Doesn't fill, but still runs, spinns slowly.
Hi,
I'm stuck and I'm hoping for some assist:
Fault:
* Machine doesn't fill, starts program, makes humming sound but does not take any water.
- Water feed seams 0K, usually gives error code if it does not get water, good pressure in water feed hose.
- Spin program works fine.
Mark/Model:
Zanussi ZWF14791W,
Fault Code
Using Procedure from https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Zanussi+Washing+Machine+Fault+Code+Reset/34977
I get the following fault codes:
Turning nob clockwise.
0 - Up/off position.
1 - C11
2 - E71
3 - EF4
4 - EF4 Cottons Normal
5 - E71
6 - E71
7 - EF4
8 - E71 , humming sound, like a pump running? Same sound when program is started.
9 - E71
10 - E71 Delicate
11 - C0
12 - C8
13 - C24
14 - C28
15 - C30
16 - C14
17 - C15
18 - C31
19 - C29
20 - C25
Cause of problem
I left some screws in a pocket I forgot to check. Drum got stuck stalled and machine didn't spin, I took apart machine and drum, found all screws in drum and pump assembly, reassembly went well.
Possibly fault induced by stalling the machine or by myself while reassembly / taking apart.
Tried the following
* Resetting fault codes.
* Double checking water feed.
* Filter in water feed line seams fine, water is feed to machine.
* Can't find any loose wires.
Hope someone have some guidance,
Kind regards,
Martin Olsson
Solution Summary
AI-generated from this discussion
This thread was marked as solved. Here's a summary of the problem and the fix, generated from the discussion below.
Zanussi ZWF14791W runs pump and spins but does not fill on wash cycle
- The problem
- The washing machine started programmes, locked the door, ran the drain pump for about 8-10 seconds and then rotated the drum dry, but it would not take in any water. Spin-only was ultimately shown to work normally when tested empty. Reported stored codes included C11, E71 and EF4. The issue appeared after screws left in a pocket had jammed the drum and were later removed from the drum and pump during strip-down.
- Likely cause
- Most strongly supported diagnosis is a fill fault: the inlet valve was not opening during a wash cycle, despite confirmed water supply to the machine. The accepted reply focused on lack of water supply or blocked inlet filters/hoses, but the original poster had already confirmed good flow and removed the inlet filter for testing. Exact failed part was not confirmed.
- What fixed it
- Confirmed checks were to verify the pump was actually running, confirm the water supply and hose were not kinked, listen at the rear to distinguish pump noise from inlet-valve hum, and check inlet filters. No completed repair was documented. Further diagnosis should be carried out by a suitably qualified appliance engineer.
- Checks to try
- Retrieved fault codes C11, E71 and EF4
- Confirmed water supply and good flow with machine pulled out
- Checked for hose kinks
- Removed inlet filter for testing
- Confirmed no humming from the inlet valve area
- Checked pump impeller/pump operation via filter opening
- Tested spin cycle empty and confirmed full spin on second attempt
- Tested wash cycle without water hose attached and got E10
- Parts or tools mentioned
- Inlet filter
- Drain pump
- Pump impeller
- Multimeter
Safety: Further diagnosis should be carried out by a suitably qualified appliance engineer.
10 Answers
Hello there. When you put it onto a wash cycle washing machine will normally energise the pump first for several to 30 seconds. Can you hear the water pump running okay? After this it will take in water. If it is not taking in water, and you can hear a humming sound this is usually because there is no water supply. I know you have said that you checked that but make sure it's not a kinked hose when you push the washing machine back in place.
If you can place your ear at the back of the washing machine where the water valves are, or press your ear up against where the fill hose connects to the water valves if this is where the humming is then it's definitely a water valve trying to taking water but not having any water to take in. Doublecheck the filters in the water valves and make sure there are no filters in the hoses that are blocked. There usually isn't but some can have filters in them.
If on the other hand the humming noise is right at the beginning when you first switch on the washing machine this would indicate that the water pump is jammed.
Need Professional Help or Spare Parts?
Thank you for your quick reply.
Water supply confirmed
* I've triple checked water supply, it's ok.
(I've got the machine pulled out while testing, no kinks very good flow and I've confirmed that the water is turned on. )
* Completely removed the inlet filter for test purposes. Water is definitely reaching inlet valve.
"Can you hear the water pump running okay? "
I press start and the following happens. (Program 1 Cotton).
1. Hatch is locked.
2. Pump starts humming after 1-2 seconds, runns approximately 8-u10 seconds.
3. Display is showing spinnings arrows.
4. Drum starts spinning dry, about 20 seconds from pressing start.
if this is where the humming is then it's definitely a water valve trying to taking water"
"If you can place your ear at the back of the washing machine where the water valves are, or press your ear up against where the fill hose connects to the water valves if this is where the humming is then it's definitely a water valve trying to taking water but not having any water to take in. "
* No humming from water valve.
* I can't confirm or deny clicking sound from valve. I can hear a faint clicking sound form somewhere on the top of the machine but I'm not able to pinpoint the sound.
Linking to video of pump huming: https://photos.app.goo.gl/K24PYgjUSWeY1KvW7
Not sure if this is a running dry sound or a stalled sound. I guess a screw could have made it into the pump but it looks clear.
VID_20210114_185415.mp4
Remove the pump filter and see if you can see if the pump impeller is turning or not. It sounds like an extremely quiet pump or the pump may not be running. Obviously without any water inside.
Need Professional Help or Spare Parts?
Ok, that's smart. Yes pump is running.
Still no luck.
Since the pump is turning could it possibly be the solenoid inlet valve or maybe it might be the control board?
Anyone with advices on further trouble shooting?
I've got a multimeter and an electrician education so I guess with some guidance I could do some measurements.
What exactly does it do on a spin only cycle?
Need Professional Help or Spare Parts?
I did a couple of test runs with the spin cycle, 14 min cycle length.
A moist towel and a hoodie in the drum.
This is what happens after program start:
1. Hatch is locking.
2. Starts spinning back and forth alternating direction, slowly spinning, low rpm ( 8 seconds left, stops 8 seconds, 8 seconds right).
3. After 7 minutes it runs the drain pump for a couple of seconds.
4. Directly after running pump program stops prematurely at 7 minutes.
5. Opens hatch.
Strangely two days ago, id did spinn up to full spin while running spin cycle. Now it only spins back and fort slowly.
Video of test run, spin cycle:
Hi there. Unfortunately that's a terrible load to test the washing machine with. Any washing machine would struggle to balance that load and therefore may not do the spin. If the washing machine can't balance the load satisfactorily you will just go through the full spin cycle turning back and forth for turning round and round and then just switch off. Please test it without any loading at all on spin cycle. If it doesn't actually kick into the fast spin there could be a problem with the pressure system.
Need Professional Help or Spare Parts?
Yes, I can confirm this was user error, unbalanced load.
I tried the spin cycle without any load a couple of times. At the second attempt I got it to spin up to full speed. Seams to be doing a normal operation of spin cycle for what I can tell, (attaching video link below). Spinning fast.
I also noticed:
The machine gives error code E10 when I run a wash cycle without the water hose attached. Therefore I believe the machine's detection for water pressure at the inlet valve is functioning ok.
It's so strange that it's simply not opening the inlet valves when running a wash cycle, especially since I didn't touch this part of the machine when I disassembled the drum.
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