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If your GE washing machine is not spinning or draining, it might not only give you headaches but it might also dent your pocket irrespective of whether you call a repair technician or opt to do the servicing yourself.
However, at times the recommended fix is so simple that you might not need to replace any parts.
That’s why, in this troubleshooting guide, I will take you through how you can fix your washer if it’s not spinning or draining as a DIY project… It will take you utmost 1 hour to complete the whole process.
GE washing machine not spinning or draining – what causes it and how to fix it
Start by…
Confirming that water is flowing into the washer
Of course, if your washer is not getting any water, it will not start any cycle – consequently, it won’t spin or drain.
You can easily tell if this is the problem by listening at the washer after you start a cycle – do you hear water flowing in?
If cannot hear water flowing in, then you have just found the culprit of your washer misbehaving.
To fix this problem, start by confirming that both water faucets are fully open.
Follow this by straightening out any kinks or twists that might be along the water inlet hose.
If during this inspection process you discover that your hose is leaking, you can order a replacement on Amazon and swap out the faulty one.
If everything checks out so far, the next parts you should inspect are the mesh filters (they are located at the back of your washer where the inlet hose connects to).
To remove these filters, first remove the hoses and then use pliers to pull out the two mesh filters.
Use a soft toothbrush (under running water) to scrub any calcium buildup that might be on the valves.
Next, disconnect and reconnect the wire harness connecting the water inlet valve to the control board… Here’s why: At times these connectors may work themselves loose due to the constant vibration of the washer. That’s why disconnecting and reconnecting them at times solves the problem.
If the connectors are good, test the inlet valve for continuity – no continuity means the valve is bad. In this case, your best bet is to get a new valve.
If your valve passes the continuity test, confirm that it’s getting 110-120v AC from the control board.
To do this, insert the multimeter probes into the wire harness connector at the valve and start a wash cycle… When the washer tries to fill with water, you should get a reading of 110-120v AC.
So if you’re getting a different reading, it might mean that your washer’s control board is bad.
Which could make getting an original board (main control boards don’t come cheap – see current prices on Amazon) and swapping out the faulty one your next course of action.
You might be using too much/wrong detergent
In turn, this will result in your washing machine producing excess suds… These suds will interfere with the washer’s sensors which might result in your GE washing machine not spinning or draining.
Now that you get the gist of it, if you inspect the inside of your washer, does it appear to have excess suds?
If yes, you just found the culprit of your washer acting up.
Fortunately, you can quickly fix this by running two deep rinse cycles.
Quick tip: To fix the issue much faster, use a wet vacuum to suction the excess suds before running the rinse cycles.
Just remember, if excess suds were the cause of your washer acting up, next time you are doing your laundry, use the right amount of the right detergent.
The drain system might be to blame
For this part, I will majorly talk about two parts: the drain hose and the drain filter.
When these parts get blocked, they prevent the drain pump from getting rid of the waste water from the washer.
This means that no matter how long the pump runs, it won’t get rid of the waste water. Consequently, this will prevent the washer from proceeding to the next cycle (it won’t spin) – your washer will run for some time and then stop spinning.
To know if this is the cause of your GE washer not spinning or draining, start by inspecting the drain hose…
If it has any kinks or twists, start by straightening them out.
And, if in the process you note that there are clogs inside the drain hose, be sure to remove them – you can use a wet vacuum for this.
Something else: Confirm that the drain hose is properly installed – a hose that is not properly installed might also prevent the drain pump from pumping out the waste water.
For top load washers, GE recommends the minimum discharge height to be 30” and the maximum to be 96” from the base.
As for front-load washers, they recommend a minimum discharge height of 24” and a maximum of 96” from the washer’s base.
Additionally, they recommend the use of a standpipe or wall drain with a minimum inside diameter of 1½”.
Diagnosing the drain filter
The other part you should inspect is the drain filter – applies to front-load washers.
You can find this filter at the front bottom of the washer behind a small rectangular/circular access door.
To remove the filter, pop open the access door and turn the filter anticlockwise to remove it.
Proceed to discard any lint that might be trapped in there and scrub off any residue under running water.
Once done, re-insert the filter and turn it clockwise till it clicks into place.
The washer’s door/lid might not be locking correctly
Just like other washers, most GE washers have a safety mechanism that prevents them from running when the door is open.
So, start by shutting the door firmly – listen out for a locking/clicking sound to be sure it’s closing fully.
That brings me to the next potential fix: The door latch might be misaligned so you’ll need to try and realign it.
Unfortunately, if this doesn’t work, you maybe force to install a functional latch assembly –probably the old one is defective (see how much it will set you back on Amazon)
In addition, you can test the lid/door switch for continuity (using a multimeter) – get an original switch if the old one lacks continuity.
The drain pump might be clogged/defective
Again, if the drain pump cannot pump out the waste water, it will prevent the washer from proceeding to the spin cycle.
A common sign for a bad drain pump is when your washer starts, runs for a few minutes and then stops and won’t proceed to the next cycle.
So, start by accessing the drain pump and removing any clogs that might be trapped in there.
Once done, disconnect the pump from the drain hose housing to get access to the impeller… When you rotate the impeller, does it rotate freely?
Quick tip: A good impeller should rotate with a kind of spring-back mechanism – it stops once you stop spinning it.
So, if your impeller is rotating freely, it means it has come loose from the body.
Also, if the impeller is not rotating at all, it means that it’s faulty.
Unfortunately, if the impeller is defective, your best course of action will be to replace the whole drain pump.
Moving on…
Proceed to make sure that the wire harness connecting the pump to the control board is properly inserted into place… To be sure, you can try disconnecting and reconnecting it again.
This brings me to the next troubleshooting step you should take – testing the voltage to the pump… Set your multimeter to volts AC and insert its probes into the drain pump wire connector.
Now run a drain cycle.
Are you getting a reading of 110-120v AC?
If the reading you’re getting is not within this range and the wire connectors are good, odds are that the control board is faulty.
In this case, my advice is you get a compatible replacement board depending on your washer model number.
However, if voltage checks out, proceed to test the pump for continuity – no continuity means it’s faulty and needs replacing.
GE washing machine not spinning or draining – parting words
The most common causes for a brand-new GE washer that is not spinning or draining are:
- A wrongly installed/kinked drain hose.
- Water not flowing into the washer.
- Using too much detergent (or the wrong detergent type).
So, if your new GE washer won’t drain or spin, I’d recommend you start by checking these parts.
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