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About 2 years ago, when after nearly 10 years of uninterrupted service our trusty Fisher and Paykel GW609 washing machine failed to start I wasn’t sure what to do. Should I buy a new one? Or should I try to repair it and in the process, save the environment of more plastic, lead, and who knows what else?
I felt that at least I should give the repair a go. But I didn’t have much time, I was under pressure by ‘management’ to get it going or get a new one…but soon!
And so I began searching the Net for schematics, technical info and anything helpful I could find. But very little was forthcoming. Only a few posts here and there but nothing substantial, the general consensus were that most of the faults are to do with the Control Module. The most useful information found was a copy of the service manual (attached) with a listing of the fault codes, but no reference to the Control Module or its schematic. It seems no one had been able to repair the Module and that this part is considered a throwaway by the manufacturer when faulty, to be replaced with a new one when it fails. This seemed like a waste of natural resources and money and so I decided to take a good look at it and check it, to see if it was really faulty and if so, could be repaired.
I felt that at least I should give the repair a go. But I didn’t have much time, I was under pressure by ‘management’ to get it going or get a new one…but soon!
And so I began searching the Net for schematics, technical info and anything helpful I could find. But very little was forthcoming. Only a few posts here and there but nothing substantial, the general consensus were that most of the faults are to do with the Control Module. The most useful information found was a copy of the service manual (attached) with a listing of the fault codes, but no reference to the Control Module or its schematic. It seems no one had been able to repair the Module and that this part is considered a throwaway by the manufacturer when faulty, to be replaced with a new one when it fails. This seemed like a waste of natural resources and money and so I decided to take a good look at it and check it, to see if it was really faulty and if so, could be repaired.
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Signing UpStep 1Take care!
UNPLUG THE MACHINE BEFORE OPENING THE CONTROL PANEL !
During the repair, always double check and take a look at that plug to make sure it is off the wall before doing anything inside the machine.
Yes, here we are going to deal with possible electrocution if you are careless because the control board and peripherals are all connected to mains. So remove that plug before touching anything…and don’t forget there is water everywhere too!
During the repair, always double check and take a look at that plug to make sure it is off the wall before doing anything inside the machine.
Yes, here we are going to deal with possible electrocution if you are careless because the control board and peripherals are all connected to mains. So remove that plug before touching anything…and don’t forget there is water everywhere too!
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5.5kg Fisher and Paykel Top-loader. Your instructions were spot on.
I had 2 blown power FETs, 1 Medium control FET, 2 Fuses and 2 Diodes.
I replaced the FET's and diodes and managed to drill some holes in the PCB and mount a M205 PCB mounted fuse holders, for these I had to cut out a small section of the plastic casing near the 240v input to allow the PCB to seat back in the casing.
I also installed a 1.5A slow blow fuse inline for the pump motor as the FETs which had blown on my board were for the pump.
In regards to why they blow, I work in a electronics retails store and have a lot
of customers who have used these fisher and paykel motors to make wind generators. I have learned a lot from them over the years so here is my theory.
The pump FET's may blow due to a blockage in the pump/ worn bears or just a worn motor which will all cause excessive current draw and damage the FET's which will take out the components before the FET's.
In regards to the motor controller, The tolerance between the fixed stators and the rotating magnets on the motor a quite close, I have actually
pulled one of these motors out before and the bearing and shaft had a small amount of pitting and corrosion. That unit was around 6 years old.
My guest is either a damaged motor winding or the bearing may start to wear and cause the motor to go slightly off balance, this could cause the rotating magnet to rub or temporally get caught against the outside of the stator. If this happen during an off balance spin cycle it may not be enough to trigger the off balance micro-switch but enough the cause the magnet to get caught on the stator and cause a high current surge which spikes the FET and BAM!!!!.
My solution is to install a fuse on each of the 3 stator wires and one on the pump.
Thanks Again Buddy.