Washing machine does not heat - possible causes and repair costs

• fault diagnosis
• heating elements
• electronics
• pump
• Cables and small parts
• wash tub

When the washing machine stops heating it is not only disadvantageous but also annoying, because without heated water many stains can not be eliminated. Especially with dirty laundry, which depends on a cooking program, the heating power must not fail. If your laundry gets cold out of the machine and it still looks dirty, you should start with a problem with the heating elements or the electronic control of the washing machine. Since these causes can only be identified and remedied by people with specialist knowledge in electronics, normal consumers will incur different repair costs depending on the severity of the problem.

Possible causes

Like other home appliances, washing machines are among the most heavily used and many of the components used wear out after a few years. If the heat fails during washing, this can not happen only because of worn parts. This may be the fault of the electronics, which is either defective or needs to be reset. The possible causes are:

• Problems with the heating element or the heating elements
• Cable contacts defective
• NTC sensor defective (thermistor)
• possibly damaged insulation
• Cable burned or broken, rarely loose contact
• Dry run protection defective
• Heating contactor defective
• incorrect assignment of the program switch
• clogged air damper
• Laugenbottich leaked
• pump defective

As you can see, the reasons for inadequate heat output can be manifold and often require expertise and specialized gauges to detect them at all. An example of this are resistances inside the machine, such as the temperature sensor. Most of the causes can only be solved through a check or repair, since the heating elements are connected to the control board via electronic connections, which can also be damaged. Nevertheless, you can carry out an analysis of the obvious cables and solder joints yourself without having any knowledge in this area. To do this open the back and the lid of the machine.

You need this:

• Phillips screwdriver or Torx screwdriver, depending on the model
• bucket
• Towels to dry

Tip: Only use a screwdriver that is protected against possible electrical charges. Since the washing machine is an electrical appliance, you should play it safe here.

error code

Before you open the washing machine, you should pay attention to whether your machine displays a code on the control panel during the washing. This is important, because modern machines in particular have a large number of sensors and mechanisms that detect problems and provide you with an error code. Depending on the manufacturer, these differ naturally and for this reason you should look into the instructions for use of the machine and look for the code. This saves you potential repair costs because you know in advance what the problem could be. Of course this is not the case with older models.

First check

You're probably wondering why you're only opening the back and lid of the machine, not the front. This is mainly due to the door. The washing machine door is quite heavy to disassemble and even harder to reattach properly if you do not have the necessary skills. Therefore, you should only remove the two parts mentioned, as they can be removed purely through a suitable screwdriver and some power. For the check, proceed as follows:

Step 1: Disconnect the washing machine from the electricity. Pull the machine slightly forward to access the hoses.

Step 2: Close the faucet and then remove the hoses. Here it is important to put the bucket under the openings in the machine in advance, so that the water can flow into it.

Step 3: Empty hoses into the bucket or a sink. Place these safely away from electronic wires or sockets.

Step 4: Now you can open the rear screws with the screwdrivers. At least two are in the upper corners and others can be distributed over the entire back, depending on the manufacturer.

Step 5: After the screws have been removed, you can carefully lift the back and put it on a wall, for example.

Step 6: Now you can remove the lid. To do this, pull it slightly forward and lift it off. The lid is opened via connectors that only work when the back is opened. That makes it easy to remove him to the back. Also place the lid on a wall.

Step 7: Now you can look at the inside of the washing machine as best it can. Check all possible power cables and solder joints, whether they are broken or blown. Also, look for kinks because even these will cause the heating elements to fail. Likewise possible loose contacts.

Step 8: In the upper right part of the device, visible through the lid, you can discover the machine's control board. Take these out of the device very carefully and check the connections here as well.

9th step: Cables often break loose due to the movement of the machine and they can actually be soldered again.

10th step: If you can solder, you could repair the cold solder joints yourself, but it is not a problem if this is done by a professional. It's just safer.

If you have discovered possible sources of error, you should notify the technician, as this can exclude certain causes. Of course this is reflected in the price, as it does not have to stay that long or unnecessarily check components, which takes time. For this reason, this check can at least give you an idea of ​​what might be causing the problem. After that, it is necessary to have a specialist carry out the necessary repairs if you yourself do not have enough experience in the field of electrical engineering.
Note: Depending on when the technician has time for you, you can leave the machine open. For longer waiting times you should close them again, so that not accidentally water, for example when showering, gets into the machine.

Repair costs in detail

If you need to have your washing machine repaired, depending on the cause and the cost, you will be paid appropriate repair costs, which can easily end up in the three-digit range. Once you have no more warranty on the unit, you have to pay all the repair costs yourself, which can be quite expensive for washing machines. Especially when individual components have to be completely replaced, such as the pump, costs are due to the time, the change and the replacement pump to you. Due to the nationwide use of washing machines, the repair costs are quite favorable. Possible cost items:

• fault diagnosis
• Replace heating elements
• Repair electronics
• Replace pump
• Replace cables and insulation
• Replace the liquor vat

fault diagnosis

The fault diagnosis is essential before you even think about a possible repair of the machine. The diagnosis tells the technician what the cause of the error is and how it can be corrected most quickly. Fault diagnostics are quite cheap and amount to ten to 25 euros in the larger German cities, since the professionals here do not have to take long journeys and accordingly can schedule the appointments. Off the well-developed cities, prices between 30 and 60 euros can be incurred. The cheap cities include Berlin, Frankfurt and Cologne, where there are even some free offers.

Tip: Small errors such as clogged air dampers can also be corrected during fault diagnosis.

heating elements

Replacing a heating element or certain heating elements sounds much more expensive than it actually is. Since the heating element is one of the components in the washing machine that suffers most from wear, they must be replaced quite frequently. Above all, they suffer too much limescale in the water and quickly break down. When replacing the heating elements is required between 150 and 200 euros, because not every manufacturer allows the same heating elements. For example, heating rods at AEG cost between around 60 and 80 euros, while Miele costs between 35 and 90 euros, depending on the model. Original parts are generally more expensive here.

electronics

The cost of repairing the electronics is difficult to calculate because many electronic components in the machine may be damaged. Mostly only one element burns through here, but it is particularly expensive with the control board. The costs amount depending on the element to 100 to 800 euros. In particular, the control of modern machines is here to mention, since the technique is very sophisticated and difficult to install, since a variety of configurations must be properly adjusted. For example, certain AEG electronic controllers cost a whopping 500 to 550 euros. The older the device, the cheaper the repair will be.

pump

With the pump, there is a part that also needs to be replaced quite often, as it is constantly being used. It can clog, which is not bad, but also completely unusable due to wear. Then this must be changed, which costs between 150 and 250 euros. There may be other low costs to you if other parts in the immediate vicinity of the pump are worn, such as hoses or covers.

Cables and small parts

Here is a direct cost analysis is not possible because each component requires different connections. These costs are among the least and are often not even included in the bill.

wash tub

The Laugenbottich is broken only in rare cases, but requires quite a long time until it is replaced, since it encloses the drum. Possible repair costs start here at 500 euros.

Is it worth a repair ">

Tip: If you are not sure whether a repair is worthwhile, you can also get a quote from the respective technicians. This effectively reduces potential repair costs and you can easily invest in a new machine if necessary.