Friday, November 28, 2008

Austin's Duet

This is an email from Austin, in New York City, describing how he adjusted the pressure switch on his Whirlpool machine to allow it to use more water during a cycle. I am posting this in hopes that it will encourage others to attempt this repair proceedure to their machines. By adding water to each cycle on our machine (Joe T.) we solved the stinky towel and clothes problem. Our machine never has any foul smell since adding water to each cycle. We're now getting clean cloths that are soap free, no more itching because the so called clean cloths are still filled with dried soap and no more mildew odor when you open the door!!!!! GOOD LUCK to all.

Sincerely,
Joe T.

Mike, or Joe - not sure which one to give credit to.
I jsut did your suggested alteration to my whirlpool duet - took 5 mins to get lid off (3 screws at back) took 3 trial and error adjustments to that bottom screw on the pressure switch (at the final setting i had made 2 full rotations clockwise of the screw), and now the machine fills to the bottom of the door, right to the point where it passes the overflow/rubber section of the bottom of the steel tub.

its brilliant. I haven’t re-washed my towels yet to see if the stink is gone, but Im confident that it will make a big difference.

it took no more than 10 minutes of work and an hour of watching and waiting to see the fill level. interestingly, the first 1.5 turns of the screw did nothing to the water level, which got me a little discouraged at first that it wasnt working.
thanks so much.
im really thankful that you spent the time to document this for me.
youre a kind guy.
best regards,

Austin
New York City.

16 comments:

Cleo said...

I am still attempting to adjust my washer's water level, but i can't seem to figure out which is the water level pressure gauge. My model is the Duet 9600 and the gauge differs from the one in this blog. Any ideas anyone? Anybody have any luck with the 9600 model?

TIA!

mark40511 said...

I have the Duet 9300 with that exact pressure switch. I took the top off..I must say it's hard to make the adjustment because I can't see the screw in the tiny hole, so I have to put the screwdriver in the hole and try to figure out if its in the slot! I made a couple of slight adjustments..watched it fill, drained it and I never noticed any difference in the water level at all until about the fourth adjustment. Then Shazam...It filled WAY TOO MUCH....On the normal cycle it was above the indention on the bottom of the door and STILL filling...I paused/canceled/drained then adjusted the screw back down maybe a quarter of a turn....back to watching normal cycle fill, and it was back to the Duet factory fill...maybe slightly more....And that was with only a slight turn back down counter clockwise.......Unfortunately, I can't find a happy medium....Any suggestions?

Duet said...

The pressure switch is still somewhat of a mystery. The unit in my blog has (5) large adjustment screws that are glued in place and (4) smaller silver screws, two on top and two on bottom. The email that I received from a guy named Mike indicated the he was able to raise the water level in his Whirlpool Duet by adjusting the small silver screw at the bottom left side of the pressure switch, this is the silver screw that is closest to the hose connection on the switch. I have never taken my pressure switch apart to try and determine what the function of each adjustment was. I was trying to go back and read Mike's email again for the discription that he gave for the different adjustments but my network is down for the moment. This adjustment has worked for a few people that have written me but it may not for all machines, they may use different types of pressure switches. If you really want to try and fix your machine first you'll have to determine how the manufacture controls water level and then do a little homework on your model machine. I am sure of one thing that increasing the amount of water that my machine uses each cycle has solved the problem that we were having with our Duet. No more bad smells, no more gunk buildup in the plumming, just clean cloths for a change!!! Good Luck and if you have success with your machine drop me a note with details, model number and how you solved the problem I would love to share it with others. Its not easy to get the word out so I try and take every opertunity to do so
Sincerely,
Joe Tass
joe.tass@yahoo.com
P.S. Check out my blog
(whirlpool-dueling-with-duet.blogspot.com)
Look under comments and also at my profile for emails about success. stories.

Cleo said...

mark40511 and duet,

i think i'm on to something with my model. The 9600 uses an analog pressure sensor as opposed to a switch. Apparently, the sensor allows for water level regulation through continuous feedback to the control panel. For what i can see of its shape, it doesn't look easy to tweak even if it is more efficient and perhaps more advanced.

I ordered a backup sensor part so that i could exam the inner workings without risk to my "working" washer. I'll let you know what i find out after i've had a chance to review it.

Cleo said...

So, i received the part last weekend, and we dissected it to see if we could make any adjustments. Unfortunately, it seems as if we're not so lucky with this analog pressure sensor. It looks like a circuit board, and as such appears to be tamper-proof.

I am disappointed that i don't have the traditional switch which we would have been able to adjust. Not sure what we will do next. Purchase another washer, report this one for its inadequate washing and rinsing. We'll see.

Anonymous said...

Help! Mine is Whirlpool duet steam Model WFW9550WW00. I can't find anything inside that looks anything like the pictures to adjust. I am curious as to what the little white plastic switch thing with the roman numerals is that is on top of the soap dispenser thing? Does anyone have any ideas how I can get more water in mine.
Thanks,
Carrie

Chanda said...

I tried Mike's solution. I was able to run a load with the water filling to the indent of the door and I think it's too much water as the clothese were very wet when the cycle was finished...I will adjust lower to see what happens. I also get the F11 error code, so I will probably be replacing my CCU. If anyone knows how to fix the F11 code without replacing the CCU let me know...thanks!

BuBu said...

I have one of the newer Duet's, actually WFW9151**. It has a different, White Oval shaped, Pressure Switch. However looking at Mikes Pictures, I was able to discern that the tiny screw at the top which is inset (no riser) is the Fill control for with Clothes. The one right below it is for the "empty" pressure. Not sure what that means, but I think is is for the cleaning cycle.

To set Mine, filled the washer with clothes. Turned the screw 8 full turns clockwise. Started the cycle. and with rubber gloves and an insulated screwdriver ready, I watched as the unit filled. As it was nearing what I felt was a good fill level I started turning the screw slowly backwards until it clicked and the water turned off.
Total time to do this: 15 Minutes including putting the top back on and pushing the washer back in place.

BuBu said...

Hey Chanda;
Is that your last or first name?
It's My Last.

Cheers,
BuBu

Dashoundsoflove said...

I need help! I have a he whirlpool front loader n its throwing code hf?fh?,manuel says low water pressure how do I correct this....washing clothes is a nightmare now bc of this code it keeps throwing.

Anonymous said...

You could try turning up the water valve that supplies your washer with water. Also, try unplugging your washer for a minute or two then plugging back in. Mine throws codes too on certain cycles. I just unplug, sometimes change the cycle and start again. goodluck.

inline79 said...

If anyone is still following this, on a 2014 WFW87 the sensor is a Marquardt 2066 series (.0403 to be exact). It is not adjustable. It is a ratiometric sensor that takes the 5V supply from the ACU an outputs a pressure reading. So if water level is too low, which it is in my case with barely an inch of water, and 5V is good, then either the sensor is reading high or the software is set for too low water. I have not tried to replace the sensor with another. Any issue with the air trap would cause the sensor to read low. Hope this helps someone else.

DeeDeeH said...

Where is the screw adjustment on an LG front load washer?

Unknown said...

Let's face it... the guv-ment has (un-)screwed us (so to speak ;>)

....don't know what a ratiometric senor is, but the sensor on the whirlpool duet washer is magnetic (coupled with a switch) ...NOT adjustable .... working on a fix with some friends but so far, no luck .... if we could only hack this like a cell phone (smiley face)...



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Unknown said...

Is there a way to increase the water level for Whirlpool Duet WFW95HEXW2? The water level switch is completely different and doesn't have those two screws like in the picture. It looks more of a rectangular/square shape.