Given that LG washing machines are among the most trusted washer brands, that doesn’t mean they don’t fail. These washers suffer a few issues here and there that you can fix with the right LG washing machine troubleshooting guide.
Some of the commonest LG washing machine problems to try and troubleshoot include an LG washer that won’t turn on, spin, drain, or fill up with water. Other issues include having no power or lights, a nonresponsive start button, and a non-working display.
While these issues may look challenging to fix, and you would probably think of calling LG, most aren’t. You can fix them yourself and save time and cash; this guide will help you do just that.
In addition to the seven issues, I’ll share a guide to troubleshooting common LG washing machine error codes. Remember, the error codes are how the washer communicates a problem. So, once you can interpret them, then you can troubleshoot them.
Let’s dive in!
In a hurry? Below are seven issues shared earlier that are common among various LG washing machine types and their troubleshooting guide.
Quick LG Washing Machine Troubleshooting Guide
| Problem | Likely Cause | Fix | |
| 1. | LG Washer Won’t Turn On | Lack of power, turned-off control panel, Child Lock, wrong setting, or open lid/door | Ensure the washer has power, turn on the control panel, deactivate Child Lock, choose the correct setting, and close the lid/door |
| 2. | LG Washer Won’t Spin | Inadequate power, washer imbalance, unbalanced load, excess suds, wrong setting, unlatched door, or a defective drive belt, motor, or control board | Replace a defective cord or outlet, balance the washer and load, and avoid excess/non-HE detergents. Choose the right setting, firmly latch the door, and replace a faulty belt, motor, or control board |
| 3. | LG Washer Won’t Drain | Unbalanced load or washer, excess suds, clogged drain hose or pump, or a defective drain pump or lid switch | Balance the load and washer, avoid excess/non-HE detergents, clean the drain pump and hose, and replace a defective drain pump or lid switch |
| 4. | LG Washer Won’t Fill with Water | Water valves are off, kinked/clogged inlet hose, reduced water pressure, or a clogged water filter | Open the water valves, unkink/unclog the inlet hose, adjust the water pressure to 14.5-116 psi, and clean the water filter |
| 5. | No Power, No Lights | Loose power cord, tripped breaker, blown-up fuse, or defective socket, user interface board, or main control board | Firmly fix the power cord, reset the breaker, replace a blown-up fuse or defective socket, user interface board, or main control board |
| 6. | Nonresponsive Start Button | Program hitch, stuck key, defective control panel, or broken PCB board | Reset the washer, clean the stuck button, and replace a bad control panel or broken PCB board |
| 7. | Non-Working Display | Lack of power, damaged display, or defective control board | Check the washer’s power supply and replace a damaged display or faulty control board |
7 Common LG Washing Machine Problems
Below are the seven most typical LG washing machine problems and their troubleshooting guide:
1. LG Washing Machine Not Turning On
Something must be wrong when your LG washer won’t turn on. In most cases, here are the issues that could be stopping the washing machine from powering on and running:
- Lack of power – Your washer might be lacking power, perhaps due to a loose power cord, tripped breaker, non-working outlet, or blown-up fuse. So, determine which issues relate to your LG washing machine and fix it.
- Turned-off control panel – Due to a few hours of inactivity, the washer’s control panel automatically goes off. That, however, doesn’t mean something is wrong with the control panel or the washer.
- Child Lock – If active, the Child Lock feature locks the washer’s control panel controls other than the power switch. As a result, the control panel might light up, but the washer won’t turn on.
- Wrong setting – Some settings, such as Delay Wash or Demo Mode, stop the washing machine from turning. Delay Wash, for example, delays its starting time to a later time, while Demo Mode only demonstrates the washer’s features but doesn’t allow it to turn on for real.
- Open lid/door – If the lid or door is open, the washing machine won’t turn on. You’ve to shut it first.
Fix
First, ensure your LG washing machine has power. That means firmly plugging the power cord, resetting a tripped breaker, and ensuring the electric outlet and thermal fuse work.
You can check if the outlet and fuse work using a multimeter. If they lack electrical continuity, replace them. Also, ensure your outlet is 120-VAC rated.
Check the control panel and ensure it’s turned on. If it’s not, turn it off, as it could be inactive. If Child Lock is active, disable it and turn off Delay Wash and Demo Mode.
Lastly, if the lid or door is open, try to latch it firmly. If it won’t lock, test the door switch/ latch for continuity and replace it if it shows none.
2. LG Washing Machine Not Spinning
Spinning is a critical part of the washing machine’s washing performance. Without spinning, the washer won’t get the clothes clean, and here are some issues that can stop an LG washer from turning:
- Inadequate power – An issue like a defective power cord or socket could lead to insufficient power delivery to the washer. As a result, the washer may fail to spin.
- Washer imbalance – If the washing machine is out of balance, perhaps resting on an uneven surface or having loose feet, it will have difficulty spinning.
- Unbalanced load – If the wet clothes are not uniformly spread within the drum, the washer may not spin properly or fail to turn. Thus, you should check the laundry distribution to ensure it’s even.
- Excess suds – Many suds form from using excess detergent. Sometimes, however, it’s an issue of using the wrong detergent, which in this case are non-HE detergents. In some cases, the LG washer sounds like a jet engine due to excess suds.
- Wrong setting – If Child Lock is on, the washer won’t spin. Similarly, the washer won’t spin if you use a no-spin setting. If it’s a low-spin setting, you might not notice it turning.
- Unlatched door – Once the door is left open, the washer may see it as a fault and will therefore stop running. And if it doesn’t run, then the drum won’t spin.
Other causes
- Broken drive belt – The belt enables the drum to turn. If it’s broken, the drum won’t spin, and that means you won’t be able to use the washer.
- Defective motor – If the motor is faulty, the washer won’t spin. The issue is more likely to be wear, but before concluding that, ensure the motor is not jammed.
- Defective control board – If you can’t find why your LG washer won’t spin, it could be that the main control board is no longer working. This board could have short-circuited; if that’s the case, the washer will fail to start.
Fix
Inspect the power cord and socket with a multimeter to determine if they have continuity. If they don’t, replace them. Meanwhile, ensure your washer is well balanced, as should the clothes.
Avoid using non-HE detergents and use HE detergents instead. While at it, ensure you don’t apply too much of it.
If Child Lock is on, disable it, de-select any low-spin or no-spin option, and select a high-spin cycle.
Check if anything impedes the door and remove it and try to close the door. If the door won’t close, test the lid switch’s continuity with a multimeter and replace it if it shows no continuity.
And if you have a broken drive belt or defective motor, replace it, and if it’s none of the two, replace the main control board.
3. LG Washing Machine Not Draining
Good drainage is vital for a washing machine as it determines if it can spin correctly and clean the clothes. Some issues, however, may stop the LG washer from draining its wastewater.
These issues include the following:
- Unbalanced load – The washer will have difficulty draining if the wet clothes are out of balance. In such a case, most water will remain in the tub.
- Washing machine imbalance – If the washer is out of balance, it won’t be able to drain all the water, so some water will likely remain in the tub.
- Excess suds – Too many suds interfere with drainage. The chances are that the water may fail to drain at all.
- Clogged hose – If the drain hose is dirt-clogged, wastewater won’t drain. That’s part of the reason you should frequently inspect and clean the drain hose.
- Clogged or defective drain pump – The drain pump’s job is to pump out wastewater. It’s, however, unable to do that when it’s clogged or faulty.
- Defective lid switch – If the lid switch is faulty, the lid won’t shut; if it doesn’t, the washer may fail to run or drain.
Fix
Redistribute the load even if it’s out of balance and ensure the washing machine is stable. Avoid using excess detergent, especially non-HEs, and use HE detergents instead.
If the drain hose and drain pump are clogged, clean them. Moreover, check if the drain pump and lid switch have electrical continuity. If any of them doesn’t, replace it.
4. LG Washing Machine Not Filling with Water
Before the washer starts to wash, the tub has to fill up with water, and you can tell if that’s the case if your LG washing machine makes a whistling sound. Sometimes, however, these issues may prevent that from happening:
- Water valves are off – Both the cold and hot water valves should be open. If they aren’t, the washer won’t fill up with water.
- Kinked/clogged inlet hose – If the inlet hose is kinked or clogged, water won’t flow and fill up the washer.
- Reduced water pressure – The correct water pressure for LG washers is about 14.5-116psi. If the pressure is below 14.5psi, the washer won’t fill up with water.
- Clogged water filter – If it is clogged, it may interfere with water flow, which might be why the washer won’t fill up.
Fix
Turn on the cold and hot water valves if they are not open, and unkink or unclog the inlet hose. Increase the water pressure above 14.5psi by clearing any constriction along the supply tube. More importantly, clean the water filter if it’s clogged.
5. LG Washing Machine No Power No Lights
It mainly points to a power issue when the washer won’t light up, and it often points to the following matters:
- Loose power cable – If the power cord is loose, your washer may fail to receive any power, so it won’t light up.
- Tripped breaker – The washer may fail to light up if the circuit breaker trips up. That’s likely to be the case following a power surge.
- Blown-up fuse – Another aftermath of a power surge is a blown-up fuse. If so, the washer may fail to light up.
- Defective socket – If the electric socket is faulty, the washer may fail to get any power and will therefore fail to light up
- Defective user interface board or main control board – Also, expect the washer to fail to light up if the user interface board or main control board is faulty.
Fix
Firmly fix the power cable into the socket and reset the breaker if it’s tripped up. Test the fuse and socket with a multimeter. If any lacks continuity, replace it.
And if they are okay, consider replacing the user interface board first. If that doesn’t fix the washer problem, replace the main control board.
6. LG Washing Machine Start Button Not Responding
It’s not often that the LG washing machine start button becomes nonresponsive. It can, however, happen due to the following issues:
- Program hitch – If your washer suffers an electronic glitch, the start button and other controls may become nonresponsive.
- Stuck key – If the control panel is filthy, the extra dirt may cause the start button to stick. Once that’s the case, it’ll become nonresponsive.
- Defective control panel – If the washer’s control panel is not working, some buttons, including the start button, may become nonresponsive.
- Broken PCB board – If all the buttons are nonresponsive, it’s likely due to a defective Printed Circuit Board (which is a part of the main control board)
Fix
Reset the washer to fix a program hitch, and here’s how to reset an LG washing machine:
- Unplug the washer out of the wall socket
- Press Power/Start and wait for 5 seconds
- Press Play/Pause and wait for another 5 seconds
- Plug back the washer, then press Power
If the start button is stuck, clean around it and underneath it and try to unstick it, but if the switch is broken or the control panel is defective, replace the control panel.
However, if all the buttons are nonresponsive and the issue is not failed power, replace the PCB or main control board.
7. LG Washing Machine Display Not Working
Lastly, if your LG washing machine’s display shows nothing, that could point to any of these three issues:
- Lack of power
- Damaged display
- Defective control board
Fix
First, check if your washing machine has power. If it doesn’t, check the fixes shared under an ‘LG washer that won’t turn’ above. If the display is damaged, replace it; if it’s none of the two issues, replace the main control board.
LG Washing Machine Troubleshooting Codes – Quick Guide
Below is a table for troubleshooting the commonest LG washing machine error codes.
| Error Code | Meaning | What to Do |
| UE | Unbalanced load | Redistribute the laundry evenly |
| PF | Power failure | Check the washer’s power supply |
| Sud | Excess suds | Reduce the amount of detergent and avoid non-HE detergents |
| nE/nF | Wi-Fi not connected | Check the washer’s Wi-Fi connection |
| Cl | Child Lock | Press Child Lock for 3 seconds to disable it |
| OE | Slow drainage | Clean the drain pump and hose and avoid excess detergent |
| IE | Water inlet fault | Unkink the inlet hose and ensure the inlet valve is open |
| PE | Water-level sensor fault | Reset the washer and call a washer expert if the code won’t clear |
| LE | Locked motor | Reset the washer and call a washer expert if the code won’t clear |
| EE | Corrupted EEPROM | Reset the washer |
| dE/dEL/dE1/dE2 | Open lid | Shut the lid or replace the lid switch if the lid won’t shut |
| tE | Heating sensor fault | Reset the washer and call a washer expert if the code won’t clear |
Closing Thought:
Above is an LG washing machine troubleshooting guide for typical problems and error codes. That includes when your washer fails to turn on, spin, drain, and fill up or when the display or start button won’t work, or the washer has no power or lights.
So, consider the guide before calling LG or spending money needlessly on a local washing machine expert. You might be startled to discover you can fix issues only a washer expert could fix!
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