Model #GHW9100LW1, this front load Duet washer displayed an 'FH' error message in the display shortly after beginning a wash load. The problem seemed to be resolved by restarting the wash cycle and everything seemed to be OK. During successive loads, the problem would occasionally reappear, but each time starting the cycle over did the trick. Recently, however, the problem was becoming more frequent and would occur more often than not.



Whenever an error message of any kind appears, it is best to use this information the machine is providing and consult the technical documentation for suggestions. I use that term because few answers usually come form error messages. Each message has a purpose and may point in a particular direction, but they are rarely spot on when it comes to locating failures.

What we need to do instead is take the information provided and use it as part of our diagnosis. Remembering of coarse that the codes appear based on what the machine was doing at the time and not necessarily what went wrong. An example of this is a washer that doesn't appear to be doing anything. If the customer unplugs the unit for a brief time, then tries to start the cycle again, the machine may log a door lock error because the door was still locked. In this case, replacing the door lock will not solve the problem.

On this washer a quick look at the tech sheet provided this tidbit of information.

If after 30 seconds the control does not detect water entering machine, the valves will be turned off and the error code will be displayed. Or If the control has turned the water valves on and after 8 minutes the flow sensor has detected 10.5 gallons of water passing through it, but has not detected the pressure switch trip, the valves will be turned off and the error code will flash.

Not exactly pointing to the problem, but rather pointing in a direction. Simply stated, the machine either detected no water or to much water entering the tub.

Because it looks to be a water problem, I started a test cycle to see if anything would show itself. At the appropriate times in the cycle, each water valve turned on then off which tells me we have a working water source. The cycle continued and finished without a problem.

As pointed out in the error message the control is looking for water entering the tub when the valves are turned on. This is done through the use of a flow meter that sends signals to the control as it spins in the water stream. If the control doesn't get the signals, or detects to low a water flow, the 'FH' error will display. The other reason would be the control detecting to much water has moved past the flow meter without the pressure switch actuating. This is a safety measure to prevent flooding. Just remember to check for high water in the washer door before attempting to open it.

Since each error came very early in the wash cycle I decided to make some checks of the flow meter. This component is simply a water wheel with a magnet around the center shaft. As the wheel is rotated by the flow of water, the magnet will cause a reed switch to open and close twice with each rotation. The control board uses this pulsing to determine the approximate amount of water entering the tub. The flow meters can be easily checked by measuring resistance as water is flowing. You can even remove it from the water line and blow through it for your test. The meter should cycle between an fully open and closed circuits twice each rotation. If your measurements show anything else, then the flow meter is likely failing.


Being a fairly basic component, it seems unlikely these flow meter would ever actually fail, but the fact is, given different water conditions the wheel inside can start to rotate slower. This may be due to hard water conditions or sediments in the water. So it doesn't need to completely fail to present itself as a problem.

In doing my checks, I found what I consider erratic behavior from the flow meter so I decided to replace it. The shiny new flow meter was connected to the water line and to its wiring harness. I started several test cycles to see if the error would again occur with no problems found. The repair was complete and the customer could again use the washer without starting it a second time.

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