Stop the water first, then dry the floor. If your refrigerator has an ice maker or water dispenser, close its water supply right away, because a supply-side leak keeps going whether the fridge is running or not. A small spill wiped up quickly rarely harms hardwood, but water left standing under the fridge for hours or days leads to cupped boards and mold.
Do this first
- Close the water supply to the refrigerator. The valve is usually on the wall behind the fridge or under the kitchen sink on the cold line. GE's support guidance for a leaking icemaker says to turn off the icemaker and its water supply first, and notes the shutoff is often a saddle valve on the cold water line under the sink (GE Appliances).
- Turn the ice maker off with its switch, bail arm or control panel setting so it stops calling for water.
- Soak up standing water with towels. Press down rather than wiping, so you pull water out of the seams between boards.
- Check the outlet before you touch the plug. If the floor around the cord and outlet is dry, leave the fridge running. If water has reached them, don't touch the plug or stand in the water. Switch off that circuit at the breaker, but only if you can reach the panel without walking through water. If you can't, stay clear and call an electrician.
- Keep the doors closed unless you need to empty the fridge to move it.
In the next few hours
- Pull the fridge out to reach the water underneath. Lay a sheet of cardboard or hardboard in front of it, then walk it out slowly with a helper. Dragging a loaded fridge across wet hardwood can gouge the finish.
- Dry the floor and the space under the fridge completely. Use towels, then fans and a dehumidifier if you have one, and keep the air conditioning running. The EPA says water-damaged areas and items should be dried within 24 to 48 hours to prevent mold growth (EPA).
- Read where the water is. The location narrows down the source:
- Wet behind the fridge, near the wall: the supply line or the connection at the back of the fridge. - Wet at the front, under the grille: an overflowing or cracked drain pan, or meltwater missing the pan. - Water inside under the crispers, or ice on the freezer floor: a blocked defrost drain. Whirlpool lists a defrost drain blockage, usually at the bottom back of the freezer, as a common leak source (Whirlpool). - Drips around the water filter: a filter that isn't fully seated, or a cracked filter housing.
- Look closely at the boards. Edges that sit higher than the centers (cupping), soft spots or dark stains spreading under the finish mean water got below the surface. Once everything is dry, a flooring professional can judge whether those boards recover.
- Photograph the floor and the leak area before you clean further. The pictures help the technician, and an insurance claim if you file one.
Before the technician arrives
Write down or photograph:
- The model and serial number. On most refrigerators the label is inside the fresh-food section on a side wall, on the ceiling, or near the crisper drawers.
- Where the water was and roughly how much, and when you first noticed it.
- Whether the leak stopped after you closed the valve. If it did, the supply side is the likely source. If water keeps appearing with the valve closed, the drain or defrost system is more likely.
- Anything that changed recently: a new filter, a move, a new installation or a power outage.
- Any error codes or alerts on the display.
What not to do:
- Don't reopen the water valve to "test" it while the fridge sits on hardwood.
- Don't chip at ice in the freezer drain with a knife or screwdriver. It's easy to puncture a refrigerant line or the liner.
- Don't crank down hard on plastic fittings. They crack.
- Don't push the fridge back until the floor underneath is fully dry.
How to keep it from happening again
- Put a battery-powered water leak alarm on the floor beside or behind the fridge so a slow leak gets noticed in hours, not weeks.
- Leave slack in the water line when you push the fridge back, with no sharp bends or kinks. Have a brittle or kinked line replaced.
- Keep the fridge level. Whirlpool notes that an unlevel refrigerator or ice bin can cause ice maker leaks.
- Wipe up spills inside the fridge so food debris doesn't wash into the defrost drain.
- Check for drips right after changing the water filter, and again the next morning.
If the leak traces back to the freezer, read what to do when the ice maker floods the freezer. For drain, valve and line repairs, see our refrigerator service page.
Sources
- GE Appliances: Refrigerator icemaker leaking or dripping water
- EPA: A Brief Guide to Mold, Moisture and Your Home
- Whirlpool: Ice maker leaking water, causes and fixes
Keep in mind: If the leak comes back after you've closed the water valve, the source is inside the fridge, and a technician should trace it before the floor gets wet again.
Call ProFix Dallas at (469) 886-1122 to have the leak traced and repaired.