ise ISE W288 Stopped mid wash no power!

[AndyM]

As the title says, I have an ISE W288 eco Washing Machine. It is five years old and as ISE has folded and no longer has it free parts and labour guarantee.

The other day I put a wash on, it got to the rinse cycle and then stopped. No power, No lights, nothing. I have checked the fuse and the plug socket and have opened up the machine and put a circuit tester across the mains input and power is getting as far as the control module. The on/off button does not respond, so the machine is dead.

Am I right in thinking that the problem could actually be the control module rather than the door mech or heater element. The machine is in good condition, is kept clean and has not been over used as I live by myself.

Please advise as I do not want to spend £200 on a new control Board in vein but at the moment I cannot imagine it is anything else.

Update;  Just put my circuit tester across the heater element and it has continuity and shows 24.4 Ohm resistance which is fine.

In addition if I put my circuit tester on the live input for the Motor Control Unit and Neutral there is no power but if i put one of the probes to earth there is 240v regardless of if the power button is on or off......

Edited March 15, 2018 by AndyM
update

[Whitegoodshelp (Andy)]

Power usually goes down the mains cable, through the mains suppressor/filter then down to the main pcb. From there it goes to the control panel, on / off switch and door lock. If the door lock was faulty I would still expect to see power on the control panel and able to select wash cycles. If the on off switch was faulty I would expect the machine to be totally dead. Have you checked continuity across both poles of the on off switch (with mains power off)?

I would never recommend fitting a PCB. They are commonly misdiagnosed, and even if the fault is within the pcb it's possible another fault somewhere else has damaged it.

[AndyM]

Thanks for the reply,

There are six pins on the power switch, two rows of three. If I put the probes on the centre pin and either of the other pins on the same row (1 and 2 in the image) and turn the switch on and off i get a signal, if I put the probes on any of the pins on opposing rows (3 and 4) then I get nothing. Does indicate a dead switch. 

[AndyM]

Ok, having looked online I believe the power switch is fine...

I've just checked the resistance of the different components in the machine and written the on the circuit info sheet to compare with the specs (see picture).

The glaring difference is the resistance of the door mech (with door closed) I am only getting 0.3 Ohm instead of 122 Ohm.

Would the door mech failing have damaged the control board?  Looks like I'm going to need a new Door mech as well as control board.

Update: I believe there is a misprint on the info sheet. It says that the resistance should be 122 Ohm between connectors 1-2 which is in fact just a copper contact, so of course the resistance would only be 0.3 as that is the resistance of the wire and copper contacts. If I test contacts 2-3, across the solenoid, then the resistance is 117 Ohm which i believe is fine. On closer inspection, as in taking the mech out and opening it up there are no signs of the solenoid coil being damaged or burnt out so now I believe it is fine.)

I couldn't detect any shorts or other issues with the electrics in the machine. So I'm still looking at a non working control module.

 

Edited March 18, 2018 by AndyM
update

[AndyM]

Hi Andy, any ideas? Still looks like i'll be needing a new control module.......

[Whitegoodshelp (Andy)]

Hello Andy. I'm not aware of a washing machine where the power goes directly to the door interlock and stops there until the door is closed. If the door interlock is faulty then the control panel should still light up, you should still be able to select a wash cycle and options, but without the door closed (and the door interlock activated) the wash cycle would not start. If the entire control panel is dead I would not suspect the door interlock. However I suppose it's possible for a door interlock to short out but I'm not convinced something like that would blow the main power module. A power surge could potentially blow the control module and even other parts.

Unfortunately no one is going to be able to tell you that it needs a power module and once replaced everything will be fine. As you are not a domestic appliance engineer, and you don't have access to parts to swap out you are in a very weak position regarding fixing the appliance. You could of course try to obtain a new PCB and fit it. If you manage that there is of course a chance everything will be fine, but there is a chance that it won't be fine and you have just spent a lot of money and still have the problem. If you are totally determined to try and get to the bottom of it you could try sending the control panel and/or PC board to QER having first contacted them and ensured they can test them for you. They may be able to test them, repair them, or replace them with reconditioned units if appropriate.

Alternatively try asking at UK Whitegoods where many of the former ISE dealers and engineers answer questions in their forums. These guys will have had a lot of experience on the ISE washing machines.

[AndyM]

Hi Andy, thanks for the reply. Slight misunderstanding about the power and door mech but no problem. Looks as if it is the control module so I will ask UK Whitegoods, it was on their recommendation that I bought it in the first place and I will contact QER. The bottom line is I take the risk and fix it or bin it and fork out on a new machine, either way I'm spending a few hundred quid...Thanks for the advise, wish me luck 

[Whitegoodshelp (Andy)]

Keep us informed. The model you have is a very good quality washing machine. Much better quality than the average washing machine sold these days. So it may very well be worth investing in a repair.

[AndyM]

Hi Andy,

Just thought i'd update you on my progress. Managed to get some help from Dave at the UK Whitegoods forum. Apparently a common failure on Control modules and not just ISE or washing machines for that matter, is the failure of the power converter chip (red arrow in second image). This failure tends to blow the low value resistor that can be found connected in series with the supply to the chip (first image).

I am awaiting for parts to arrive and will see if this fixes the problem. In addition I found a video on you tube of an engineer having to replace the same parts on a tumble dryer.

I will let you know if this works.

 

Cheers Andy

[Whitegoodshelp (Andy)]

Excellent. Thanks very much for the update. Please let us know how you get on.

[flannel]

My 7 year old ISE 10 (W256W) has just started doing the same. The only difference is that if I turn the power off at the socket, leave it a few seconds and then turn it on again, the machine lights up for a few seconds but not long enough to change anything. Power button does nothing.

Will be exploring inside this weekend.

AndyM, I can't find your topic on the WhiteGoods site, please can you post a link.

Edited March 5, 2020 by flannel
To add last sentence

[Whitegoodshelp (Andy)]

14 hours ago, flannel said:

AndyM, I can't find your topic on the WhiteGoods site, please can you post a link

I think he said it was on UK Whitegoods site, it’s a similar name to Whitegoodshelp

[flannel]

For reference, the post is here: https://www.ukwhitegoods.co.uk/forums/forum/public-support-forums/help-and-support/washing-machine-help-forum/91443-ise-w288-eco-no-power

[flannel]

For reference, the post with my problem and eventual solution is here:

https://www.ukwhitegoods.co.uk/forums/forum/public-support-forums/help-and-support/washing-machine-help-forum/857052-ise-10-w256w-asko-wm70-1-won-t-turn-on