Showing posts with label maytag neptune washer not spinning fast. Show all posts
Showing posts with label maytag neptune washer not spinning fast. Show all posts

Wednesday, July 15, 2015

Maytag Neptune Washer Not Spinning - What to Check


If you have a Maytag Neptune front load washer and it is not spinning fast or at all you could have a number of different issues. Let's take a look...


First, you need to verify the door is locking.

If you have a Neptune with timer knob and your machine has the first symptom I would check the door latch wax motor. The original MAH3000, MAH4000, MAH5500A and some 2000 stackers shipped with a faulty wax motor and when it fails it damages the machine control board and your washer will not spin because the door won’t lock anymore. See www.neptunehelpsong.com for a video that explains the faulty brown tipped wax motor better. I have Q6 R11 repair kits at my www.neptunehelp.com where you can repair your machine control board by replacing 2 components and the door latch wax motor


Second, you need to know if the inner basket is just rotating back and forth slowly and not even attempting to ramp up.
If you have the door locked light on and you hear the machine attempt to ramp up to 90 rpms, stop, rotate back and forth some and then attempt to ramp up again thus repeating the cycle and never getting up to full speed spin then you have an issue with the balance circuit.

The Balance Circuit:
There are 3 inertia switches in a series loop that normally are closed. If one of these switches open up (or a wire comes off) the machine will reach 90 rpms, stop, tumble back and forth a few times and then attempt to ramp up again thus repeating this pattern and never getting up to full spin cycle speed.

The most common cause of this issue is the switch located at the bottom of the large tub in front. What happens is this switch gets bumped when washing a large heavy load of laundry. Usually, to reset the switch you can wiggle the plunger and it helps to have an ohmmeter to measure if it is closed or low impedance. 

If that does not work then you can inspect for a loose wire that connects all of the switches together. If you look at your electrical diagram you will see most of the balance circuit wires are blue.

Next, the other 2 inertia switches rarely go bad but it is possible. What you can try is jumpering each one out and test washer again and if it spins up to full speed then you found the culprit.


Third, do you hear the drive motor growling when it is turning the inner stainless steel basket?

If your drive motor is growling then you more than likely have a failing motor drive control board which is located on the right side near the floor. What happens is one of the three phases fail and that only energizes two phases of the motor which electrically unbalances the motor and the motor will have less torque available. I would carefully unplug all of the wire connectors on the motor control board and the upper machine control board and re-seat them. This process will sometimes help because connectors can become oxidized which can make bad electrical connections and the wiping action will clean them. If that does not help then you will need to see the troubleshooting guide for tests you can run to help diagnose a motor or motor control board issue. You can goto www.washerbearings.com/parts  for ordering any replacement appliance parts.

I hope this was helpful.

Leave any comments or symptoms you have in the comments below.


Jeff Hartman
“The Neptune Man”