Simens machine freezes after exactly 35 seconds

Hey Andy

This was my first thought.

But now my question is why it keeps locking itself even without selecting a program.

or if i only use the tumbler mode.

it starts spinning like usual.

but then it just stops and freezes, with the only indication that it beebs twice when selecting another mode or pressing any button.

The only other option i can think of is some software issue.

but in the other hand, the only „reset“ option in the manual is to remove the plug and plug it back in after a few mins.

which i believe dosent factory resets it.

Cheers

These kind of faults are impossible to deal with on a diy basis. You need to be an engineer who can try swapping out parts to see if it fixes. Or an engineer with the luxury of being able to just order new control panel and main pcb and fit them both, which is what they do when working with appliances under warranty.

If out of warranty they just tell you it’s not worth repairing.

The problem with modern washing machines is that you can replace the control panel and main pcb and still be left with the fault because the issue was some weird uncatalogued thing or a faulty connection somewhere.

BTW what happens if you put it on a spin only cycle?

Hey Andy,

You’re right, they don’t provide a proper error code anymore.

But I believe I’ve found the issue: the grey water pump doesn’t spin at all.

Everything else works fine.

I assume it performs a motor check and fails after 35 seconds.

I just ordered a replacement pump module, so let’s see how it goes.

Fingers crossed. I would expect if you are right it should still produce an error code though. If it performs any check and the check fails, that's when it is easy to trigger an error code. Also, if a part isn't running, it could be because it doesn't hasn't been supplied with power, or there's no neutral return as well as a possible fault on the part.

Please let us know, even if it isn't that, it is useful for everyone to learn from it.

Hey Andy,

I just replaced it and everything works again after swapping the motor.

I could not find any visible issue with the original motor. The only thing I can think of is that one of the three magnets might not have been connected properly anymore. I never saw any error codes either. Hopefully I just got unlucky, since people who are not into DIY probably would not dig this deep and would just replace the whole unit.

A new one would have cost about 900 CHF (around 640 pounds), while the replacement part from a random site cost me 80 CHF (60 pounds).

Most importantly, i did not have to throw away an otherwise perfectly good machine.

Thank you very much Andy for this forum.

I hope this helps others.

Cheers

Well played Joe. Many people would have replaced the main pcb, which is what I was warning about. There are many faults that either don't trigger an error code or, worse still, they trigger an error code implicating a specific part erroneously.

The old days before error codes were the best. Back then, you could be a proper diagnostic engineer, which is most of the fun of doing the job.

You gambled and it paid off. As I said earlier, if a specific part is not running you never just replace the part because it may not be running because of electrical connection or wiring faults and could be in perfectly good health.