Washing machine not working

Washing machine fills with water but does not spin nor drain water. The cycle dial selector works (hear humming and see it turn through wash/rinse cycles) - dial stops when lid is lifted, resumes when lid is set down.

Was thinking lid switch was bad- but when I realized the dial would turn with lid down makes me think otherwise-

Model- Whirlpool Inperial Heavy Duty

Thanks.

Reply to
Chris
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Many things can cause this.

In my case the centrifugal switch on the motor was stuck in run and wouldn't flip to start. I lubricated it and it has been fine for several years. Depends on how lucky you are.

Reply to
TimR

drain water. The cycle dial selector works (hear humming and see it turn through wash/rinse cycles) - dial stops when lid is lifted, resumes when lid is set down.

the dial would turn with lid down makes me think otherwise-

Probably bad motor coupler. I've replaced a bunch of these.

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

was stuck in run and wouldn't flip to start. I lubricated it and it has been fine for several years. Depends on how lucky you are.

Be interesting to see if the OP tells us what's wrong. Motor coupler is a very common part to break on Whirlpools.

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

Thanks for help so far- no motor sounds however.. Just the click/hum from cycle dial.

Reply to
Chris

I don't know the answer but one place that I always try for these types of questions is:

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.

I click on "Repair Help" to get ideas regarding what the problem may be, and then I click on "Find Parts" to get an idea of what the replacement part may cost.

They also have many how-to videos showing how to do the part replacement.

I have no connection with them, and I almost feel guilty suggesting them here since I never even bought a part from them. I always end up figuring out the specific part that I need, I print out that page, and then I go to my local appliance parts place and buy the part.

Reply to
TomR

Doing more research- being that I don't hear the motor running- the motor itself might be dead as well. Or hopefully it became disconnected. Right?

Reply to
Chris

Are you sure the timer won't keep running with the lid open (or bad switch)

Reply to
gfretwell

Timer may be turning, but the contact may not be working. You can test it if you have the equipment to see if the circuit is live. Next, if it has power, is to check the motor.

Check

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too.

Reply to
Ed Pawlowski

Hi, Do you see motor gets power? You ought to havew a multi meter to check.

Reply to
Tony Hwang

I expect it's your air pressure switch.

Modern washing machines don't have a timed fill like the old machines did. That's where the washer would fill with water for a fixed number of minutes regardless of how much clothes were in the wash basket.

Nowadays, washers have a tube that runs from the bottom of the outer tub to the air pressure switch in the machine's console. As the washer fills, water rises up that tube and compresses the air above it. At some predetermined pressure, the air pressure switch diverts power from the water mixing valve to the washer's motor to start the agitation cycle.

If your machine fills with water OK, but then stops and goes into a self induced coma, it's because the air pressure switch is malfunctioning. It's interupting power to the water mixing valve OK, but it's not diverting power to the washer's motor, and until it does, the machine just sits there and does nothing.

Reply to
nestork

My washer does have that tube. Where will the switch be?

Reply to
Chris

It'll be behind the console of the machine. The console is the plate that all of your controls and indicator lights are on at the top of the machine. You have to unplug the washer and remove the screws holding that plate on. The plate should come forward far enough that you can set it on top of the deck of the washing machine. Then you should be able to see a rubber tube coming up into the air pressure switch, and wires going to that air pressure switch.

In a case like this, your best bet is to phone the factory authorized service depot for your brand of washing machine. You can find out who's the factory authorized repair depot by phoning around to the various appliance repair shops in your area, or just getting on the appliance manufacturer's web site and finding their customer service 1-800 phone number.

Explain the problem you're having to the guys at the factory authorized repair depot and see if they agree it's prolly your air pressure switch. If so, buy the pressure switch from that factory authorized service depot. You'll pay more for the part than if you bought it from any appliance parts store, but included in that higher purchase price will be all the free diagnosis, trouble shooting and technical help you need getting to the root of the problem and replacing the correct part. You get the best of both worlds by buying your parts from the factory authorized service depot because you get an expert helping you figure out what the problem is, but you save money on labour by installing that part yourself.

At an applaince parts store, they'll sell you the part cheap, but the guy behind the counter knows diddly squat about repairing appliances, and won't be any help at all diagnosing the problem.

Make sure the guys at the factory authorized service depot agree with my diagnoses before you buy the air pressure switch cuz it's an electrical component and you might not be able to return it. If they sell it to you based on THEIR diagnosis, there's a much better chance they'll take it back because they realize that you only bought it based on their say so.

So, in a nutshell, you pay more for the part, but you save even more on the labour by doing the work yourself.

Reply to
nestork

Try looking up the part on

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using your appliance make and model number. When you see the part, there is sometimes an exploded view diagram that shows where it is located, and sometimes a video to show how to replace it.

Or, give us the make and model number and someone here can try looking it up.

Good luck.

Reply to
TomR

But does the timer still advance? His timer is advancing, which isn't exactly a coma.....

Reply to
trader_4

It seems to me that the air pressure switch SHOULD divert power from the mixing valve to the TIMER MOTOR, and the timer then supply power to the appliance motor to start the agitate cycle. Otherwise the timer would be out of the picture and the machine would just keep agitating all day long.

The problem is in EVERY washer problem, the timer is always a suspect, but appliance timers are actually fairly reliable, and are, comparitively speaking, seldom the cause of problems.

Another possibility is that washing machines use induction motors, and all induction motors can be made to run in reverse. By changing the polarity of the leads to the stator, you can make a washing machine motor run backwards, and it's perfectly happy to do so.

So, appliance manufacturers utilize this characteristic of induction motors to run the motor in one direction for the agitate cycle and in the opposite direction for the spin cycle.

The way this is done is by a relay, often called the "motor reversing relay". Without power to the relay coil, the relay makes the connection that has the motor turning in the direction for agitation. It is the timer that energizes the coil inside the motor reversing relay, and that changes the connections to the motor stator making the motor run in reverse, and initiating the spin cycle. When power is cut to the relay coil, a spring closes the relay again so that it's ready for the next agitate cycle.

If the OP's timer is getting power after the fill cycle is complete, it could be that the motor reversing relay is kaput, and it's not providing power to the appliance motor at all. If that's the case, the machine won't agitate OR spin. It'll fill with water and then not do anything until the rinse cycle starts and the timer energizes the water mixing valve to fill the machine with water again, and at that point I'm not sure if the air pressure switch would prevent any rinse water from coming into the machine. The air pressure switch might already be diverting power to the timer, so the water mixing valve might not be energized and so no rinse water would flow into the machine.

I think it best if the OP talked to one of the appliance repair techs at the factory authorized service depot for Whirlpool. They would know how their machines work better than I, and would be able to rule out the air pressure switch or motor reversing relay just from the OP's description of what the machine is doing.

Reply to
nestork

There are basically two approaches to this type of problem

One is to understand how the system functions, and make deductions based on the symptoms

Ex motor hums but doesn't start, it must be getting power, the timer must b e working, the air tube must be okay, check out the motor

Ex no motor hum, check voltage, motor not getting power, what could cause t hat, what else could cause that, how could we tell the difference?

The other is experience: Whirlpool Model X19 always loses the air tube, Ma ytag Model 1913A has timers go bad, check those first

Repair techs save enormous time by relying on experience But they also hav e common spare parts on hand, and sometimes change out several wrong parts before getting it fixed. DIYers should try to understand the system functi oning; a washer is not that complicated

Reply to
TimR

What a brain trust we have around here.

The problem is the start capacitor on the motor.

You might have burned the motor out by now with all your messing around.

Go look up some place around you that does appliance repair and sells used appliances and ask if they have any used capacitors they'd sell you. Should be able to pick one up for $5 or $10.

The capacitor will look like a D-cell battery, black in color, with 2 wires going to it. Take the capacitor with you. It will have one or two long serial numbers on it, as well as a value in MFD. Anywhere from

190 to 350 MFD probably.
Reply to
HomeGuy

That was my point. His timer is advancing, so I doubt it's fill sensor related.

Reply to
trader_4

In news:lpr6rn$bof$ snipped-for-privacy@dont-email.me, HomeGuy"

Reply to
TomR

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