Before anything else, separate a truly dead machine from one that starts and misbehaves. No lights at all means power or the main board. Lights on but nothing happens means the board is not satisfied the door is locked. Starts, then stops mid-cycle with water in the drum means the board lost a signal — often the pressure switch or a heating timeout. Fills forever or not at all means the valve-and-pressure-switch pair. Each pattern has its own first checks.
Dead machine: no lights, no response
- Check the socket with a kettle or lamp. Check the plug fuse — a 13A fuse in the plug is the cheapest fault in the whole machine.
- Check the consumer unit: a tripped RCD or breaker is a separate story — read washing machine tripping the electrics before resetting repeatedly.
- Check the on/off switch and that the door is fully closed; many machines show nothing until the door is shut.
If power is proven at the socket and the machine is still dead, the fault is inside: mains filter, wiring, or the main PCB. That is an engineer diagnosis — boards are model-specific and expensive enough (€279–€420 fitted) that you want certainty before ordering one.
Stops mid-cycle
A machine that stops partway through, sits silent with wet laundry, then maybe restarts, is usually timing out on a stage: it could not heat the water in the allowed time (element failed — see not heating), could not drain (pump), or lost the water-level signal. If it stopped full of water, drain it through the filter flap as described on our door page, note any error code, and do not keep restarting it — repeated attempts stress the board.
Won't fill, or overfills
Inlet valve
The inlet valve opens on the board's command to let water in through the detergent drawer. A failed solenoid means no fill and often a fill error — Samsung's is 4C, LG's is IE (covered on the LG OE page). First checks: is the tap behind the machine fully on, is the inlet hose kinked, and are the small mesh filters in the hose connection blocked with grit? In hard-water areas those meshes fur up steadily.
Pressure switch
The pressure switch tells the board how much water is in the drum, via a thin air tube to the tub. A split or blocked tube, or soap scum in the pressure chamber, makes the board think the drum is empty when it is full (overfilling) or full when it is empty (no fill, or an instant drain). Overfilling is a flood risk: if the water level rises above the door seal on a front loader, switch off at the socket and the tap.
The Dublin angle
Older housing dominates here — 70.7% of Dublin homes predate 2001 — and older wiring, shared spurs in kitchen extensions and tired sockets account for a fair share of "dead machine" calls that turn out to be supply faults, which is why the socket-and-fuse checks come first. Hard water shortens inlet valve life: areas normally supplied by Leixlip (Swords, Lucan, Finglas, ~200 mg/L) and the Bog of the Ring (Rush, Balbriggan, Skerries, ~336 mg/L) clog valve meshes and fur pressure chambers faster than soft-water South Dublin on Ballymore Eustace (~50 mg/L). Under the EU Right to Repair rules applying in Ireland from 31 July 2026, boards and valves must stay available for 5–10 years, which keeps mid-life machines economical to repair.
What it typically costs in Dublin
Typical Dublin ranges, checked November 2026. Fixed price confirmed after diagnosis, before work; call-out fee stated when booking.
- Blocked filter clear / simple supply and hose faults: covered by the €79 call-out
- Door lock / interlock: €149–€249
- Drain pump (mid-cycle stop on drain stage): €149–€199
- Motor or main PCB: €279–€420
Full breakdown on our repair costs page. If the board has failed on an older machine, we will say so plainly and set the repair price against €419–€999+ for a new machine before you decide.
When to call us
Call Dublin Washing Machine & Fridge Repair on 645 465-6305 if power is proven and the machine is dead, if it overfills, or if it keeps stopping mid-cycle. Book via washing machine repair Dublin and tell us the exact pattern — dead, stops, no fill or overfill — plus any code. That pattern is half the diagnosis. Guarantee in writing on every repair.
