Fix a Leaking Refrigerator Water Line

Category: Appliances · Difficulty: Intermediate · Time: 1.9h · Estimated cost: $45

Tools needed

Locate the leak
Pull fridge out 18 inches from the wall. Lay a dry paper towel along the line and at every connection. Find the wet spot.
Duration: 20 min
Shut the supply
Close the saddle valve, push valve, or sink supply that feeds the fridge line. Open the ice maker dispenser briefly to bleed pressure.
Duration: 5 min
Disconnect and inspect
Disconnect the line at both ends. Inspect — is the line kinked, pinched, or split? Is the saddle valve weeping? Decide what to replace.
Duration: 15 min
Replace the saddle valve (recommended)
Saddle valves clog and weep. Cut the cold water supply pipe and install a proper push-to-connect quarter-turn valve in line. Way more reliable.
Duration: 30 min
Run new PEX line
Cut new PEX line to length with the tubing cutter (square ends). Push into the valve and the fridge inlet. Leave a 3-foot loop behind the fridge for service slack.
Duration: 25 min
Pressure test
Open the valve. Wait 15 minutes. Check every connection with a dry paper towel. Push fridge back. Discard the first batch of ice cubes.
Duration: 20 min

A slow fridge leak rots subfloor and grows mold long before you see it — always inspect the floor under the fridge.
Place a drip pan under the connection as a future safety net.

If the cold water supply itself is leaking inside the wall, that's a plumber job, not a homeowner job.