If You Need a Way to Hook Water up to Your Refrigerator, Try This
Written: Jul 26 '06 (Updated Jul 26 '06)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Do-it-yourself installation, copper tubing.
Cons: None
The Bottom Line: I had no problems installing this, the directions were very easy to follow,and didn't really take the long at all to hook up. Works just fine.
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| hddan's Full Review: Kenmore Refrigerator Waterline Installation Kit, C... |
I recently purchased a new refrigerator that included an ice maker and water dispenser on the outside of the door. Seeing as that my previous refrigerator did not have these features, I needed to hook up a water source to my new fridge. I decided to pick up the Kenmore Refrigerator Waterline Installation Kit, Copper 38444 for $29 from Sears. Even though this is from the Kenmore brand name, it can be used for any other refrigerators such as Whirlpool, Frigidaire, Amana, Maytag, etc. that require a 1/4" water line hookup.
This kit includes everything that you will need to hook water up to your new or existing refrigerator. The contents of this kit are as follows:
25 feet of 1/4" copper tubing.
1/4" tubing union.
A water supply saddle valve.
2, 1/4" tubing inserts
2, 1/4" plastic ferrules.
2 clamps, with nuts and bolts
To hook up the Kenmore Refrigerator Waterline Installation Kit, Copper 38444 you will need to add adjustable wrenches, a hand or battery-powered drill, a 1/4" drill bit, and a tubing cutter or hacksaw for cutting the copper tubing.
Hooking this up to my new refrigerator actually wasn't all that hard, and took me less than an hour after I gathered the tools that I needed.
Seeing as that my refrigerator wasn't in close proximity to an existing water line in my kitchen, I decided that I would hook the waterline up to a pipe that was in my basement. To do this, I first went downstairs in my basement, to make sure that I wasn't going to drill into anything that I didn't want to drill into, such as a heating duct or electrical wiring. Everything looked okay, so I proceeded to pull my refrigerator out from the wall and drill a hole through my kitchen floor to run the copper tubing through.
The next thing I did was attach the copper tubing to the back of my refrigerator. I started by unraveling the coil of copper tubing ( which is quite maneuverable ) and threading most of it through the hole in the floor that I drilled. To connect the water line to my refrigerator, all I needed to do was slide one of the connecting nuts from the tubing union onto the copper tubing followed by one of the ferrules, then tighten it up to the existing fitting on my refrigerator with a wrench. Some refrigerators have a tube that is already attached to the refrigerator. If this is the case on your model, use the tubing union to connect the copper tubing to the line that is already connected to your refrigerator. The directions recommend that you leave some extra copper tubing coiled up behind the refrigerator to allow you to move the refrigerator without disconnecting the tubing.
There are two things that I needed to do next to hook up the Kenmore Refrigerator Waterline Installation Kit. First of all, turn off the water. Second, make sure to find a cold water pipe, as you do not want to connect your water supply to a hot water pipe. You need to turn off the water, because you now have to drill a 1/4" hole in the pipe. Drilling on a rounded pipe can be kind of a hassle, so I would recommend using a center punch first to mark a spot on the pipe, and keep the drill bit from slipping off as you are trying to drill. I would also recommend drilling into a section of copper pipe, as it is much more easier to drill. To avoid risk of electrocution, Do Not Use a Corded Drill for This Step!!
The next thing you need to do is turn the saddle valve into the provided clamp that attaches to the pipe. After you do that, you need to turn the handle on the valve all the way in. Make sure to place the rubber gasket/seal that is provided over the part of the valve that slides into the hole that you have drilled in your cold water pipe. After you've completed that, just slide the valve into the hole that was drilled, and tighten the 2 nuts and bolts until the clamp is tightly attached to your water pipe. After this is done, all that is needed to do is attach the end of the copper tubing to the valve, in the same way that you attached it to your refrigerator. You may want to cut off any extra length of copper tubing that you may have with the hacksaw.
Now that you have completely finished, it is time for the moment of truth. Simply turn the water back on, and open the valve. You should now have water running directly to your refrigerator. Check your connections to see if there are any leaks, and slide your fridge into place.
I was actually amazed when I turned on the water and didn't have any leaks, as I am not a plumber by any means. All my connections were watertight, and I was happy to have the water connected to my new refrigerator.
While reading this review, it may sound like hooking this up to your refrigerator could be a lot of work. I actually found that it was easy to do, and that the provided directions were very easy to follow. The directions also provided some helpful illustrations. The directions also include a toll-free installation assistance phone number for you to call, should you have any questions.
The only thing that I was concerned about while hooking this up besides having it leak when I was done, was I was afraid that I might accidentally kink the copper tubing to a point where water wouldn't flow through it. As it turned out, the copper tubing was very easy to bend and I didn't have any problems at all. I have noticed that there are other kits out on the market that have plastic tubing, but I decided to go with the copper tubing, as it is probably a little bit stronger.
I am happy with this product, as it has worked out just great for me and my new refrigerator
I hope that you found my review useful
hddan
Related Review - Kenmore Refrigerator Review
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Member: Dan
Location: Frozen Tundra, Wisconsin
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