Customer Questions and Answers for Refrigerator Ice Maker Assembly by Whirlpool

Rick, Yes there is a mold heater in the base of the ice maker, but it is only energized for a minute or so " the mold temperature must drop to around 15°F before the thermostat closes. This assures that the water is completely frozen before the ice maker attempts to eject the ice. The closing of the thermostat energizes a mold heater and starts the icemaker motor. The purpose of the heater is to raise the temperature of the mold above 32°F. Eject- With the mold heater energized, the ice in the mold begins to melt, freeing the ice from the mold. At the same time, the icemaker motor turns an ejector blade which lifts the ice out of the mold and dumps it into the ice bucket." In the few minutes it takes the ice maker to complete the cycle, there shouldn't be enough heat generated to melt the cubes in tyhe bin and produce a puddle of water. We're thinking when you check the ice maker you'll find that the ice maker is over filling, or the fill valve isn't closing completely and water is "dripping" into the ice maker and down into the bin and freezing. That's more common than an overheating ice maker.