Indesit F11 error

Hello there. Error codes never indicate that a specific part needs replacing. It would be great if they did, but they are almost always just a general point in the right direction for someone who understands how they work to start investigating. The F11 code for example on many Indesit washing machines implicates the pump, but it's easily misunderstood because it says "pump failure". You would think that "pump failure" means that the pump needs replacing, but they just mean that it has failed to pump out the water or at the very least it thinks it's failed to pump out the water (more on this later).

So this fault could mean anything from a faulty pump, to broken wiring and connections somewhere, or even something jamming the pump or a blocked filter. Or, like many error codes, it could be completely misleading.

The only way the washing machine software can tell whether the water has been pumped out or not is through the pressure system. When the water has gone, the pressure switch resets and sends a signal that the water has been pumped away. But of course, if the pressure system is faulty, it's possible that the software never receives the signal that the water has pumped out, and wrongly thinks there is a problem pumping the water away. The way we can differentiate this is relatively simple. If the pump has a problem, then it is highly likely to have failed to pump out the water.

So if you get an error code implicating a pump fault, and your washing machine is full of water that has not been pumped away, then you can be fairly confident there is an issue somewhere that is preventing the pump from working. But on the other hand, if you get an error code implicating pump failure, but the washing machine has pumped away the water perfectly okay, then it's unlikely to be anything to do with the pump.

So with a pump failure error, the first thing is to check, is the pump running? And then the second thing to check is for physical obstructions and blockages, and then the resistance on the pump. Basically any resistance reading is likely to indicate that the pump is okay, because in my experience, the pump's field coil is either perfectly okay, or it is completely open circuit.

So if we take the error code that's just a guide somewhere to start it's necessary to try and establish exactly what is wrong without taking the error code too literally. Is the pump running on the spin cycle? Is the washing machine pumping the waterway okay or is it leaving a full or half a drum full of water?

Note that with some washing machines, the pump does not run when there is no water inside the washing machine. This is a problem because it means the only way to test it thoroughly is to put more water in the washing machine, which of course would get stuck inside if the pump genuinely is not pumping away the water. However, my article below contains instructions on how to drain a washing machine if that becomes necessary.

So if you still feel that the problem is to do with the pump not pumping the water away my article below gives general advice on troubleshooting that.

Washing machine not pumping water away