It was a peaceful Sunday afternoon. A load of wash was in the washing machine. An unfamiliar series of beeps from the washing machine interrupted my football couch potato session. It was flashing an E.04 error. I restarted the cycle but the error reappeared.
Time to read the manual. The manual said that either too much suds or the drain pump was having a problem. I went to the Internet to try to find more information. Jackpot! I found a post of the description and the fix for the error code.
It was obvious that excessive suds was not my problem.
You will need a towel, a flashlight and a 4d nail / brad (or some other metallic pointed thing). You may or may not need some silicone grease to lube the sump cap. (I did not need any.)
If you have water in the drum of the machine, you will need a wet/dry vacuum cleaner with crevice end and more towels and maybe ear plugs if your vacuum is as loud as mine.
Note: Wet/dry vacuum cleaners use 2 inch and/or 1 and 1/2 inch hoses. The smaller hoses and accessories are easier to maneuver inside the washer.
Time to read the manual. The manual said that either too much suds or the drain pump was having a problem. I went to the Internet to try to find more information. Jackpot! I found a post of the description and the fix for the error code.
It was obvious that excessive suds was not my problem.
You will need a towel, a flashlight and a 4d nail / brad (or some other metallic pointed thing). You may or may not need some silicone grease to lube the sump cap. (I did not need any.)
If you have water in the drum of the machine, you will need a wet/dry vacuum cleaner with crevice end and more towels and maybe ear plugs if your vacuum is as loud as mine.
Note: Wet/dry vacuum cleaners use 2 inch and/or 1 and 1/2 inch hoses. The smaller hoses and accessories are easier to maneuver inside the washer.
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Signing UpStep 1: Gaining Access
To be extra safe, turn off the washing machine and unplug it.
The access for the drain pump is behind the circular access panel on the bottom right front of the machine. This panel twists off. There are three ears on the panel that fit into three cutouts on the machine front. After the ears are in the cutout, the panel is twisted counterclockwise to lock ears behind metal.
If the panel were a clock face, there is a small hole in it at about the 5. Insert a nail in the hole to gain some leverage. Gently press on the panel with your other hand while you rotate the panel clockwise to move the hole to the 6 o'clock position.
Update - 10/2011: Be careful when you get the cover off. The edges of the hole may be unfinished and sharp. You can tape over the edge while you are working or wear gloves. The more adventurous can grind or file the rough edges.
The access for the drain pump is behind the circular access panel on the bottom right front of the machine. This panel twists off. There are three ears on the panel that fit into three cutouts on the machine front. After the ears are in the cutout, the panel is twisted counterclockwise to lock ears behind metal.
If the panel were a clock face, there is a small hole in it at about the 5. Insert a nail in the hole to gain some leverage. Gently press on the panel with your other hand while you rotate the panel clockwise to move the hole to the 6 o'clock position.
Update - 10/2011: Be careful when you get the cover off. The edges of the hole may be unfinished and sharp. You can tape over the edge while you are working or wear gloves. The more adventurous can grind or file the rough edges.
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Anyone have a solution?
Since you are getting water in the pump housing, maybe the inlet is clear. Therefore, the next thing I would do is check for a blockage on the outlet side. However, I can not imagine something of significance getting past the impeller.
Are you seeing the impeller spinning (and with all its blades intact) or are you just hearing the motor spin? Could the impeller be loose on the shaft?
How long has the machine been stuck? It will be pretty foul in there if it has been days! Front loaders have a problem with mold/mildew anyway. So the machine will need a really good bath after you fix it. There are commercial products in the laundry aisle. Big box stores have stuff also. Bosch recommends a cup of bleach in the hot water wash cycle (no clothes - just bleach). I use something different that was very effective for me.
Remember to have a wet vac available for the water. There is much more water in the tub than a few towels can hold.
Regarding the softener dispenser having clear water standing in it after a wash cycle, this is odd. Used a coat hanger to see if there was a blockage and it appeared to be clear. What I do now is with the machine off and the clear water standing in (following a wash cycle); I simply pour about a half cup of water into the dispenser and all of the water will immediately drain into the machine. Then, next time I use it, it will hold the fabric softener and dispense it in its normal cycle as programed. Without fail, after the cycle is finished, clear water will be there again. The detergent or bleach dispensers don’t do this; I can live with this minor nuisance.
Thanks again for the E04 error code correction, the machine is draining well.
Sorry, but I do not know why the softener dispenser has taken to draining incompletely. I have not had to troubleshoot the bleach/softener dispensers.
Since you are willing to drag your machine outside (to the woodshed as it were) to hose it down :), this problem will not go unsolved for long. So when (not if) you find out the cause/solution of the incomplete drainage, please post.
Thanks for your comments and have a Happy New Year.
Questions 1, 2 and 3: Did you manually spin the impeller? How do you know the impeller is turning during the drain cycle? My motor still hummed when it was not working. You say not all of the water is pumped out, How much water is left? If you have gallons/litres, the machine is not moving any water.
Check your impeller against my picture. If yours is not like mine maybe a design change or maybe an obstruction broke a vane so pump is not moving as much water hence the E04 msg.
I expect the impeller is belt-driven and not directly attached to a motor, maybe the impeller belt is slipping/broken.
These are my guesses and are things that I would look for to troubleshoot the problem. Hope this helps. Keep me posted.
Just like Moby Rick we also had a small nylon sock stuck in the impeller intake. Thanks again! You save me big $$$$$
I hope you have found a place for the o-ring.
I just opened my machine for this question and I do not have an o-ring that just falls out. I have a black gasket that fits in a groove around the sump cover. I have to pull the gasket out of the groove. The gasket would interfere with the cover if it were just placed over and not fitted in the groove. I will post additional pictures of my cover with the gasket removed.
So it sounds like Bosch changed their design.
Please send me some pictures to post to alert other people. Thanks.
P.S. I have not had to reopen my machine since writing this instructable. My sump was clear of debris. There was some soft gunk that came out easily. There was no build up on the white part of the sump cover at all. Just that slime under the gasket.
Btw, Do you know how to disconnect the irritating end of cycle buzzer? I can sleep through it, but my husband can't.
Yes, I do know how to stop the end of cycle beeping (eocb); It is funny how some people find that noise very irritating and others do not:
Turn the dial to one of the programs - for example "Cold Wash", but DO NOT start the program;
Simultaneous press and hold two of the optional features buttons - for example "Bleach" and "Rinse".
After a second or two of holding, the machine should give a short beep. At that point the end of cycle beeping is off.
The beeping stays off until the above process is repeated. There is a long beep when the eocb is reactivated.
You can turn off the eocb and turn it back on (and back off) so you can hear the difference. There is no visual reminder that the signal is off, so if someone else uses the machine and depends on that signal - be sure to tell them that it is off. I tried the no signal option but found I kept listening to hear if the was still running instead.
I had not figured out how long are the cycles with and without the options. I think the machine varies the length of the cycles by the amount of soil or just to annoy me.
After using all the helpful language I learned in the Navy, then finding the manual cute at best (should be called 'Bosch trouble shooting if you don't really plan on shooting the trouble'), I got lucky and found your blog. There it was, stuck in the impeller intake, one of my wife's nylon sock thingies. If I had Super Bowl tickets I'd send them to you.
Best Regards,
Moby
I am glad I helped you out.
Isn't it amazing what gets past the "filter/screen" in this machine? Whew!
I am so glad my instructions were helpful.
An underwire?!? Really?!?! Maybe this machine should come with a warning label?
Or maybe just a better strainer/screen/filter.
Thanks.
P.S. What was clogging your machine?
I agree with your analogy. Sometimes, though, I have had to pay to eat out anyway (or maybe clean up my dirty dishes) - if you get my meaning.
Nonetheless continue to the next project! After all, no one was born knowing this stuff.
Thanks for the comment.
I had exactly the same problem, with exactly the same cause, and also on a Sunday. It wasn't how I wanted to spend my Sunday evening, but your detailed instructions saved me having to call a repairman, with a minimum of mess.
We have found that newborn socks are usually what cause us to have this error not excessive suds.
Thanks for making it so easy to clear & saving us the money on a repair bill!
Next time take the socks off the baby before you put him/her in the washer ! ! !
I thought my nail/screws slipped through the holes in the tub. You point out that there is another way to get sucked into the pump. Thanks.
Hint: My wife has a zippered bag made of fishnet like stuff. She puts delicate items and/or items that would wrap themselves into a knot into it. And then she tosses the bag in with the rest of the wash. Maybe you can find one for your small items.
I can post/send a pic if you need.
Have fun the baby and take plenty of pictures!
Good to know that sump access port is there, and user serviceable.
Have to give it a check before I run my next load :-)
Thanks for the comment.
Yes, I read in the manual that suds can trigger the error. I don't understand how or why suds are a problem (to the computer and./or its sensors) but they are. Anyway, I use the low sudsing HE stuff.
When I feel a need for the suds, I go to a laundromat and watch their machines where the water half fills the drum and clothes peek out from under the foam. Ahhh, the simpler days!!!!!
The washer has a cavitation sensor. the extra bubbles cause the cavitation in the pump, triggering the code.
The obstructions in you cleanout port may be causing the same sort of water turbulence, also triggering the sensor error code.
The wash water is not compressible, so the pump can push it out the drain. But if the pump gets a snootful of suds which is mostly air, the pump can not move as much (or any?) water. And that is because air is very compressible. The pump would have to work much harder to compress enough air to a high enough pressure that would lift the column of water up and out. That it should work as a "high" pressure air compressor is probably outside of the pump's specifications.
It is similar to the problem with radiators in a heating system and why heating systems have air bleed screws/systems.
In my case the impeller was jammed and no water was moving; with excessive suds the impeller spins in air but still no water is moving. Both result in e.04 error. Cool!
Thanks again