It's been over 2 weeks since I've heard the word Icemaker.   Apparently venting on the Internet is effective.   I therefore took it upon myself to get it working as sort of a reward for not bugging me.  OK, not really.  Really  it was Sunday and I was just bored.

 

Anyway, I figured that I could wire up a harness to activate the water valve.  I went over to Radio Shack and spent about $5 on the  connectors I needed.   I hacked up an old power cord (it used to belong to a Macintosh that I gave away) and managed to get something that looked safe and effective.  So then all I had to do was install the icemaker itself in the cabinet and hook it up.

 

First problem that showed up was that the tube that takes water from the outside of the cabintet and brings it to the icemaker was too short.   So I drive to Lowes.  Lowes has parts for every appliance in the entire house EXCEPT icemakers.   They do have whole kits however and I happened to find one for my fridge. It was a different brand than the one I had. (From looking at various kits, it appears that most icemakers are largely generic)  It was only $20. (I think the grand-inlaws paid $100 for the one that I've been trying to install.)  The inlet tube was longer in the new kit than what I had,  and thats what I needed, so I bought it.   It didn't have the outside wiring harness I needed though, so my fabrication wasn't wasted.

 

So I get the unit installed and get the water tube in.   Then the inside wiring harness won't plug in,  it, like the supply tube, was too short.  Luckily I had a whole extra icemaker with a longer harness.   In retrospect I should have started over with the $20 kit and sent the other one back, but after 2 months I could  never find all the parts needed to return it.  So I've got spares.

 

Then the fun part, all I have left is to hook up the water.  Hmm.  The water line doesn't fit.  Whomever added the water connector in my house used  a 3/8 inch toilet sized water fitting.   Icemakers use 1/4 inch fittings.  No problem, I'll just get a hose with 3/8" on one end and 1/4" on the other.   Another trip to Lowes and I find there is no such thing.  I did manage to find an icemaker supply cuttoff that took a 1/2 inch connector on one side and had a 1/4 inch connector on the other.  So then all I needed was a 3/8 to 1/2 inch hose, then the 1/4 to 1/4 hose connects from the cutoff to the fridge valve which is connected to the supply tube.   Seriously, I think I'm going to need a cable management arm  (hose management?)  for the back of my fridge. 

 

So this afternoon it's all connected, plugged in and turned on.   Now all I have to do is wait to see if it makes ice. 

 

Oh, and neaten the instalation, and pick up all the tools, and box up the spare parts and...