Model #GLTF2940ES3, the failure reported on this front load washer was a horrible noise and not draining water. Many different failures come to mind given those symptoms, but this call is one that demonstrates the need for good communication between the technician and the customer. And why asking opened ended questions of the customer is important to identify the machine failure so we are not spending a lot of time on the symptoms. This isn't going to be one of my typical service call posts with hows and whys of one of my service adventures, but rather a post on how a simple failure can give some unrelated symptoms.
The customers complaint of noise and not draining would usually lead me in the direction of the drain pump because if it's plugged or not working, well the water goes nowhere. This can also provide for some rather unnerving sounds in the process along with preventing the washer from completing a spin cycle. But upon my arrival, I found the actual failure to be something much simpler and thus the reason for this post.
As far as the customer was concerned, the noise and not draining was the problem to be dealt with, but after asking some open ended questions, you know the ones encouraging the customer to speak freely, I found out that the noise seemed to come and go during the cycle, while the not draining was actually noticed more on bulky clothing items. This can still indicate many things, but it does get me thinking the problem is more likely the washer not spinning then not draining. A blocked or broken pump will leave standing water in the tub, but a washer not draining will leave much more water in the clothes which the customer assumes is because it's not draining.
This conclusion lead me to the door latch which if not closed properly, will allow the washer to do everything it is supposed to do, expect spin out the clothes. Opening the door, I noticed some rubbing where the strike meets the latch itself which can definitely result in door issues. Looking further at the door and how it closes, I found it didn't seem to sit properly in the frame and would even rub on the door seal making it difficult to latch. This most certainly is now pointing toward an alignment problem and after having a look at the door hinges, the source of these symptoms came to light.
The bottom hinge on this washer had become hyper extended at one point causing the bottom of the door to push toward the latch. This along with a leaking dispenser, likely caused by not using he detergents as demonstrated by the trail of water and soap down the front, resulted in the hinge also rusting. As the rust became worse, the door become harder to close resulting in the customer needing more force to get it shut. Once closed, the door would latch, but when it was locked, the solenoid inside the latch would not be able to fully engage the strike making for a loud buzzing sound. And because it wasn't fully closed, the control board would not initiate the spin cycle at the appropriate time of the wash.
So the problems the customer was having with this washer, all came down to a simple door hinge. Once the door hinge was replaced, the door closed properly again, and some quick testing had the machine washing and spinning all without any noise. The customer was happy to have a working washer, and glad that by answering a few questions, the problem could be solved.
For the techs in the audience. The moral of this story is to always talk with your customers and ask questions. Never take your troubleshooting ques from a third party such as your dispatch or phone people. The information they provide is important, but use your own communication skills to solve problems.
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Thoughts and commentary about appliance repair topics including common failures and repairs, plus links to frequently used parts, industry news and events, along with information to help you better understand your appliances. Resources available for anyone with home appliance questions.
Model #KSRG25FKBT03, this side by side refrigerator was making ice, but would not dispense the ice when the lever was pressed. Normally the sound of the auger motor would be heard when the ice chute door opened, but now nothing. The customer tried to change the selection on the dispenser front from cubed to crushed, with the same results. At least the manual method, reaching into the ice bucket, was still working until service could arrive to repair the problem.
Ice dispensers vary in design and operation from one manufacture to another and in some cases, model to model. Many have ice bins mounted high in the freezer section, while others will be mounted inside the freezer door. But one thing that is going to be common is a motor turning an auger of some design to move ice toward the dispenser chute and some means to dispense either crushed or cubed ice.
The ice bin on this model refrigerator is mounted in the top of the door and uses a vertical auger to draw cubes toward the opening to be dispensed. Depending on the rotation of the motor, the auger can provide for cubed or crushed ice as selected by the dispenser. The bin can be removed from the door for ease of cleaning and attaches to the motor drive shaft by a spring loaded metal coupler. This keeps the motor out of the way, and allows for a simple connection point to limit potential drive failures.
Since the unit was not dispensing ice at all, I went straight to the motor to see if I could find voltage going to the motor. This is a logical place to begin my search because it is easy to get to, and if I have voltage but no motor operation, well I don't need to look much further to find which refrigerator part has failed. Plus, it is the more logical of places to start if one were to play the odds. Never to take guesses, I used my multimeter to check for voltage to the motor when the dispenser lever was pressed.
A couple things to keep in mind when doing this. First, the door must be closed, or at least the door switch must be closed or current will not flow. The voltage circuit for the dispenser goes through the switch so if nothing on the dispenser works, that might be a good place to look. Second, the motor used for this auger has several wires leading to it, but we are only concerned with two of them as the others are for directional control.
With the door switch actuated and my meter leads in the connector, I pressed the ice lever sending 117 volts AC to the motor. Just as I suspected, voltage was present, but the motor wasn't working. Time to replace the motor. But before we get to deep into this, as I have said before, it's a good idea to figure out why things fail to hopefully prevent it from happening again. 
The design of this motor and shaft has the potential for moisture to get into the motor cavity and start to cause problems if the shaft seal begins to fail. Take a look at the top photo and see how much water is around the opening. Once the water gets past the seal, it can follow the shaft all the way to the motor and begin collecting on the lower cover. Since it's just as cold around the motor as the rest of the freezer, ice begins to form and if the right circumstances come together, the motor and it's internal inverter board fail.
To fix this problem, I cleaned and dried as much water as I could find, then installed a new auger motor onto the mount. I then pulled the shaft out by removing the two screws on either side of the coupler and cleared all the ice and debris from the opening. Before putting the shaft back in place, I installed a new shaft seal
, to help keep the water out. Once back together, the door was closed, and the ice paddles depressed. The familiar drive motor sound could be heard which meant ice was ready to be dispensed.
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To repair or replace is a question I get just about daily as the manufactures continue to up the price of repair parts driving many to question why pay the money to fix it. But with the slump in the economy, more of my customer seem willing to pay for the repair, even if it only saves them a few dollars. This trend is beneficial to someone like me who makes his living servicing appliances, but whether to repair or replace has other questions that need to be answered aside from just the cost difference.
I found an article that does a good job at pointing out some of this customer anxiety first hand, and really shows how much our appliances have become of critical importance in our daily lives. But really, if you can get past the emotional issues and look at the actual costs involved between repairing or replacing, you may be surprised, even using the 50/50 rule, you are often much better off with a repair than a replacement. - Me
Read the full story at the Herald-Tribune.com
Model #GLD4355RFB0, this tall tub dishwasher was no longer working and pressing any of the buttons didn't seem to make any difference. It appears that the dishwasher failed in the middle of a wash cycle because of the standing water in the tub. That along with noticing none of the lights on the control panel were working was indication enough that someone serious was wrong with this unit.
This dishwasher was not taking any input from the keypad and nothing was illuminated on the display which is a good indication that either there is no power going to the unit, or a significant dishwasher part has failed. After verifying the circuit breaker was in the on position at the panel, I removed the access panel to get to the junction box. This is where the household wiring connects to the machine wiring and is a logical place to look when nothing seems to be working. Using my meter to check for voltage, I found the expected 120 volts at the box leading me to believe it must be something wrong inside the machine.
After removing the control and door panels to get to the main board and door latch, I again did some voltage checks to see if voltage was finding it's way to this area. Both switches on the latch were working properly and I had voltage to the control board located behind it's own protective cover. Not much more to investigate because if voltage is going into a board, but nothing is coming out, the board must have failed. After removing the board and looking for any signs of damage which I didn't find any, I then installed a new control board in it's place.
With power turned back on at the breaker, I turned it off to change the board of course, the indicator lights and display can back on like nothing had ever been wrong. Starting a cycle to test all the component revealed everything was working, so it was time to put it all back together.
I usually suggest attempting to locate the reason for part failures, and in many cases, there is a logical path to follow. On some products, like this dishwasher, everything is monitored and powered by this one board. It is possible something caused the failure, but often times, it was just the boards time to go. And in reality, nothing works without the board so there isn't much to test unless the board is working. I know it's not the best form of trouble shooting, but sometimes I simply play the odds and replace the part.
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Model #LEW0050PQ3, this small 24 inch electric dryer had started to make a rubbing sound while in use. The noise seemed to come and go while in use, but was definitely getting worse with time. Due to it's location inside a closet, and stacked on top of the washer, it was difficult to determine the source of the noise, so professional help was brought in, which happened to be me.
It is not uncommon for a dryer to make noise, simply due to the mechanical nature of their design, and the environment they work within. Tumbling a heavy load of damp clothes through varying temperatures all while drawing in large quantities of dust filled air can really put a strain on anything mechanical. But the nice thing is, most are relatively easy to work on, and if you pay attention to the noise it is making, the source can usually be found rather quickly.
To do this, I usually suggest listening to the frequency of the noise to help locate the source. A noise that repeats very quickly will be associated with something small like an idler roller, support rollers, and support bearings. Noises the repeat more slowly, such as with each drum rotation, will have some association with the drum itself. With this information and getting your ears into the search, locating which one of the dryer parts has failed, is as simple as paying attention.
Now it's not always that easy, especially if your dryer is stacked and located in a closet, but the process works the same, it just requires more preparation. With this dryer, I started a test cycle and after the running for about 5 minuets, a distinct slow rubbing sound could be heard from the back of the dryer. It's sometimes easier to tell location if you put your ear on the dryer much like a stethoscope. The noise repeated with every drum rotation, giving me enough information to figure this dryer needed a new rear seal.
Most dryer drums will use a felt or felt/rubber type seal to help with airflow, and to prevent clothing items from becoming stuck between the drum and the edge of the dryer. This dryer uses a seal that is rubber to create the seal with the rear panel, and uses a felt portion that rides against the back of the drum. It works very well, until something changes, or it simply fails from age and temperature.
With the dryer down on the floor where I could work on it, I removed the rear panel to get to the mechanical parts of this dryer. The drum is attached in the back, and rides on a nylon glide which must be removed first or the panel will not come off. Once I had the panel pulled away, I could see in the lower corner how the felt was compressed exposing the rubber behind it. By rotating the drum, I found the exact spot that was contacting the seal and it looked as if the metal in drum had been pushed out just enough to apply more pressure to the seal. Something as simple as drying shoes without other clothes could cause this kind of damage.
The repair was to simply pop the drum back into its original shape, and to replace the rear seal. A little cleaning here and there to remove excess lint, and then put it all back together. Once the dryer was back on top of the washer, a test load was started, but now the only sounds from the dryer were those we are familiar with.
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Model #MFI2067AES, this bottom mount french door refrigerator which goes by the Ice2O moniker had decided to act like a freezer and would freeze everything in the upper fresh food section. The customer noticed things like vegetables would have ice on them and the milk would begin to freeze. Continuous adjustments were made to the fresh food and freezer temperatures, but nothing seemed to make any difference.
These popular french door refrigerators operate like most other frost free units, in that the cooling takes place within the freezer section, and this cool air is circulated by a fan into and around the fresh food section. To help control the temperature and allow the two sections to maintain a different temperature, a refrigerator part called an air diffuser or damper is used to control the flow of cooled air. This acts like a doorway letting in cold air from the freezer section until the temperature in the fresh food section is achieved. Then the door will close allowing the freezer to continue to cool to a lower temperature independent of the refrigerator section.
This process of moving cool air between sections works very well, and requires only a few parts to keep things working properly. Many refrigerators use a simple mechanical air damper and cold control to maintain temperatures which is effective, but can allow for wide temperature swings because of the passive nature of a mechanical damper. Most, let's say higher end products, use an electromechanical damper that is controlled by it's own cold control, or by the refrigerators main board to very accurately control the temperature within the fresh food section. These units are also going away from using mechanical cold controls, and are now using thermistors to monitor temperature.
Thermistors are semiconductor devices that change in resistance based on the temperature they are exposed to. The ones used in most refrigerators are called NTC for negative temperature coefficient, meaning their resistance goes up, as the temperature goes down. They are very accurate in their readings, and allow for specific temperatures to be maintained within both the freezer and fresh food sections.
On the refrigerator I was working on, I could quickly tell the fresh food section was much colder than it should be, and by placing my hand up near the air inlet, could feel the cold air continue to enter. By placing the unit into a diagnostic mode and scrolling to the temperature readings, I could see the freezer, ice box, and ambient temperatures seemed to be correct, while the fresh food thermistor said it was 44 degrees inside. This would explain why the damper was open and the electronics were trying to get it back to the preferred temperature. But before I start ordering parts, it's time to get out the multimeter and see if the thermistor is the problem, or maybe the control board is the issue.
To do this, I simply consulted the wiring diagram for the unit and isolated the connector and wires that lead to the fresh food thermistor and took a resistance reading. As outlined in the tech sheet, the thermistors should read around 29K ohms at 37 degrees, but I was getting a reading of only 12.5K ohms, which the control board would interpret as a much warmer reading. This would explain why the control board had the fan running and the damper wide open trying to cool down the fresh food section.
Looking like a thermistor problem, I removed the lamp assembly in the top of the fresh food section where the thermistor resides, and with power removed from the unit, replaced the thermister using the supplied crimp connectors. Then to ensure moisture doesn't cause a problem in the future, used some Whirlpool adhesive to seal the opening to the connectors. After putting everything back together, I put the unit back into diagnostics, and this time, the thermistor was reading properly.
By the way, this is one of those failures that can have multiple causes and not all require replacing a part. Due to the location of the thermistor in the top of the unit, the actual temperature will often times be accurate, but if measured in the crisper or deli drawers, is found to be much colder. This can be corrected by selecting a higher temperature for the fresh food section to help even things out. Also, if by chance you have an Ice2O version like the one in this post and do not have it connected to a water source, make sure the ice maker is turned off. With the ice maker on, and not making ice, more cold air will be drawn into the fresh food section because the electronic control board is trying to make ice. Simply turn off the ice maker to set things right. And finally, pay attention to how you load your food items on the shelves. In particular, avoid placing large items close to the air inlet which will disrupt the air flow, resulting in more cold air being pushed down the back of the unit instead of evenly dispersing throughout the cavity. If this all looks good, then it may be time to look a bit deeper into the problem.
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Model #GHW9400PW1, the customer had returned from a weekend away, only to find water inside the tub of her trusty Duet washer
when she attempted to do some wash. The door was closed while they were away, and there was only a little water that was easily drained by selecting the drain cycle. Everything looked good and the washer worked without any problems. But the next day, water was again sitting in the tub requiring a drain cycle to be run before doing any laundry. This pattern continued until I was given a call to have a look at the situation.
Standing water in the tub of any washing machine between cycles is an indication of either water continuing to enter from the faucet, or water not properly draining at the end of the cycle. The source of the water can usually be determined by simply looking to see if it is clean water from the fill valves, or dirty water that just didn't drain away. Either way, the problem needs to be addressed as it may be an indication of a problem with one of the washer parts like the drain pump or water fill valves.
The complaint on this washer was standing water and based on the customers description and a little investigation, the water was entering during periods of non use and the water was clean like it came from the faucet. This all but eliminated the source as being a blocked drain pump because one, it was clean water, and two, water entering back into the washer from the drain stand pipe would generally be accompanied by an error code due to siphoning. Which leaves us with the fill valves.
Water fill valves are used in most any appliance that uses water be it a washer, dishwasher, refrigerator for ice and water, or the now popular dryer with steam features. These valves are simple in their operation as they use a magnetic coil to open a plunger allowing water to flow. At the end of these plungers is a rubber membrane used to help seal the plunger to the housing when not in use. A combination of the plunger spring, and water pressure from the faucet holds the plunger shut and keeps the valves water tight when not in use. But if the membrane becomes damaged, or sediments in the water pipes enter the valve and become stuck at the opening, the plunger cannot seal the shut, and the valve will leak water. Usually it is a small amount that may take days to be noticed, while other times, the flow of water can be easily seen as a trickle from the fill hose.
Sometimes, simply removing the water hoses and cleaning the screens, then running water into the machine will be enough to flush the sediments away thus solving the problem. Other times, the only solution is to replace the valve assembly after clearing any debris from the water line. My personal experience suggests that it is best to replace the valve once it has started leaking. I don't say this because it makes me more money, but you must realise these valves are connected to you home plumbing and are under pressure 24/7, 365 and the potential for damage due to a water leak is always a possibility. So what I am saying is it is better to be safe than sorry.
Once the new inlet valve assembly was installed and the water connections put back in place, I ran a quick diagnostic cycle to make sure everything was working as it should. The customer can now be satisfied the washer is working and that there shouldn't be any problems with water in the tub between visits. At least for awhile.
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Viking Recalls Built-In Refrigerators Due to Injury Hazard
A recall has been announced on some of Viking Ranges built-in refrigerators that pose an injury hazard when a door detaches. Read the complete press release from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. and call if you own one of these refrigerators.
Model #SVE47600B, this slide in electric range has surface units that were working correctly, and the oven was heating just fine, but the display which showed the clock and all the oven settigns was getting difficult to see. The problem with the display didn't seem to have any affect on the operation of the oven, but it was becoming increasingly difficult to see the temperature settings on the oven and you had to be sure the correct mode was selected since it couldn't be verified by the output from the display.
Ranges that use LED's to display oven settings are pretty much the norm anymore as more cooking equipment is utilizing the all in one type of control boards. These boards take in user inputs and through programing provide for the operation of the various heating elements and display the necessary information graphically to the user. The displays themselves are quite reliable as range parts go, but age can takes its toll on them, and the result is usually their original bright glow fading away.
Because this range only has the one board to not only control all the range functions, but to also act as the display board, it wasn't to difficult to determine which part needed to be replaced. Many ranges will have multiple boards, each assigned to their own task in the operation, but the dim display symptom is going to be limited to whichever of the boards contains that actual LED display.
The board on this range is located behind the user panel and can easily be accessed by removing the screws along the bottom. With the panel tipped forward, the mounting screws holding in the board, and the wire connectors can be easily removed. I installed the new electronic oven control after removing power from the unit, then carefully moved each connector to it's new location. Once power was turned back on, the graphic images shown brightly in the display and the customer no longer had to guess what temperature the oven was set at.
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Refrigerators are the new energy saving item in the appliance world and every year it seems like some manufacturer has figured out how to squeeze a few more kilowatt hours out of their latest design. Most people are unaware of how much electricity their old faithful refrigerator is actually using because how it works is usually rather mysterious, but if you think of three electric motors running about 60% of the time throughout it's life, the energy consumption makes a little more sense. I could go on and on, but I found this article recently at one of the other appliance related blogs and figured why say what has already been said. So head on over and give it a read. Many of the new refrigerators are using less energy than a 100 watt light bulb, so even though the upfront cost is high, the long term savings may make the purchase worth the expense. - Me
Article - Is your refrigerator more than ten years old? If so, replacing it can save you some serious money. The problem is can it save you enough to warrant shelling out the money for a new unit? A new refrigerator isn’t cheap, but an older one accounts for anywhere from 5-8 percent of your household energy.
Read the full story at Appliance.net
Model #KUDP01FLBL2, the door on this tall tub dishwasher become suddenly very heavy after the customer went to open the door and heard a loud bang. The door would still close and the unit would still operate, but the added weight of the door was a good indication that one of the dishwasher parts was no longer working.
Dishwashers will have some type of balance system as part of the door assembly in order to counteract the weight of the door when opened. They don't seem like they would be very heavy, but with the weight of the metal panels and control boards near the top, well it does add up. These balance systems usually consist of a spring mounted between the door hinge and frame of the dishwasher in such a way that they help hold the door while being opened, but still allow the door to lay flat when opened. There are usually a few other small parts used to limit noise between the spring and the door hinge, but often times, it's simply the spring that breaks.
The mechanism used on these Kitchenaid dishwashers is a little different, in that the balance spring is attached to a lanyard with plastic connecting pieces on either end. This lanyard wraps around a set of pulleys, one of which is stationary, to allow the movement of the door to translate into a horizontal pulling motion on the spring. The spring sits just above the bottom rail of the tub, attaches in the back, and is held in place with the tension of the spring. It all works very well until one of the lanyards breaks, and that is when the door gets very heavy.
Since this is a rather common failure, it didn't take much to figure out what had gone wrong. The difficult part of the repair is finding the spring after the lanyard broke and getting it back in place. The repair only requires the unit to be pulled about 6 inches from the cabinet to install the new door balance kit which has enough parts to repair or replace both sides. The pulley portion of this kit is a bit different in that both pulleys now rotate which is a significant improvement over the factory original version. This helps reduce friction and should prolong the life of the lanyards.
This kit is also good to solve another rather common problem that I wrote about in my post Noisy Door on Kitchenaid Dishwasher where the doors make a creaking sound when opened or closed. Many techs will simply lubricate the stationary pulley, but this is only a short term fix, and this new kit really does the trick to keep it quiet for good.
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Model #WFW8300SW0, the start button on this front load washer was cracked and required what seemed like excessive force to start a wash cycle. This is a pretty straight forward type of repair as most people can see the bubble type button cover is torn around the edges requiring replacement of the entire panel to solve the problem. But the reason I write about this repair, is to point out the circumstances that cause this type of failure in the first place, and what the likely symptom would be well before it gets to this point.
Most of my posts pertain to specific failures and the associated washer parts, in this case, that I use in my repair. The panel on this washer was obviously damaged and it did take over a year of use before the start button finally tore along one side resulting in the button separating from the panel itself. The repair simply required the replacement of the panel, but in completing the part install, the actual reason for this failure become evident. 
Looking at the photo taken of the rear side of the user panel, we can see the interface board mounts to the panel through the use of plastic clips. These clips situated around the perimeter are meant to secure the electronic board tightly to the so when one of the bubble buttons are pressed, the bubble will contact the push button switch mounted to the electronic board. Once the button is released, the bubble will return to it's normal shape releasing the push button. But when one of the plastic mounting clips breaks, or in the case of this washer which had a clip that was never locked in place, actuating the push button requires you to push harder on the bubble button in order to make contact. The result is premature failure of the button, or if far enough apart, the push button never being pressed.
As I said above, the only way to repair this washer, so it still looks good, was to replace the user panel. But to ensure it doesn't happen again, I verified all of the clips were locked in place, and that I could feel the push buttons when I pushed each of the bubbles. This is a good process to follow whenever panels of this type are being replaced. By verifying each button is working properly, you can prevent a call back if your the tech, or disassembly of the panel a second time if you are the one doing the work.
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Well the title about says it all. We often don't realize how much heat is put off by the typical incandescent light bulb, especially when they are inside of a cool refrigerator. But then we run across a unit like the one pictured above, and one look says it all. This is a rather unconventional situation where the unit was installed during construction so the condo was unoccupied, the compressor was never turned on, but because the door switch was not working properly, well you can see the results. The reason I bring this up is not only because it's cool to look at, but to get you thinking. Yes, you, the professional technician looking for the reason the customers fresh food section isn't as cold as it should be and you have checked and replaced everything you think could be causing the problem. I know it's rare, but if a light bulb or two were to remain on while the doors were closed, well the result could be that higher than normal temperature the customer is experiencing.
"When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth" - Sherlock Holmes
Model #KEMC308KSS01, I have talked with a few people lately via email and on various repair forums I help out on regarding a door open error being displayed on the microwave portion of this built in combination. The oven portion continues to function as usual, but the microwave, will only show 'door' in the display when the start button is pressed. The first indication is there may be something wrong with the door, or one of the door switches on this unit, simply because of the error. But if we look a little deeper into the wiring diagram of this particular microwave, we can see the various components, some not associated with the door, that can also bring about this error message.
Error messages and fault codes are becoming ever more common as many appliances are shifting to electronic controls not only for user input, but also for general operation. These codes, both user and technical, can be beneficial to help prevent problems with how the appliance is being used, and in the event a microwave part does fail, can help with the diagnosis. Many of these codes are created by the engineers to help define specific problems, while other are the result of unexpected circumstances or conditions. These are the codes that can lead even the best technicians astray, and result in replacing parts that have not failed, or looking in the wrong area for the solution. Overall, these codes have great benefit to both the customer and technician, but we must always realise that they are only a part of the troubleshooting process and not necessarily the answer.
When an error code has been displayed and is associated with a verifiable problem, we need to take that information and find out first what the code means, and then what can cause the code to be displayed. Most codes will show up in the user manual, or tech sheets supplied with the machine and these will help begin our search for the problem. If we do not have access to these documents, we can make some assumptions about what the code indicates, but the manufactures have done little to be consistent with their codes and what they mean. So speculating may start you looking in the completely wrong part of the machine. But once we do find the code, this can give us a direction start looking, and along with good troubleshooting processes, should lead us to our failure.
As I already insinuated, error codes can not only be displayed for specific reasons, but also because a set of conditions has occurred that give the same result. The microwave portion of this unit is a very good example of how a simple user code can be displayed for reasons that have nothing to do with the code itself. Let me explain. The 'door' error message will be displayed if the customer tries to start a heating cycle while the door is open. It is a code that makes sense and is generally self explanatory. But if the code shows up while the door is closed, well then that must indicate a problem with the door interlock switch circuits. Entirely possible and I have seen that exact scenario. But this is where it is important to use the error message as a clue and not a solution. 
If we take a look at the wiring diagram for the microwave portion of this model, we can see the three interlock switches as they are laid out in the circuit. The highlighted portion is a basic interpretation of how they are actuated when the door is closed. The part that I want to point out is the wiring leading up to the primary interlock and more specifically, the two fuses, and one thermal overload that comprise the L1 circuit. You see the control board interprets the door being closed by current flowing through the primary interlock switch. If the switch fails to actuate, the 'door' error will be displayed because there is no electricity to the board. But what if the switch operates properly, and one of the other components wired in series to the switch were to fail? Well as you guessed it, the 'door' error would again show up.
So with this new found bit of information, it is now possible to better diagnose a failure when this error occurs. Any one of these components can give us the same error, which as I said above, has nothing to do with the reason for the error being displayed. But by using the error as a clue, we can be sure we are looking in the right area.
Just a note: I usually find the source of this error to be the 20amp buss fuse located behind the control panel. This fuse is in place to protect the microwave control in the event of a power surge, as opposed to the 15amp fuse which is part of the door interlock system.
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