The door is bent a bit and now won't shut right unless slammed just right. I doesn't look bent but must be. I know I have trouble opening it after a wash where it seems stuck and I am sure the previous owner pulled the handle so hard it bent it. If the door is not shut right the machine won't start, thankfully. Any ideas? Can I buy a replacement door somewhere perhaps? Is there a service that can come look at it? I doubt there is a warranty. The amchien belonged to the previous owners who we bought the house from over the summer. Thanks in advance for any ideas anyone can offer.

There must be a way to get the inside panel off. Then you could see and work the handle levers. From the handles to the latching mechanism, small rods work them. They attach on both ends. You will be able to see how the handles trip the latch, then grab the right rod and pull or push it in the right direction to open the door latch. You can do it, hard to describe w/o seeing one, but all work similar. Little rods, that's all you need to know. Uh, well, getting the door panel off is the biggest hurdle. Several screws, some may be hidden, be patient, plastic pin type fasteners along the bottom and up the sides of panel have to be popped out-usually one about every 4-6 inches. Once you get it loosened up, you will easily find the rest of the attaching points. Lift the panel up from the window channel and away. Peel the plastic ("waterproof barrier") film off carefully. You will want it to get a good reseal when you are done. Now you can see the inner parts, and how the handles operate the latch.
Once opened, spray with a penetrant, check the door sill all around, check for visible reasons it stopped opening. Sometimes the rods get stretched or bent, and the handles won't work. Good luck, big "do not slam" sign on that door, okay?

Had a similar problem with our Kenmore front load washer, our grandson was caught leaning on door while it was open and it bent the hinge slightly, this misalignment resulted in the latch mechanism trying to lock the door shut( needed as a safety measure to prevent leakage) but it was unable to do so. Had limited luck with lifting the door while shutting it and holding it closed while pushing the start button,but eventually had to replace hinge. Parts man at service desk also advised not to hang wet heavy items on door (don't know why anyone would want to) as the same thing could happen,also don't try slamming door as that could result in costly latch replacement. Hope this was of some help

move the latch up slamming it knock it lower

The flashing light means that the machine thinks the door is not closed (The door lock switch is not activating). 99% of the time this is simply a sticky switch and the solution is to give the door a good firm slam shut (Don't get silly here, but it will take a pretty good "teenager slamming the bedroom door in a temper tantrum" type slam).

In the event that this doesn't work, then you're looking at a faulty door interlock switch. They're not that hard to obtain or fit if you're fairly confident. Drop me a comment back here and let me know how you get on. Happy to help further if the above hasn't allowed you to solve the problem.

You have a mildly confused machine, probably the result of the fact that there is a moment where the door lock can activate, but the sensor that tells if it's shut cant because the door isn't QUITE pushed home hard enough.

First try, just give the door a whack with the heel of your hand in line with where the door catch is. It may be that simple to relocate the door and the sensor properly

Failing that, unplug at the wall and wait 20 minutes. This will, without doubt reset the machine and allow you to open it (While it is still powered off!). Open the door and shut it firmly.... I hesitate to say SLAM the door.... But slam-ish won't hurt, just don't be stupid about it!

All should be OK going forward

Knowing the make and model of your machine would help!!

This sounds like a Zanussi/Electrolux error code. If it is then E40 means "Door open, door interlock, wiring or main PCB"

I'll presume that you DON'T have the door open, so lets move on from there. There is a sensor on the catch when you close the door (Its the one that locks the door when you close it so you can't open it in mid cycle). It also checks if the door is closed so it can lock the door. It MAY be that a good slam of the door will fix the issue because the catch is a bit sticky.

Equally as likely is that at some stage recently you have already slammed the door, or the machine has had a very uneven load that has caused it to shake violently, making one of the 2 wires on the sensor fall off. This will also cause an E40 and is a not uncommon fault.

If the slam doesn't get you anywhere, have a go at the following:

POWER OFF - MACHINE UNPLUGGED FROM THE WALL!

I'm making a few guesses here as I don't know the specific machine

Take the lid off the machine (Usually a couple of screws at the back of the machine at the top, undo them then give the lid a sharp thump with the heel of your hand to push it forward or backwards (The way the lid was held on by the screws should give you a good indication of which way the lis comes off, it MAY even have a couple of screws in the side near the top, hidden under a couple of little plastic caps).

Once the lid is off, take a look at the sensor for the door. It is directly mounted around or on the door catch, so use the position of the catch on the outside of the machine to figure where it is - This is going to be a tight squeeze, it will be made easier if you tip the machine back by 45 degrees so the drup suts back in the chassis and gives you more room.

You should clearly see 2 spade tags on the sensor with a wire on a spade connector attached to each one. If one is off - good news - put it back on (You might want to give it a squeeze with a pair of pliers to tighten the conenctor up a bit so it doesn't happen again.

Reassemble - Job (Hopefully) done.

If the wires were in place and the door slam didn't work, it could be the main control board that is faulty. IF the fix above didn't work, you probably need to call out someone who can test and fix it.

I HOPE I Have the correct machine!!!

I have the SMEG F170-5 and had this problem after cleaning and replacing the door. It wouldn't heat unless I banged it shut. This action made the internal switch trigger, so I had to remove the oven (4 screws, slide out) and remove the right side panel (4 screws). The switch is actuated by the right hinge strut and it must have become bent slightly. I bent it a bit towards the door so that it would just a little bit more likely to make the switch trigger with the door closed and it now works fine.

yeah but its unsafe specially with kids! it could stay running if the door was open and wont stop unless you turn the knob or unplug it. thats if it was bypassed.

This is usually caused by either a bad door switch or a loose door switch mount, or sometimes a problem on the control panel.

Even though a door switch clicks, it may still be bad inside. Its continuity must be checked.

Door switch or mount trouble can be caused by slamming the door or by opening the door while it's cooking without hitting the Stop pad first.

If you or someone you know decide to look into it, we have critical information on safety, disassembly and door switches at our site, and our link is at our listing here on FixYa: http://tinyurl.com/yzjozk

If you think the problem is on the control panel, we repair these nationwide by mail for $39.95 postpaid in most cases.

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