Thread Number: 74721  /  Tag: Modern Automatic Washers
Maxima Mold Maytag
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Post# 985262   3/4/2018 at 15:01 (2,215 days old) by stricklybojack (South Hams Devon UK)        

stricklybojack's profile picture
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Picked this up for free.
The pictures tell the story. Clogged drain: coins, gunk, and black mold galore.
That hairy rust was from a decaying wood screw lodged in the boot drain weep hole.
The door boot is so stained with mold i may get a new one if the price is right.
This machine was a free replacement from Best Buy after the first one croaked while on extended warranty. So he dumped it to me after the repair guy said, “$200 minimum to open it up”, after the drain code was thrown. He now has a new LG. I updated him (with these pics!) on what went wrong with his old one. Suggested familiarizing himself with the self clean feature, leaving the door ajar, and cleaning out the drain with some kind of regularity.
WTF is wrong with Wirlpool/Maytag designing the machine so the owner, unless skilled, cannot possibly access the drain? Criminal.


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This post was last edited 03/04/2018 at 18:13



Post# 985263 , Reply# 1   3/4/2018 at 15:20 (2,215 days old) by Lorainfurniture (Cleveland )        
Soak it

Fill up a 5 gallon with the bellow, hoses, and drain screen. Add hot water and 1 cup of bleach. Let it sit overnight. The results will amaze you

Post# 985267 , Reply# 2   3/4/2018 at 15:52 (2,215 days old) by Stricklybojack (South Hams Devon UK)        

stricklybojack's profile picture
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Right now I have the door boot on the Heavy Duty / Sanitize setting in the dishwasher with plenty of Cascade powder.
If I am not satisfied with the result I will try your bleach idea.
But you are probably right that the hoses too should be removed and treated.
I will pull one for a look see.


Post# 985268 , Reply# 3   3/4/2018 at 16:10 (2,215 days old) by appnut (TX)        

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What model Maxima is this? 


Post# 985269 , Reply# 4   3/4/2018 at 16:29 (2,215 days old) by Yogitunes (New Jersey)        

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well, first and foremost in any instruction booklet, then again, common sense would tell you to empty all pockets of coins and foreign matter....

with proper use, that mold/mildew issue will clear up on its own...


but actually, thanks to people like this, you get more machines with a simple fix...


Post# 985271 , Reply# 5   3/4/2018 at 16:40 (2,215 days old) by stricklybojack (South Hams Devon UK)        

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Here’s the model tag info.
5.5 years young...
It's always older than the owner says it is.


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Post# 985281 , Reply# 6   3/4/2018 at 18:10 (2,215 days old) by DADoES (TX, U.S. of A.)        

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Must wash in cold water to save our clothes! /s


Post# 985285 , Reply# 7   3/4/2018 at 18:59 (2,215 days old) by appnut (TX)        

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Cycles  very similar to my December 2011 Duet. 


Post# 985340 , Reply# 8   3/5/2018 at 01:15 (2,215 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY)        
I agree

mark_wpduet's profile picture
I trust WP more than any other appliance manufacturer (aside from SQ or Miele) for durability. However, I've been ranting and raving about them and Electrolux not having a drain access door like the others. I check pockets like crazy but I've still managed to wash a small screwdriver and will find the occasional dime in the drum. I'm not worried about mold because I know that's usually a user fault. But that no drain pump access annoys me like crazy and it makes me lost some trust with the company.

@ APPNUT - if you come back to this post and read this, is your Duet from 2011? Have you had any issues? Thanks


Post# 985355 , Reply# 9   3/5/2018 at 04:07 (2,214 days old) by askolover (South of Nash Vegas, TN)        

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That's so disgustingly gross!  I'll bet it smelled great too!


Post# 985363 , Reply# 10   3/5/2018 at 05:29 (2,214 days old) by appnut (TX)        

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Mark, no I've not had any issues. 


Post# 985387 , Reply# 11   3/5/2018 at 09:36 (2,214 days old) by Rolls_rapide (.)        
Filter Access

It must be those Corporations' twisted idea of generating extra money from the simplest faults.

It wouldn't be so bad if the pump had no access, but was of the 'self-cleaning vortex style' - like we had on the 1980s Hoover machines.

This in comparison, is just sheer bloody-mindedness.


Post# 985419 , Reply# 12   3/5/2018 at 14:47 (2,214 days old) by johnb300m (Chicago)        

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I'll take a stab.
If there's any marketing people at WP who are similar to our marketing group, I would not be surprised if someone there had a little tantrum overriding Engineering, demanding there be NO access doors on the front, ruining their design aesthetic.
It's not uncommon for silly artsy types with too much power to override important, functional elements of a product.


Post# 985422 , Reply# 13   3/5/2018 at 15:23 (2,214 days old) by Stricklybojack (South Hams Devon UK)        

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Well she's all buttoned up awaiting it's test run.
The overnight bleaching worked good enough, I was thinking of adding more bleach and soaking another night but I needed that sink back. The rock in the tub kept the boot submerged.
It's really just down in the deep crevasses of the boot now, where it was worst to begin with. Now there is a comparatively small amount still showing. And of course all the gunk is gone, and the boot had A LOT of that. Rust stains were unfazed by the bleach. Can't tell much from these pictures but I will add them anyway...somewhat out of order by the looks of things.
The whole machine is aged/scuffed up just enough that I wouldn't get top dollar even with a new boot ($80) so I figured I best keep my costs down. If I was keeping it or giving it to a friend I would definitely have sprung for the boot. The machine does have the drawer/stand, that may be attractive to some buyers.


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Post# 985491 , Reply# 14   3/6/2018 at 05:16 (2,213 days old) by Rolls_rapide (.)        
Rust stains on gasket

Can be treated with citric acid solution, or lemon juice, on a cloth.

But first of all, make sure any chlorine bleach is well-rinsed away.

The machine doesn't look too bad from a distance.


Post# 985576 , Reply# 15   3/6/2018 at 18:03 (2,213 days old) by stricklybojack (South Hams Devon UK)        

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Failed test...BADLY.
Giving codes to replace one or both computer control modules.
Never turned a revolution or opened the inlet valve to a single drop of water.
Just sat there and eventually threw codes...like all modern machines with electronics do sooner or later.
Will try to sell for parts unless i find cheap boards...unlikely.


Post# 985581 , Reply# 16   3/6/2018 at 18:43 (2,213 days old) by henene4 (Heidenheim a.d. Brenz (Germany))        
Sure all connections are tight?

These boards are finiky with that.

Reconnect everything. Check the hall sensor. Check both boards for visible damage.



It's funny how all controlls throw faults of them.
None survived. None!

Geeze, what made you country so great, huh? So unbeatable... But that's not topic here for good reason.


Post# 985583 , Reply# 17   3/6/2018 at 19:13 (2,213 days old) by Stricklybojack (South Hams Devon UK)        

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Lower board has visible brain damage...


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Post# 985585 , Reply# 18   3/6/2018 at 19:17 (2,213 days old) by Lorainfurniture (Cleveland )        
Does the door lock?

Generally speaking if the door locks, not rotation, the mcu is at fault. I’ve got in a lot of those alpha platforms with bad mcu’s. If you pull it out you will likely find a cracked thermistor on the board. It’s a black disc shaped part about the size of a dime.

I’m trying to locate that specific part as I have a few of these boards waiting for repairs. If you find that part, you will still have to solder some burn spots on the board. Buying a new board is expensive, and I believe they are back ordered for a while.


Post# 985588 , Reply# 19   3/6/2018 at 19:21 (2,213 days old) by Stricklybojack (South Hams Devon UK)        

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Eugene, yes door locks with no rotation. If you look at the post before yours I have uploaded pics of the fried MCU, part # W10374126, selling for $110-$330 delivered on EPay.


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Post# 985594 , Reply# 20   3/6/2018 at 20:26 (2,213 days old) by henene4 (Heidenheim a.d. Brenz (Germany))        

That is with utmost certanty a fuseable resistor. The in-circut replacement for good old thermal fuses.

So no brain damage per se on the sides of the board.
Found one repair guy doing repairs not of this board for 130$.

Check EBay for part or repair listings.

Soldering pads can be shitty, seen people in such cases wrack up circuts with a somewhat heavy wire (for the size of the component) and adding resistors as normal non-surfacemount components that they soldered to the wire, heat shrinked and stuffed in there.
But that would be anything but to code and I wouldn't sell a machine with that inside.

There are cleary unused pads besides it for 2 unused components. But probably not for splitting the thermal load on the components as tracks behind them are split to diferrent pins on the chip.


But it could be the other way around as well. Chip failing to switch overloading the pin and cutting of the power.
Can't really figure that out without board diagramm as you can't really measure that there without the board in situ, and even then the output might be unusable for a normal multimeter.





TL;DR: Check for EBay parts or repair services.


Post# 985595 , Reply# 21   3/6/2018 at 20:28 (2,213 days old) by Stricklybojack (South Hams Devon UK)        

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I can get the part new at Sears for $150.


Post# 985596 , Reply# 22   3/6/2018 at 20:34 (2,213 days old) by henene4 (Heidenheim a.d. Brenz (Germany))        
Sold out

onesourceapplianceparts.com/prod...

That would have solved that cheaper...

(Edited that, I'm blind sometimes 😣)


Post# 985599 , Reply# 23   3/6/2018 at 20:42 (2,213 days old) by Stricklybojack (South Hams Devon UK)        

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Drat! Thx for looking.


Post# 985763 , Reply# 24   3/7/2018 at 23:50 (2,212 days old) by superocd (PNW)        
wow...

I believe that this model (or something VERY close to it) are still being made. I've seen the square-door Maytags recently at all of the major retailers. Kind of like seeing a newer car in a junkyard, it's amazing how short the lifespan of what is considered a "durable good" is these days.

I'm betting cold washes were run on the majority of the cycles, and perhaps, little to no bleach usage. With this kind of abuse I'd consider going through the trouble to tear into the drum assembly to check the spider out and perhaps replace the drum bearing and seal. However, since it was free it's not a huge deal. If it breaks it breaks. If it doesn't, score!

Phooey on Whirlpool for not making the pump easily accessible. I totally agree with johnb300m's assessment a few posts above. The designers (not the engineers) or the bean counters probably collaborated together to nix an access panel on the front, 'cause it would either "ruin" the aesthetics and/or cost a few cents extra per unit.

Aesthetics doesn't really matter when the machine is sitting in a scrapyard waiting to be fed to the shredder due to the fact that it died a premature death because the manufacturer decided to circumvent a simple yet crucial opportunity to maintain the unit. It reminds me of the newer BMWs -- there is no dipstick on the engine, only a sensor. What happens when the sensor goes bad or it consistently registers a false positive for some reason? The engine will be starved of oil. I don't think we will be seeing those cars on the road for a whole lot longer past their warranty expiration dates.

Speaking of aesthetics, give me a "real" stainless steel washer with a simple, round porthole door made of heavy duty stainless and a simple control panel with no dials. Bring on access panels and function over form. Yeah, I know, I just described a hardmount washer...the domestic FLs look like toys.

I do have to say that I've never had anything in my pump filter on my LG/Kenmore unit, in fact I barely have a tinge of lint. Still, it is nice to have instant access when the inevitable coin, screw or some other widget makes its way out of the inner drum.


Post# 985782 , Reply# 25   3/8/2018 at 04:49 (2,211 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY)        
Not sure if this will help, but

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they get great reviews for their repairs. I entered the model # of your Maytag and it asks to check the boxes of which error codes you're getting, which I don't know. You have to take the control board off, mail it to them, they repair it the proper way and send it back. Doesn't look horribly expensive either
so enter model# which is: mhw6000xw2 then enter it in the box

If anything ever happens with my 2005 Duet regarding CCU or MCU this is what I'm going to use.


CLICK HERE TO GO TO mark_wpduet's LINK


Post# 985803 , Reply# 26   3/8/2018 at 08:10 (2,211 days old) by Yogitunes (New Jersey)        

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apparently he had more issues with that machine than just a few items in the drain pump...


unless your mechanically inclined, and can figure things out for yourself, those error codes are just about useless for the common user....

but then again, if they can't operate it properly, how can you expect them to maintain it...

I have been to service calls where someone else in the house unplugged the machine...and they never thought to check that first....

I think the best one...they shut the water off after last use to prevent the chance of a flood....turn the machine on and it throws an error code....as they forgot to turn the water back on....

major catastrophe if "PF" shows up in the screen.....run for your lives!



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