LG Washer Error Codes, Decoded

No — CL is Child Lock, a feature, not a fault. Someone held the Child Lock button (or a two-button combo) and the panel is ignoring input on purpose so a kid can't change the cycle. Hold the same Child Lock button for about 3 seconds and CL clears. Don't confuse it with LE (that one is a locked-rotor motor fault and is a real problem). We flag this on every LG page because people book visits for CL more than you'd expect, and there's genuinely nothing to repair.

Drain fault — the washer couldn't pump the water out in the expected time. On LG front-load WM machines, the very first stop is the drain pump filter behind the small lower-left front access door (customer-cleanable): lay a towel, set a shallow pan, twist the cap counterclockwise, clear the lint and coins. Roughly half of OE calls clear right there. If it comes back, next is a kinked or clogged drain hose, then the drain pump motor at $380 to $540. On top-load WT machines there's no front filter, so OE goes to a hose-and-pump check. Our washer not-draining page walks the full path.

No, opposite end of the water path. IE is an INLET fault: the washer isn't getting water fast enough. OE is a drain fault. For IE, check both supply valves are fully open, the fill hoses aren't kinked, and the mesh inlet screens where the hoses thread on aren't clogged with sediment (common in our harder-water areas). If it's the inlet valve solenoid itself, that's $260 to $380. Easy to mix up OE and IE, so read the letters carefully — I for inlet, O for out/drain.

They're three different things. CL is Child Lock, a feature you clear by holding the lock button (not a fault). tCL is a tub-clean reminder — the washer is telling you to run a Tub Clean cycle to control odor and residue (maintenance, not a fault). LE is the real fault: a locked-rotor or motor error, meaning the drum isn't turning as commanded. LE can be a jammed drum, worn motor components, or the hall/rotor sensor, and it's a technician diagnosis running $340 to $620 depending on the part. If you're seeing LE, that's the one worth a call.

A UE that fires even on small, evenly spread loads has moved past 'redistribute the laundry' into worn suspension, tired shocks, or a failing balance sensor. Our techs check the suspension and the sensor when the code survives a balanced load instead of just telling you to rearrange the clothes. Suspension or shock replacement runs $440 to $640. If UE only trips on genuinely lopsided loads (one comforter, a couple of towels bunched on one side), that's the machine protecting itself — spread the load and it'll spin.

Yes, a door-lock fault: the washer can't confirm the door is latched, so it won't run (a front-loader will not spin with an unlocked door, by design). On top-load WT machines you may instead see dL or DL for the lid lock. The usual fix is the door interlock (or lid-lock) assembly at $260 to $440. First, though, make sure nothing's physically blocking the door from closing fully and that the boot isn't catching — sometimes it's a laundry item pinched in the seal, not the lock.

First: unplug for about 60 seconds (or flip the breaker), restore power, and run a rinse-and-spin to see if the code returns. A code that clears and stays gone was transient noise; one that returns every cycle is a real fault. LG also builds a diagnostic mode into its direct-drive machines (a button-press sequence on power-up that reports status), and our techs use it on every LG service call to confirm the fault before quoting parts. Motor-lock (LE), pressure (PE), and overfill (FE) codes generally won't clear from a customer reset.

Those are technician codes. PE is a water-level pressure-sensor fault, FE is an overfill (water coming in when it shouldn't — often an inlet valve stuck open), and CE is a motor over-current fault. Each needs a meter and, for FE and CE, work around the water and motor circuits. Not a DIY reset. FE in particular can keep filling and overflow if ignored, so if you're seeing it, unplug the machine and call — don't keep running cycles.

Probably the conversation to have. When a year 8-plus LG throws a drain code, then an unbalance code, then a door code across a few weeks, it's usually the main control board sending false signals as it ages, not three separate broken parts. Board replacement runs $580 to $880, and on a mid-tier machine that age it's a repair-versus-replace call. We run that math with you at the door. LG's direct-drive motors tend to be durable, so it's more often the board than the motor at that age.

90 days on SDAR labor and parts for the work we perform — separate from any LG factory warranty. Same component fails inside 90 days, we replace it free. BHGS #A49573, BBB Accredited Business, EPA 608 Universal certified #1346255700410. $89 residential diagnostic, waived when you approve the repair.