On the route · Boise Bench
The rest of the lineup
Same $99 diagnostic, same written quote, same written warranty on every machine we fix in Boise Bench.
From Five Mile Rd it is Overland Rd east, Orchard St north, and we are in a Bench kitchen in twelve minutes with fill valves and modules on the truck. What we find there is usually scale from hard city water, a copper line fed by a saddle valve from a 1990s remodel, or a module that has simply quit.
Mon–Fri 8am–6pm · Sat 9am–3pm · Sunday closed · same-day windows for a warm refrigerator
Same $99 diagnostic, same written quote, same written warranty on every machine we fix in Boise Bench.
The ice maker in a Bench refrigerator is fed by a water line that was almost never part of the original house. Somebody ran quarter-inch copper or plastic from under the sink or up from the basement, tapped the cold line with a saddle valve, and pushed the refrigerator back into its alcove. Twenty years later that saddle valve is half shut with corrosion and the fill valve on the refrigerator is half shut with scale. Boise city water in Vista Village, around the Depot Bench and along Latah St is hard, and ice makers are the smallest orifice in the house, so they show it first. We arrive twelve minutes after leaving the shop, by Overland Rd.
Short fills are the common complaint: the tray gets half its water, the cubes come out thin and hollow, and the bin fills slowly or not at all. A valve that seeps after closing overfills the tray instead and freezes the cubes into a sheet that jams the ejector. Freezers that run warm during a hot August in a tight Bench alcove slow the harvest cycle too. One typical visit: a GE top-freezer in a rental off Vista Ave, no ice for a month, fill valve nearly closed with scale, and a saddle valve under the sink that turned out to be the real restriction. Both were sorted the same afternoon.
Water is not reaching the tray or the module has stopped cycling. We time a forced fill, meter the valve solenoid, check the supply line and the saddle valve for restriction, and test the module. A freezer above about 10°F will stall most ice makers, so the temperature is logged as part of it.
A short fill, from a valve narrowed by Bench scale, a supply valve nearly closed, low pressure or an old filter. We measure the fill volume against spec, clean or replace the fill valve, check the filter date, and open up the supply. On older copper lines we check for a pinch behind the refrigerator.
A valve that drips after it should close, a freezer that warms during defrost, or a door that no longer seals in an alcove where the fridge was pushed in crooked. We check the valve seal, the defrost timing and the gasket. Refrigerators in Bench rentals that were dragged into place often just need leveling.
An expired filter, freezer odors absorbed by the bin, or an old plastic supply line that has taken on a taste. We check the filter, clean the bin and chute, and look at the line material. If the water itself is the issue, we say so in writing; we do not sell filtration.
A cracked fill cup, a fill tube that has frozen and split, a valve seeping past its seat, or the supply fitting behind the fridge letting go. We pull the refrigerator, trace the water to its source, and replace the failed part. Old saddle-valve connections get a close look before we push it back.
The ice maker and the dispenser use separate solenoids on the same valve body, so one can die alone. Or the module, ejector motor or shutoff arm has failed. We meter the ice maker solenoid and the module separately, replace only what is dead, and watch a full harvest before leaving.
The technician forces a harvest and watches: does the ejector turn, does the valve open, how long does it run, how much water lands in the tray. That volume is compared to spec. The fill valve is metered for coil resistance and inspected for scale and seep. The freezer temperature is logged, since a freezer at 15°F slows every ice maker regardless of the parts. Then the water supply is followed back to its source, which on the Bench often means under the sink or into the basement to a saddle valve that has not been opened in years. With the fault named in plain words, one number is written and the repair waits for your approval.
The ice makers we see on the Bench live inside Whirlpool, GE, Frigidaire and Kenmore refrigerators that came with the house, and Samsung and LG French-door units from the remodels; the higher-end kitchens near the Depot Bench add KitchenAid and the occasional Sub-Zero. We repair the ice maker built into the refrigerator only, not standalone or countertop machines. Property managers with rentals near Boise State and along Overland Rd get tenant-side visits, a text to approve the number, and the invoice and written warranty by email. The $99 diagnostic is inside the repair price you approve; decline and $99 is the entire bill. Any repair figure is written after the diagnostic, not quoted in advance.
The tray is not getting enough water. On the Bench that is usually a fill valve narrowed by hard-water scale, sometimes a saddle valve under the sink that has corroded nearly shut, occasionally a filter well past its date. We measure the fill, fix the restriction, and check the supply so the new valve does not scale the same way.
We replace the short supply line and the fitting at the refrigerator when that is where the leak or restriction is. A new line run through walls or from the basement, or replacing the saddle valve on the house plumbing with a proper shutoff, is plumbing work, and the written report will say when that is the next step.
Yes. Landlords near Boise State and along Vista Ave call us for tenant-side visits; the tenant is present for the diagnosis, the owner approves the written number by text, and the invoice and written warranty are emailed to the owner. Ice makers that were disconnected during a move and never reconnected are a common find.
Only if the module is what failed. Many no-ice calls are the fill valve, the supply or the freezer temperature, and a new assembly would make no ice either. We test the module separately from the valve and replace the part that is actually dead. The written number covers only that.
Within the week and often the next business day, Monday to Saturday, twelve minutes from the shop. If the refrigerator is also warm, say so and the visit becomes a same-day window. Tell us the brand and whether the water dispenser still works, which narrows the likely cause before the truck leaves.
Call (208) 813-1132 or send the form. Most requests get a callback within the hour in business time, with a real arrival window.
The technician tests the machine with a meter, names the failed part in plain words, and writes one flat price. The $99 is already inside it.
We stock the high-failure parts for the brands Treasure Valley homes actually own, so most jobs close on the spot; ordered parts return with no second trip fee.
Full test cycle before we pack up, a tidy work area after, and a written warranty in your hand.
One call starts it: $99 diagnostic, one written number, repair from the truck, written warranty.
