LG Washer LE Error

UPDATE:  I've had quite a few hits on this posting and received lots of great comments - thanks very much.

This post explains how to replace the hall sensor on your LG washer.  Before you decide that you have to replace your hall sensor, please try unplugging your washer for 5-10 minutes and see if it will reset all on its own.

Also, even after replacing the sensor, sometimes these washers will display "LE" a week or month later and they just need a time-out (unplugged).  Good luck!

I've also had a few questions on what the heck is a hall sensor. Here's a whitepaper with a good description, design notes and ideas on what else you can do with these things.

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We had a really nice Maytag washer and dryer set. They were a billion years old (maybe 15 actually) but ran strong and had zero problems. Spring 2007 we decided to remodel our laundry room and of course we had to have the super duper LG WM2075CW 27" Front-Load Washer with 3.72 cu. ft. Capacity, 7 Cycles, 6 Options, SenseClean and 8 Hours Delay Wash.

About $800 delivered. Nothing but the best for my socks and undies (boxers btw).

Everything has been great except the week before Christmas 2009, Mr LG wouldn't work. It would grunt and click and then put "LE" on the display. A quick Google yields lots and lots and lots of hits with the Load Error (LE).

A number of things can cause an LE but the most common is a malfunctioning Hall Sensor. Seems that LG washers are pieces of crap and this is a well known problem. LG has extended the warranty on the part to 7 years but they won't ship the in-warranty part to consumers. They'll only ship to a certified service company. After several phone calls to LG and way too many minutes on hold, I finally just ordered the damn thing from MCM Electronics, part number 6501KW2002A for $18. Plus tax and shipping, at my door for $29.75.

Actually the LG washer and dryer have been great, I'm just very ticked that LG has a known problem but won't do a recall to fix the part with a more reliable piece. And even more ticked that they won't ship me an in-warranty part so I can do it myself. So for now on, I will refer to the washer as a piece of crap and LG as a seller of crap. My next washer will be a Bosch.


The Google hit that explained the error, the part number and how to replace is FixYa. Their how-to was a little brief and a picture is worth a thousand so I thought I would help out the next sucker that also has a piece of crap that needs to be fixed.

Read thru that FixYa article and make a decision if your problem is also the Hall Sensor. If so, follow along.

This is a pretty simple fix. If you can change a sparkplug than you can easily do this one. (I compared this to a sparkplug change cause you'll get a little dirty, gotta pull some cables, and work a socket wrench).

You'll need a phillips head screw driver, 17mm and 10mm sockets or wrenches.

A quick note:  Even though the pictures are somehow dated 1/7/2006, they were actually taken in December 2009.  Someone reset my camera date and I didn't notice until pics were all taken.

Ok, First step, UNPLUG the washer. And carefully move the washer so that you can access the back panel. If your washer and dryer are stacked, please be careful and make sure there is nothing on top that will fall and hit you in the head. Ask someone to help you, don't blame me if you hurt your self moving the thing. Be careful!

• Remove the 4 phillips head screws on the back panel

• With a 17mm socket, remove the bolt that holds on the motor rotor. Turn the bolt to the left (counter clockwise) to remove. The drum will probably turn as you're trying to get the bolt loose so with your free hand, grab the rotor around 10 o'clock and hold tight while you turn the bolt. Be patient and it'll come right out.
  

• Next,you need to pull the motor rotor off to expose the stator. This will be a little tough because of the magnets and a tight fit. Use both hands on opposite sides and gently tug one side, then the other, then both. Try your hands at 1 o'clock and 7 o'clock. Then switch to 5 and 11. Be patient and tug gently. Watch the white center and you'll see it slowly pull away from the shaft.
  

• Set the rotor to the side and remove the 10mm bolts holding the stator on. I wasn't sure what to expect when I started removing it and I wanted to make sure I put it on right side up so I made pencil marks to line things back up. These really aren't needed cause it'll be obvious as to which side is up.
  

• When you remove the 6th bolt, use your free hand to hold on to the stator cause it will fall right off. There are two connectors at the bottom, one the goes to the motor windings, the other to the hall sensor that we're replacing. If you don't hold onto the stator, you might damage the wires or connectors. Go slow on the last bolt and hang on.
  

• Here's what those connector look like from the bottom side. I didn't have any luck trying to get them free from the bottom though. I was kinda squeezed in between the wall and washer so I didn't have much room to wiggle. I let the stator lean towards me like the picture above and then gently pulled both connectors free. Don't go Rambo on these connectors, you don't need to replace extra stuff. Breathe deep and squeeze the little tabs, they'll come free.

• Almost there. That shiny looking thing on the bottom right of the stator ring is the hall sensor. It's held on with 3 clips on the back side, 1 clip on the front. Simple pry up the 1 clip and it will pop free.
  

• The new sensor snaps back on just like you'd expect. Hook up the 3 clips first and then snap it on to the 1 clip side.
• I don't have pictures of these next steps cause it's just the opposite of the above. Just look at the pictures in the reverse order and it'll all go right back together.
  
• Hook up the two connectors. Make sure they click all the way back on.
• Line the stator back up with the bolt holes and screw the bolts back in with a 10mm socket. Tighten them firm but don't over do it.
  
• Push the rotor back onto the shaft. Because of the magnets and the shaft grooves, it will feel like it's not going. It will, line it up and apply pressure at the edges.
• Tighten the big bolt with a 17mm socket. As it tightens, the drum will start to rotate. Grab the edge with your free hand and tighten firmly.
• Put the back panel back onand tighten down the 4 phillips head screws.
• Plug the washer back in and carefully push the washer back into place.
• Test.
• Your piece of crap washer is fixed.
  

Total time was 38 minutes. If I didn't stop and take pictures, easily under 30 minutes.

What do you think? Leave a comment, buy me a beer!