I have a Kenmore Elite trio (bottom-mount freezer), model 596.7857, about 1 year old, and lately we are noticing puddles of water on the floor near the left front. Inside, the bottom of the freezer section is completely covered with about a half-inch of ice. There is a frozen "water trace" going up the left back corner.

I can't see how/where the water is exiting the fridge; somewhere underneath.

Someone said the freezer ice build may be blocking a freezer floor drain, keeping it from reaching the evaporator pan (which I've not located). If that's true, not sure how/why water started freezing there in the first place.

1) Should I chip away all the ice and see if I can find the freezer drain?
2) How is the water actually reaching the kitchen floor?

Thanks!

 

For the record, with help from other forums, here is how I fixed this:

I disassembled everything in the bottom freezer; took the drawer front off, then the drawer liner. Disconnected and removed the ice maker. Took out the inside back panel to reveal the condensor. Removing the plastic, top-center air vent before you remove the back panel is a pain, you gotta push in on clips on either side (look for the molded symbol for a screwdriver); I snapped the center clip off by accident.

Anyway, I then used a hair dryer to melt away all the ice in the freezer bottom, and the "trough" leading to the drain...couldn't even see the drain until a lot of ice had melted. I used a turkey baster to "bail out" water from the trough and the drain. Then, when convinced all the ice was gone, I ran a 3' length of clear 1/4" rubber tubing (left over from our fish tank days) in and out of the drain and until I was convince the line was totally clear. Then put everything back together again.

I would love to know how to prevent this from happening, because resolving this was a huge P.I.T.A. (a couple hours' work, very hard on the knees!) and I would have to do it yearly. Our fridge is not EVEN a year old!!!