Maytag washer low water flow error: weak cold fill and a new inlet valve

The error

A Maytag washer stopped and showed a low water flow error. Maytag’s support page for this error describes it plainly: the washer isn’t detecting the right amount of incoming water.

That narrows things down less than you’d think. The water can be slow because of anything from the house supply to the valve itself, and the display looks the same either way.

What we found

We put the washer into its diagnostic mode and watched the fill. The cold water came in poorly. We replaced the water inlet valve, and the washer works normally again.

What the photo shows

In the photo at the top of this page, the washer is opened up, with its wiring harness and hoses showing. In my glove is the water inlet valve: a blue plastic body with two outlets and two solenoid coils on top.

How the inlet valve works

The inlet valve sits where the hot and cold hoses connect at the back of the washer. Each side is an electric solenoid. When the control calls for water, it powers a coil, the coil opens its passage, and water flows in. A small screen at each inlet catches grit from the supply.

When a screen clogs, or a valve’s passage or coil wears, water comes in slowly or not at all. The control notices the fill taking too long and stops with an error. Valves like this aren’t rebuilt. They’re replaced as a unit.

What to check before you call

Start with the faucets. Maytag’s checklist begins there: both hot and cold supply valves fully open, and both hoses connected.

Then the hoses. Pull the washer forward and look for kinks or a hose crushed against the wall. Maytag also suggests making sure red goes to hot and blue to cold.

Then the inlet screens. Turn the water off first, unscrew the hoses at the back of the washer and look into the valve’s inlets. Mineral buildup on the screens can be brushed off with an old toothbrush, which is what Maytag recommends.

Maytag’s page lists one more item: the drain hose. It should sit in the standpipe with an air gap around it rather than pushed deep and sealed, so the washer doesn’t siphon away water while it’s trying to fill.

If all of that checks out and the error comes back, the valve or the control needs testing, and that’s where we come in.

Maytag washer repair in Los Angeles

We repair Maytag washers across the Westside, Hollywood and the San Fernando Valley. The $85 service call is credited toward the repair if you go ahead, and repairs carry a 30-day labor and 90-day parts warranty. CA BEAR registered (#A 50636). Book a washer repair or call (213) 205-2055.