRSurvival]

I don't usually either or I only eat where I service the machine 😏

[@sherwinalvarez7365]

I worked for Coca Cola. You dont even want the fountain soda, trust me. These place are hurry hurry and the workers just want to go home after being on their feet all day. They dont take the nozzles off at night to clean them. Alot of things live in those nozzles

[@HVACRSurvival]

@@sherwinalvarez7365 surgar is a great food for nasty things to grow. Got to love people's commitment to the least amount of dedication and careless attitude 😏😱🙈

[@markcaldwell1245]

All those little scrubbers we need just to clean an ice machine and each one cleans a different nook, lol. Good job.

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thanks Mark 👍👍

[@KG-yn9qi]

Man makes ya think about fast food and restaurants!

[@twistedcandlecompany]

Great video thanks for sharing. you know no matter how clean or dirty the ice machine is I always take the pump out to clean. the one time I didn't there was a big booger in there. I had to take it out anyways

[@HVACRSurvival]

They other area to get is behind the evap panel, there is always something growing in there 🙂

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thanks for checking out the video! Hopefully you find it entertaining 😆

[@josephmettes9147]

Thanks for the video Rick, definitely need to add a toothbrush to my ice machine cleaning kit 😀

[@Ted_E_Bear]

Rick you are the man !

[@EverythingHVACR]

Great video! At least you had a water filter, don't know how many I've seen with no filters and fill valve plugged! We have the same hard water problems.

[@HVACRSurvival]

Between that and iron, it kills these ice machines. Thanks 4 watching 👍👍

[@joelacosta2082]

Thank you sir for take the time to make a video to teach the younger people and showing your knowledge merry christmas and your 🍺🌲🎅

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thank you Joel! Merry Christmas to you as well 👍👍

[@steve19841117]

i am in central IL the water just like shit and keep killing the equiment.thanks for upload Rick.

[@paulandresalzate7914]

the manitowock machine is model id 1202a 261 and thanks for your help

[@HVACRSurvival]

Did you ask a question somewhere else and I didn't receive it? Currently all I see is a model number of some sort with no question?

[@KadirYildiran]

The toothbrush is very important 😁😁and works very well when used correctly💪💪💪. I use it when necessary, and clean the detergent and softener compartments of the washing machine.👍

[@paulandresalzate7914]

I also want to thank you for telling me how much is the minimum time for an ice harvest and how to program it

[@HughesManHVAC]

Thanks Rick, I enjoy the videos!

[@HVACRSurvival]

👍👍🤜🤛

[@satguy]

After watching these ice maker repair videos, I have stopped ordering drinks with ice in them.

[@HVACRSurvival]

Smart, Very Smart 😂

[@prettycureforever7102]

I may have to do the same too

[@atomstarfireproductions8695]

But if the ice machine is that nasty, I would imagine the inside of the soda machine is as nasty

[@grindstone5368]

@@atomstarfireproductions8695 Post mix dispensers are never cleaned.

[@HVACRSurvival]

Nothing seems to get cleaned, yet the health department worries about door seals and minor issues while ignoring the worst problems 🙈

[@TiraFlecha777]

Excellent, great info brother thanks 🙏

[@mountainmgtow5421]

I just cleaned one of these and replaced the fill valve.. got a call back saying it stopped making ice at night, even after I checked back in the afternoon and the bin was full. I'm stumped.

[@RainLight1991]

This is why im glad my works ice machine has an "Auto Cleaning mode" which pretty just means it will beep at you and refuse to make ice till you run a cleaning on it. (yes you can just run the cleaning program without cleaner, but lucky im the one who cleans it) Looks as good as the day it was installed

[@Ks13007]

That dont clean the gunk build up in the machine

[@Eddy63]

Good vid Rickster ... And for a small nominal fee , I won't tell the Missus that you used her toothbrush ... Lol ... E Dawg out ...

[@HVACRSurvival]

Word 👍👍. That was a Dollar General special. 🤣

[@lwilton]

One thing that will take off the calcium, but will also eat most metals, is Draino drain cleaner. I guess you probably wouldn't want to use it on commercial equipment since it is a bit hard to wash off, but dipping that toothbrush in some would probably have cleaned those corners you couldn't get clean. Then scrub scrub scrub with something like some soap and water to get the residue of the cleaner off.

[@HVACRSurvival]

I found some iron removal that actually works but it's not food safe ☹️. Can't win! 🤣

[@ohtee559]

We have 7 different ice makers at my work. We have to do pm every month and keep a log to ensure this does not happen. I had a pump just go out on one of my machines and talk about back order 😂

[@HVACRSurvival]

We're dealing with the issues.

[@gregbowman3598]

Good one Rick 👍

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thanks Greg 🤜🤛👍👍

[@robmiller817]

I had a quit cube last week. 14 of the vertical slates were loose.

[@HVACRSurvival]

I believe that's from the ice getting to thick and tearing itself apart. I know you can remove one of the loose dividers without a issue.

[@robmiller817]

@@HVACRSurvival all the nickel is gone as well. Gonna replace the evap.

[@j.d.6221]

Adding tooth brushes to the tool list! Lol Thanks Rick!

[@HVACRSurvival]

🤣👍👍. You never know what u might need.

[@throttlebottle5906]

I've used them for years in electronics, small electrical, automotive and more. I just save and re-use my worn out fang brushes! LOL

[@OcRefrig]

Hey Rick, Good Vid. it is possible to get ALL the scale off the machines you just have to use a stronger acid. i usually just pour straight nickel safe out of the gallon jug into the front cover. i lay the curtain on the side of the sink pour straight out of bottle onto inside of curtain and let soak while iclean other parts. take water level probe and soak in a plastic cup, hot water and a bit of nickel safe. stops any disasters from wlp fallling into acid. you can use straight non nickel safe ice machine cleaner to get scale off all plastic parts put it in a spray bottle and squirt full strength onto hard scale deposits it will start to bubble it off. if thats not strong enough. you can buy Muriatic acid from a pool supply by the gallon and use that at full strength or 50/50 mix with water. it will guaranteed get any scale off any plastic surface in seconds. do not use on metal it will destroy any metal. make sure to always wear plastic gloves. i allways fill a Plastic spray bottle with full strength nickel safe ice machine cleaner in it and spray directly on any scale on a plastic surface it usually removes 95% of all scale. use a 3m Scrubbbing Blue sponge with straight nickel safe on front curtian to clean inside.

[@HVACRSurvival]

All good ideas 👍👍. I found some wicked iron removal by Wink. But it's not really food safe. I will have to try that in a spray bottle. I've done 100 proof on the probes and just used a small cup. We normally use the 16 oz bottles and generally I'll use half a bottle on the machine and a half a bottle on the parts. Even though the manual says to use less.😏

[@OcRefrig]

@@HVACRSurvival i Follow the Factory Recommendation on Putting amount in the machine during Clean Cycle. it's on the Door most times. i think its about 5 ounces give or take depending on model. i use a funnel and measuring cups. its allways My first step if the machine has water flow. it gets the party started & gets everything loosened up. i am real particular about that to not degrade the Grid nickel. i Will however after the cycle is done use 100 Proof in the spray bottle to spray the sides around the Grid and spray the speaker with 100%. i just did a vid on an indigo cleanign . maybe check it out and see if some of my ways might give u some ideas.

[@HVACRSurvival]

Sounds good OC👍👍

[@OcRefrig]

@@HVACRSurvival i do have a manitowoc indigo playlist too.

[@garywarren5800]

Great video. Do you know of any good resources for Manitowoc ice machine troubleshooting, like trees, videos, etc?

[@HVACRSurvival]

Learn it from Manitowoc. Sign up on line

[@Ks13007]

BTW i got a new part but the connector is different. It is 4 pin straight rather than square. Did they change the part ?

[@HVACRSurvival]

Normally they make any replacements the same. Probably the wrong part.

[@kingkev6338]

So our machine is clean, the water pumps working and it’s been reset and everything but it takes at least an hour to drop a little bit of ice. Of course they don’t want to pay someone to come look at it.

[@jeffwright5794]

Maybe I missed it but I didn’t see you using a nickel safe cleaner. It’s usually green. This will remove the scale buildup . I soak the removable parts in a very heavy solution. The stationary parts I hit with a wash bottle. Most of the scale is removed , then I go after it with a sanitizer to kill the scum and slime. It can take up to 4 hours to clean a mess like that . Luckily the bin is already empty otherwise that would need to be emptied as well.

[@HVACRSurvival]

I had a whole bottle or 2 of Nickel Safe in the wash tub.

[@robertpeters9438]

You could try the ultrasonic cleaning brushes to speed up boundary surface chemical action.

[@HVACRSurvival]

I'm not sure that would do any better? I've chiseled at these things before and didn't get it to come off.

[@hrdworkin7633]

Good video. What UV or bipolar light do you recommend for an ice machine that size. Thanks

[@HVACRSurvival]

Manitowoc has one they sell. I tried the Bi-Polar branded one and it failed in a year.

[@peterboissiere9684]

Could u tell them they need a water filtration system

[@atomstarfireproductions8695]

Take the membrane pad out and connect the correct wires together to trigger the buttons

[@donnierobertson3088]

Nice job and video

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thanks Donnie, I'm glad you liked it 👍👍

[@johngiag2011]

Hi can you please give me advice I just cleans the ice machine and before I cleaned it it was working fine. After I cleaned it now mot making ice . Please advise me . Thank you

[@HVACRSurvival]

Double check all of your connections and anything that you took apart that you reassembled it the way it was prior to.

[@lukeeisenberger4872]

I’m a pm tech I clean ice machines for a living all day every day that ice machine was dirty but it was not disgustingly dirty I’ve opened up machines that are completely black on all the white surfaces

[@HVACRSurvival]

I agree👍 I've had worse. But depending on who's looking at the video is all about perception.

[@robgraham1204]

What would you say is wrong with this type of machine issue I had was when it goes into harvest mode but is in it for a few mins then just shuts down when you lift the flap you can pull the ice right off but when it's in harvest mode you can see the temp of the plate go from like -18 to 9 Deg so hot gas is working

[@HVACRSurvival]

Depends what brand it is, what model it is. Manitowoc older machines had a 3.5 min timer,. If it doesn't drop before that it gets a strike against it, after 2 or 3 it locks out.

[@robgraham1204]

@@HVACRSurvival it's a Manitowoc indigo I noticed a few times the ice drops out almost as the machine goes back into the next cycle and the ice made is pretty thick could the ice thickness probe be an issue here

[@robgraham1204]

The hot gas valve is all good plate gets nice and warm it's like for some reason the ice don't want to fall off other thing I am wondering even though the plate is clean of crap could the Nickle be coming off causing it to stick and not fall off what you think

[@HVACRSurvival]

@@robgraham1204 that can cause it, I usually run cleaner through the plates almost every time I'm having a harvest issue for that very reason, some machines work fine without the nickel other machines need it. Is this a Manitowoc machine?

[@HVACRSurvival]

Check your bridge thickness. If it's to thick or to thin, that can cause problems.

[@greatone42689]

You dont want to submerge the ice thickness probe in cleaner. And manitowoc has a light kit to kill bacteria. Part # k00450 Keep up the great videos

[@HVACRSurvival]

I'm surprised how well the Manitowoc uv light does. I have pulled the mic out of the body once but I haven't had one leak yet. Thanks for watching!

[@Youshallnotpass123]

I’ve done this countless times. So gross. I’m curious what your average time on a call like this is? I always feel like customers don’t understand how much they destroy their machines and the extent of work we have to do to get it back to functioning somewhat normally. If it didn’t mess up the sensors and valves.

[@HVACRSurvival]

3-3.5hrs on average

[@sarahcase6692]

Any trick to reattaching the water level probe? The wire didn't follow the probe out when I removed it to clean :(

[@HVACRSurvival]

Where did it break

[@sarahcase6692]

@@HVACRSurvival It didn't actually break, I just can't see the connection because it's inside the little cavity where the probe lives. I jammed the probe back into that space and it kinda clicked into place, but the water trough overflows, so I'm guessing I wasn't lucky enough to connect it successfully.

[@Farm_fab]

Rick, would a product like lime away work for you?

[@HVACRSurvival]

I tried it. It's garbage 😒

[@throttlebottle5906]

CLR may be slightly better, but the commercial cleaners are far stronger to start with(less dilluted) then if you use them full strength better yet(selectively!) or you'll ruin things lol

[@OlGoodJoe]

You didn't sanitize it which means the slime will be back in a week or two.

[@HVACRSurvival]

I told you at 11:32 what my plan was. Click on the digit and try listening again.

[@sterlingarcher46]

So glad I don't work on ice machines ... by the way I thought there was demands of abolishing ice 😆😂

[@HVACRSurvival]

It's probably coming 😁. Ice is evil and creates global warming or change or whatever false narrative they come up with 😲

[@daveg8918]

I always say no ice. I see what comes out of these things

[@AJ-we9kd]

I made my own UV air filter and it’s worked flawlessly since. No more organics in my ice. No worries about aldehyde production due to the moisture. The price the ice machine companies charge is outrageous. Even the replacement bulbs cost $2-5 and they charge $100-200 for a bulb. Places with severe issues can uv sterilize both the air and water. IMO, physically cleaning the machine once a month with a quick warm rinse with a spray bottle is great because I can inspect the machine.

[@joehead1294]

These folks be better off with bag ice. Can you use small steam cleaner on parts?

[@HVACRSurvival]

You could use steam, but you'll need to keep distilled water on your truck for it. Otherwise the steam gun will plug up.

[@harrydickson4575]

👍👍👍

[@mrgreen9086]

I never get ice with my drinks. I've seen things man and some stuff

[@berylwhite2983]

I am not totally impressed with the wiring.. I don't like flat extension cord running right under the faucet. One Little Nick and that stainless steel sink could be a little dangerous. But as always you did a very nice job.. be safe my friend

[@HVACRSurvival]

I agree 👍👍

[@911mykid]

The amount of money you pay me to clean that machine. You should have invest in filters

[@steveblake8766]

#40 thumbs uP

[@throttlebottle5906]

country water, good stuff. city water chemical pumped, drink up to become supah smaht (those always seem to be heavy democrat areas)