20 Most Recent Bosch Nexxt 500 WFMC3301 Front Load Washer - Page 7 Questions & Answers

Hi from retired Englishman in SW France,

If you have checked that the hot and cold water taps are turned on fully and the hoses are not kinked or squashed at the back, it is worth while checking both the hot and cold water inlet filters. Turn the taps off and remove both hoses at the washer end. Inside each inlet port there is normally a little filter which should just slide out. Clean if necessary and replace each one and the hoses. If after turning the taps back on there is no improvement, the problem is symptomatic of a malfunctioning hot or cold water control valve. Sorry but it needs a service call and a check that it isn't the control PCB ;-0(

If this has assisted you please consider a 4 thumbs up for the rating.
Thanks and good luck,
John C

Hi from retired Englishman in SW France,
I would gently suggest as a first step that you clean the drain motor/pump lint tray/filter. So many 'faults' are caused by blocked filters and many machines will not even go to rinse or spin or release the door lock if there is any water still left inside.
Here are my complete and generic guidance notes for checking both the drain motor filter and the drain motor ;-0)
If you are unsure where the filter is, it is often behind the front lower (kick) panel (or in some machines at the rear in an awkward position!). These panels are either held on by (plasic) screws or will just pull off. Most filters are held in by a round cover/knob. Sometimes the filter will not come out with the cover and you will have to persuade it to come out to play.

REMOVE POWER AND ENSURE YOU HAVE A WATER RECEPTACLE/RAGS TO SOAK UP THE WATER WHICH IS BOUND TO POUR OUT (alternatively use a wet vac as sensibly suggested by VinnyB1234!)
It's surprising what people have found in theirs! It is always worthwhile checking it on a regular basis.
Now- whilst the filter is removed it is normally possible to see the drain motor and ensure it is not jammed by a foreign object such as a needle or a toothpick. It should be able to be turned by hand/finger- the power IS OFF!
At this point it is also possible to test if the motor works. No clothes or water in the machine, select a spin cycle and put the power back on. You should be able to see the motor turning at some point, possibly straight away. Using something suitable like a glove see if it is easy to briefly slow the motor down. If it is easy then the motor is malfunctioning.

If this has assisted you please consider a 4 thumbs up for the rating.
Thanks and good luck!
John C

Hi Carly, Sorry to say this but (I am saying it gently!) it would help whoever helped you, if you will rate the solution accordingly- from the solution page rather than raising another post. In that way the person will know that they have been successful ;-0) Thanks, John C

The control board is indeed faulty as it is not sending sufficient voltage to the lock solenoid for proper locking operation. This is due to the locking drive circuit which may include the TRIACS. The only thing you can do other than replacing the control board is troubleshooting and repair of the control board itself which can be tedious and risky for the board or innovate a way to drive the lock solenoid by externally providing it the necessary voltage so that you don't have to take it apart and manually set it to lock. You should ask the manufacturer about the nominal voltage of lock solenoid.

When you say the spin cycle is not working do you mean that nothing works in the spin cycle. For example: Does the drum move or does it move and but the water isn't drained out?

Hi from retired Englishman in SW France,
(no promises but try this!)
I would gently suggest as a first step that you clean the drain motor/pump lint tray/filter. So many 'faults' are caused by blocked filters and many machines will not even go to spin or release the door lock if there is any water still left inside.
Here are my complete and generic guidance notes for checking both the drain motor filter and the drain motor ;-0)
If you are unsure where the filter is, it is often behind the front lower (kick) panel (or in some machines at the rear in an awkward position!). These panels are either held on by (plasic) screws or will just pull off. Most filters are held in by a round cover/knob. Sometimes the filter will not come out with the cover and you will have to persuade it to come out to play.

REMOVE POWER AND ENSURE YOU HAVE A WATER RECEPTACLE/RAGS TO SOAK UP THE WATER WHICH IS BOUND TO POUR OUT.
It's surprising what people have found in theirs! It is always worthwhile checking it on a regular basis.
Now- whilst the filter is removed it is normally possible to see the drain motor and ensure it is not jammed by a foreign object such as a needle or a toothpick. It should be able to be turned by hand/finger- the power IS OFF!
At this point it is also possible to test if the motor works. No clothes or water in the machine, select a spin cycle and put the power back on. You should be able to see the motor turning at some point, possibly straight away. Using something suitable like a glove see if it is easy to briefly slow the motor down. If it is easy then the motor is malfunctioning.

If this has assisted you please consider a 4 thumbs up for the rating.
Thanks and good luck!
John C

Check the user manual for a troubleshooting guide. There is a link attached in case you no longer possess a manual. http://www.retrevo.com/support/Bosch-WFMC3301UC-Washers-manual/id/925ci465/t/2/

Hi from retired Englishman in SW France,
This is a common problem with many machines.
I suspect that the conditioner/softener tray needs a thorough clean, paying particular attention to the sentences in BOLD ;-0)
-------------------------------------
Remove the complete drawer. To do this you will have to do one of the following-

• Top catch- push down the lip/catch at the middle rear and pull the drawer out (that's how our Bosch one is removed)
• release the catches underneath (our daughter's Indesit) or
• lift upwards on the tray as it is coming out to clear the lip underneath.

One of these should enable you remove it
(I am having to guess some of the following!)
Once out identify which tray is for the conditioner- the others are simply 'chutes' and open-ended.
It will normally have some sort of cover over it which you must remove to expose the little stuck up pipe/tube. On some models there is just a small individual cap over the tube. The tube is down which the conditioner and water should siphon. It is likely to be blocked by 'gunge'- a mix of powder and conditioner. The whole of the tray, particularly this pipe and the bit which fits over it, must be completely clean and clear for it to operate correctly. It is worthwhile checking fairly regularly.

If this does not work, pull out the dispenser drawer far enough to be able to just see the softener tray, select the (final?) rinse and check that water is entering the tray. If it isn't there is a fault with the water distribution and an engineer call is required ;-0(

If this has assisted you please consider a 4 thumbs up for the rating.
Thanks and good luck!
John C

Hello,

Welcome to FixYa.

Hopefully the info below will supply you with the info to get the door open for now at least...and a little more with some luck.

The door typically locks as a result of the unit failing to drain, so....

**Unplug the washer from the wall or turn off the breaker before attempting any repairs**

1. Locate the round door on the front of the machine (about 6" in diameter, lower right corner)
2. Find a drill bit or small screwdriver that fits in the hole in the round door.

3. Insert the bit into the hole in the door. It will push in a tab, it doesn't take much force. Rotate the hole (clockwise) to 6'oclock and it should come free. (the edges are very sharp so be careful).

4. Once the door is out of the way you'll be greeted by a 3-4" plastic cap with wings so you can unscrew it by hand or with the aid of pliers.

**NOTE - you should also see a ring attached, if you pull this the door should unlatch, but getting the water out first if present is usually a good plan

Once the door is open and you've removed the items you wanted. Unplug the washer for 20minutes or so and then plug it in again, to see if the control "resets".

Let me know if you require further assistance and if not and this solves your problem, please rate the solution I provided accordingly.

Thank you for coming to "FixYa" and good luck.

Regards,

Macmarkus :)

Hi from retired Englishman in SW France,
I think you need a manual in English! Unfortunately this forum does not supply any type of manual, installation instructions or schematic diagram direct; it's just made up of ordinary guys and gals, probably at home and from all over the world, with experience of addressing problems and giving guidance for free on the web ;-0)

You will need to type into your search engine/web browser '(make) washer manual' and you should be presented with a number of sources from which you can either download for free or have to pay a nominal amount. During the process you will be asked for the actual model number!
Good luck,
John C.

you may have a faulty door lock assembly. we see it a lot.

Hello,

Welcome to FixYa.

The issue, based on your description, there is likely something obstructing your pump/filter.

Anyway, here`s the most likely way to remedy the non-drain issue.

**Unplug the washer from the wall or turn off the breaker before attempting any repairs**

Get some towels and if possible a wet/dry vac. If the machine drained, it won't be too bad. If your machine is stuck full of water, that sucks...hopefully you won't get too wet. ( maybe you`re lucky enough to be close to a floor drain )

1. Locate the round door on the front of the machine (about 6" in diameter, lower right corner)
2. Find a drill bit or small screwdriver that fits in the hole in the round door.
3. Insert the bit into the hole in the door. It will push in a tab, it doesn't take much force. Rotate the hole (clockwise) to 6'oclock and it should come free. (the edges are very sharp so be careful or wear chain-mail gloves).
4. Once the door is out of the way you'll be greeted by a 3-4" plastic cap with wings so you can unscrew it by hand. ( you should also see a red ring with a string attached, if you pull this the door should unlatch, but getting the water out first is usually a good plan ) There is a small collector lip at the bottom of the cap, that is where you can hold the wet/dry vac to catch the water. Unscrew slowly so you don't get flooded, until it is unscrewed all the way out.
5. Now pull out the trap and visually inspect the inside of the pump as well as the filter/trap. Hopefully you'll find the item/debris that initiated the error code.
6. After removing any debris or obstruction`s re-install the button trap/lint filter and plug the washer in to power or reset the breaker and give it a test.
7. Run a load and watch for leaks. Leave the pump access door off until you are sure you screwed the cap in tight and there are no leaks.

Ultimately you may have a faulty drain pump, but I would certainly start by performing the things I listed first.

Let me know if you require further assistance and if not and this solves your problem, please rate the solution I provided accordingly.

Thank you for coming to "fixya" and good luck.

macmarkus :)

Hello,

Welcome to FixYa.

The "E04" error code on your Bosch washer refers to a drainage problem as you may or may not already know. ( it can mean door lock error, but that is usually a by-product of it not draining )

What you may have is either a partially clogged pump, debris blocking a hose or a faulty pump...the later being the least likely.

You haven`t mentioned if you`ve actually visually checked the pump...it is likely just that, a blocked pump.

Anyway, here`s the most likely way to remedy a E04 code.

**Unplug the washer from the wall or turn off the breaker before attempting any repairs**

1. Get some towels and if possible a wet/dry vac. If the machine drained, it won't be too bad. If your machine is stuck full of water, hopefully you won't get wet. ( maybe you`re lucky enough to be close to a floor drain )
2. Locate the round door on the front of the machine (about 6" in diameter, lower right corner)

3. Find a drill bit or small screwdriver that fits in the hole in the round door.

4. Insert the bit into the hole in the door. It will push in a tab, it doesn't take much force. Rotate the hole (clockwise) to 6'oclock and it should come free. (the edges are very sharp so be careful or wear chain-mail gloves).

5. Once the door is out of the way you'll be greeted by a 3-4" plastic cap with wings so you can unscrew it by hand. ( you should also see a green ring with a string attached, if you pull this the door should unlatch, but getting the water out first is usually a good plan. This will deal with the door lock issue but it likely isn`t unlocking due to the water in the tub )


**There is a small collector lip at the bottom of the cap, that is where you can hold the wet/dry vac to catch the water. Unscrew slowly so you don't get flooded, until it is unscrewed all the way out.**

6. Now pull out the trap and visually inspect the inside of the pump as well as the filter/trap. Hopefully you'll find the item/debris that initiated the error code.


7. After removing any debris or obstruction`s re-install the button trap/lint filter and plug the washer in to power or reset the breaker and give it a test.


8. Run a load and watch for leaks. Leave the pump access door off until you are sure you screwed the cap in tight and there are no leaks.

Ultimately you may have a faulty drain pump, or a lock, but I would certainly start by performing the things I listed first.

Let me know if you require further assistance and if not and this indeed solves your problem, please rate the solution I provided accordingly.

Thank you for coming to "FixYa" and good luck.

Regards,

Macmarkus :)

Hi from retired Englishman in SW France,

Sorry but I do not know your particular machine BUT I would suggest as a first step that you clean the drain motor lint tray/filter. So many 'faults' are caused by blocked filters. The motor is unable to drain all of the water in the allotted time.
If you are unsure where the filter is, it is normally behind the front lower (kick) panel (or in some machines at the rear in an awkward position!) and held in by a round cover/knob.

REMOVE POWER AND ENSURE YOU HAVE A WATER RECEPTACLE/RAGS TO SOAK UP THE WATER WHICH IS BOUND TO POUR OUT!

It's surprising what people have found in theirs! It is always worthwhile checking it on a regular basis.
Now- whilst the filter is removed it is normally possible to see the drain motor and ensure it is not jammed by a foreign object such as a needle or a toothpick. It should be able to be turned by hand/finger- the power IS OFF!
At this point it is also possible to test if the motor works. No clothes or water in the machine, select a spin cycle and put the power back on. You should be able to see the motor turning at some point, possibly straight away. If it doesn't work then the motor is malfunctioning!

Hope the filter is the problem and good luck!
John C

This sounds like the motor needs a new Carbon brush kit as it may be well worn.After 5 years this needs replaced......

the very first thing you have to do is to open door, put hand inside washer inner tub and move tub up and down to see if there is "play" in the bearings. if inner tub moves your main bearing is bad dragging and forcing the motor controller to think there is a "unbalance" condition. also make sure you clean the water pump screen. take small round door at the lower right side and remove the screen to clean. then put it back and retest washer. if that dont work then you may have a fulty unbalance switch or motor controller.

good luck to you.

this is a long drain time error code -- you should have a small panel on the right front of the machine,, remove this panel and you should see a drain plug,, unscrew this drain plug and remove any debris or small things that might have gotten down to the screen and blocked the drain pump. now you are going to want to put some towels down to soak up the draining water, clean everything out and then put everything back together and start the cycle.. all should be running good now.
if you have anymore questions about this issue - please feel free to write back and ask me,,, I will do my best to walk you through it.

c...

yes you are correct,, do not use tools to install this as it might hurt the gasket,, the spring on the wire ring goes on the bottom,, it is kind hard and will get you mad but put the top onand work your way down both sides