The Stupid Funky Smell Started It

Okay, so our Sub-Zero fridge makes ice. Handy, right? Except lately, the cubes smelled... weird. Like stale fridge water mixed with something faintly swampy. Not cool. I ignored it for way too long, hoping it'd magically fix itself. Spoiler: it didn't.

Tried the Lazy Way First (Big Mistake)

I figured, maybe it just needs some fresh water flushing through. I ran the ice maker, dumped a few batches – waste of ice, but whatever. Made more ice. Still tasted funky. Ugh. Okay, time to admit defeat. This thing needed a real cleaning. Headed online, found people talking about that special "Sub-Zero Ice Machine Cleaner". Saw the price tag. Ouch.

DIY Chemical Mix Mission Begins

Call me cheap, call me stubborn. I didn't wanna shell out bucks for a tiny bottle of special sauce just yet. My buddy mentioned using vinegar. Vinegar fixes everything? Maybe? Grabbed the white vinegar jug from the pantry – the cheap stuff.

Here's the messy plan I cobbled together:

• Step 1: Shut off the ice maker. Like, unplugged the fridge scared. Didn't want any accidents.
• Step 2: Scooped out all the existing ice. No more swamp cubes.
• Step 3: Got a clean bowl and mixed half white vinegar, half warm tap water. Smelled like salad dressing gone wrong.
• Step 4: Poured this sour mix into the ice maker's water reservoir thingy. Watched it drain down into the machine guts. Fingers crossed.
• Step 5: Waited. And waited. Let that vinegar stew sit in there for like, a whole hour. Figured it needed time to chew on the gunk.
• Step 6: Time to flush! Poured gallons and gallons of plain cold water into the reservoir. Kept going until I couldn't smell vinegar anywhere near the fridge.
• Step 7: Made my first batch of post-vinegar ice. Looked okay? Hesitantly tasted one... waited for the funk. Nothing! Just cold, clean water taste. Almost cried.

So, Buy the Fancy Stuff or DIY?

Honestly? For my situation – the funky smell wasn't super intense yet – the vinegar bath absolutely did the trick. It cost me basically nothing since I had vinegar sitting around. Total win. Felt pretty smug about dodging that expensive cleaner bullet. BUT, I get it. If things were really nasty? Like, visibly gross inside the machine? Maybe the real deal cleaner packs a stronger punch. Or maybe you just want the peace of mind knowing you used the "official" method. For me? Vinegar saved the day and my wallet. Smell's gone, ice is pure. Mission accomplished.