John Lewis JLWM1203 washing machine doesn’t start

[Redmonolith]

My JLWM1203 washing machine is 3.5 years old. The LED display gives all normal messages, but it doesn’t start when the start/stop button is depressed. The clicking sound of the start/stop button sounds normal. No child lock is applied. The door interlock is checked and dismissed as the reason by a washing machine repire engineer. It is suspected that the PCB control module is faulty, if that’s case, I am not sure it’s worth repairing. Before I scrap this machine and buy another one, is there any other reasons/faults that I should/could check? Many thanks for any advise.

Other details: PNC: 914522514(00); MCF:132418411.001; CCF: 132535281.003; Firmware: WBE20206

[iadom]

Re: John Lewis JLWM1203 washing machine doesn’t start

Did the engineer you had out to look at the machine run it through a full diagnostics test?

If not then a visit from someone who is capable of such a thing would be advisable. 😉

However it is worth noting that Zanussi PCB’s have become more prone to failure in the past few years. 😥

[suedehead1]

Re: John Lewis JLWM1203 washing machine doesn’t start

Redmonolith wrote: The door interlock is checked and dismissed

the only way to really check a door lock is in my opinion to try a new one on.

[Redmonolith]

Re: John Lewis JLWM1203 washing machine doesn’t start

Thanks guys. 1) The machine was tested with a new door interlock in place, no responses what so ever. 2) No systematic diagnostic tests were conducted (apart from the heating element was measured and found functioning). I guess this would have to be conducted by someone who has the knowledge of this type of test for this particular machine? There is an John Lewis authorised repair agent based in Bolton near Manchester. Their call out charge is £85. The cost of a new PCB is about £176. With VAT on top, the potential repair cost goes above £300, not economically worthy anymore.

A further thought, are there any generic or specific design information of the PCB available in public domain? With that, I could try to test the PCB myself, with my basic knowledge in electronics. Alternatively, is general PCB repair shops an option?

Thanks

[Specialist01269]

Re: John Lewis JLWM1203 washing machine doesn’t start

Hi: you don’t need a John Lewis authorised Engineer, you just need someone who is competent & familiar with testing Zanussi machines.
A local independent repairer would no doubt be more cost effective, you could try the UKWG repairs@ feature to see if we have an independent engineer listed in your area.

[Evonet]

Re: John Lewis JLWM1203 washing machine doesn’t start

Hi, my JLWM1203 dated 2008 recently had exactly the same symptom. Close inspection of the controller pcb showed that the triac BTB16-700BWRG was toast – a high voltage spike on the mains while it’s running is all it takes to blow it. A replacement cost 69p from Farnell (why not get a couple?). You’ll need a soldering iron to solder the new one in. If you don’t have any heatsink grease to put between the triac and the aluminium heatsink, you can use a small nut and bolt to ensure good contact. All-in-all, a lot cheaper than a new washing machine! 🙂

Chris, Cambridge.

[speedojames]

Re: John Lewis JLWM1203 washing machine doesn’t start

Chris or anyone else with knowledge…

It looks like my JLWM 1203 has exactly the same symptoms, everything appears normal but it won’t start any cycle when the start button is pressed. I have had a look at the main PCB from behind but can’t see anything that looks like the Triac mentioned above. Can anyone give me any guidance of where to look for this and any way of seeing whether it is faulty or not.

Many thanks, James

[captaincaveman1]

Re: John Lewis JLWM1203 washing machine doesn’t start

Its detecting its got a fault so it could be anything given the age its possible the motor brushes are worn. With the door shut the drum empty and the main dial in the off posision press both the start pause button and the next button to the left of it in together keeping them held in then turn the main dial once to the right all the LED’s will start to scroll now turn the main dial slowly one increment at a time the fault code will then at some point appear.To exit the test mode turn the main dial to off then once to the right ELE will appear in the display turn it back to off and that’s it. Inform us of the code.

[speedojames]

Re: John Lewis JLWM1203 washing machine doesn’t start

Captaincaveman,

Thanks so much for this. I have done what you said and come up with the error code E51. From the link below this seems to be the ‘Motor power triac short-circuited’. This seems to be what Chris (Evonet) suggested might be the problem.

http://www.ukwhitegoods.co.uk/help/fix- … codes.html

Is there any chance this can be fixed by replacing the Triac or am I looking at a new PCB to fix this issue?

[suedehead1]

Re: John Lewis JLWM1203 washing machine doesn’t start

i would be looking at the motor brushes first.

[speedojames]

Re: John Lewis JLWM1203 washing machine doesn’t start

suedehead, thanks for your reply. So I can understand better, why would you look at the motor brushes first given the above error code which points to the triac? Are these more often the problem on washing machines? The machine is 5 1/2 years olds and hasn’t had a particularly rough life, isn’t failure of brushes age related?

[suedehead1]

Re: John Lewis JLWM1203 washing machine doesn’t start

any fault code in the 50s is motor related the first thing i would always check would be the motor brushes average lifespan 5 years for brushes. 5 minutes would check them.

[speedojames]

Re: John Lewis JLWM1203 washing machine doesn’t start

Thanks, I’ll have a look tonight.

[speedojames]

Re: John Lewis JLWM1203 washing machine doesn’t start

So I’ve had a look at the brushes and both seem to be in good condition with plenty of length remaining (see two pictures linked to below). Is there anything else I can check around the motor end (leaks to ground in the cabling, etc.) or given the fault code does this point me back towards the PCB and the Triac?

https://goo.gl/photos/JHV7DTxAmnwPnUC57

Has anyone successfully replaced a Triac or am I looking at a new PCB to fix the issue if there doesn’t seem to be a problem at the motor end?

[speedojames]

Re: John Lewis JLWM1203 washing machine doesn’t start

Some further information. I have found what looks to be the motor triac on the rear of the PCB (see picture linked below).
https://goo.gl/photos/4yi6YWWP8CCA6CPf6

Following the guidance of a guide I found (again linked below) I have tried to determine whether the triac is working correctly using a multimeter. Without touching the gate line (the middle un-bent prong) I have measured the resistance between anode 1 and anode 2. This comes out at roughly 80-100 Ohms. When I measure the resistance between anode 1 and the gate or anode 2 and the gate I get a very high resistance and the resistance between the two anodes does not change when I connect the gate to one of the anodes. To me, all this implies the triac is malfunctioning, does anyone else have a view on this?
http://www.ab.com/support/abdrives/documentation/fb/1012.pdf

Finally, it looks like a relatively simple (although fiddly) job to replace the triac rather than buying a whole new board (or it at least sounds like something that is worth trying for the sake of a £1 triac before shelling out £140 for a new PCB). Can anyone confirm what Chris wrote above about the right replacement being BTB16-700BWRG?

Many thanks, James

[Author]

Posts