MAYTAG NEPTUNE WASHER CONTROL PANEL UNRESPONSIVE

[kpd]

I thought Maytag was supposed to be a good brand?

Almost allmy Maytag appliances (bought new about 3 years ago) have had some kind of failure,,,,,

Oh well- - - here is the latest failure....

I have a Maytag Neptune Washer - modelMAH5500BWW.

During the last two days, the control panel has been acting funky.WhenI'd press a button, the selection sometimes wouldworkthen sometimes not repond at all.

I got the washer to do a few loads, but I could no longer change the wash type, water temp, options, etc.

When I got home tonight, my wife told me the washer stoped working altogether. I checked it out and found that the control panel is totally unresponsive - - no matter what selection I try to make. Even pressing the Off button does nothing now. The indicator/selection are lit as they should be... I just can't get any of the selections to change.

I unplugged the unit - - - waited about 5 minutes and then plugged it back in - - same problem.

Start/Pause light is blinking, but I get no response when pressing any button.

The doormessage doesdisplay properly in the control panelwhen I open or close the door - - I just can't get this thing to do anything via the buttons on the control panel.

You guys have saved me lots of time, money and aggrivation in the past - - I hope you can nail this one for me.

Thanks all,,

Kerry

[Jake]

Hi,

I have serviced a few of these MAH5500 models that did as yours does now.

I have replaced the touchpad console assembly and control board, and it fixed the problem.

But to confirm the problem , there should be a tech. guide sheet in the console assembly.

Check your owners guide to see if those 2 parts have a extended 2-5 yr. parts only warranty, as those parts are very expensive.

Jake

[kpd]

Jake - thanks for the quick response. I did a bit of checking on the web and this seems to be a common problem. There are allot of Neptune owners out there that are angry about this failure - - it cost a ton of money to fix, sometimesmaking the repair notcost effective.

Like I said in the previous post, I am VERY disappointed with the Maytag appliances that I purchased about three years ago - - all of them have had some kind of failure.

OK - that said..... I don't follow you when you say "to confirm the problem , there should be a tech. guide sheet in the console assembly".

Are you saying that when I remove the console assembly that there is going to be some kind of written dignostic guide somewhere within the assembly? If yes, will it provide some basic troubleshooting steps?

Also - is there a way to be 100% sure of what part has actually failed - perhaps there is a failurecode dump or something like that. I think that theparts youidentified arean expensive part - - I should be able to do this myself as long as I have some kind of professional guide, but I don't want to start swapping out parts just to find that some other part is at fault.

Do you (or anyone else out there) have an explodeddiagram of the washer showing the areas that I will need to deal with?

Thanks so much,

Kerry

[Jake]

Yes,

The tech. guide sheet in the console will help you alot to narrow down the problem.

You can go to sears.com for a explodeddiagram of the washer.

Jake

[kpd]

Jake - - hi.. hope you had a great 4th....

I found the sheet you were talking about - - very cool - - lots of good diagnostic info.

BUT - - I still have a problem..... because the touch pad is unresponsive, I can't get the unit to go into service mode to run any checks.

This is going to sound nutty, but I thought that high humidity in my laundry room may have caused some kind of problem so I removed the control board and placed it into my oven at about 120 degrees for an hour (to dry it out??). When I reinstalled the board, I WAS able to gain limited control of the washer and actually pump out a few loads of laundry (made the wife happy). Not sure if the drying out actually did anything or it was just a fluke.

Like I said, the control I regained, was limited - - everything was "stuck" in whatever setting was last selected (hot water, heavy soil, max extract) - - but I was able to fire off the cycle by pressing the start/pause button (I was not able to do this before). I was able to do this several times before the control panel became totally unresponsive again.

Without being able to run any diagnostics, my guess is that either the control board or the controlmembrane is on the blink. Problem is that both parts run about $200ea!!

I can stand ONE $200 hit, but $400 is pushing it in terms of the value of the repair.

I spoke to Sears parts store and if I order the part online via credit card, I can return it (no questions asked) within 90 days.

So I was thinking that perhaps I should order the control board first and see if that does the trick.

OR ---

Are there any other checks that I can run w/o control at the panel?



What are your thoughts on this Jake?

Thanks,

Kerry

[Jake]

Im glad that 120 oven temp. made it start working again for a couple loads at least.

Yes, i would sayreplace the control board first, hopefully that should take care of it.

There is no other checks i know of to run w/o control at the panel.

Jake

[mommo1953]

I am jumping into this thread as I appear to have a very similar problem with my machine. I thought a broken belt as the drum was not moving but when I removed the back the spin was working however the only thing that did function when it broke was the spin cycle (now that is not working). The water goes in the water goes out the drum does not move to wash the clothes. Lights just blink & beep & timer goes down to an error code when timer is done. The code fits the motor not working properly code in the owner book. Does not matter which wash function pressed. Then it takes a long time 5 minutes or more for the door to unlock when off button pressed. I agree my machine was very expensive in 2001 & I have am not happy with it as far as it has a major malfunction at it's young age. My machines usually last about 15 years. I was thinking it was the control panel ut at almost $200 is that the only thing that can cause this problem?

Help I hate laudrymats

[Jake]

Yes, I have changed many control panels and motor kits on this model, as they have upgraded both.

I would say to upgrade both parts, but its very expensive. It would be like $400.00 in parts and you can get a new basic washer for that price, also consider that your tub bearing is wearing and its only a matter of time before that goes out, then thats another $200 to replace.

I know your upset as many thousands of others that purchased this model as well, but its really not worth it to pour this kind of money into a washer that had so many problems.

Jake