What's Broke home

Appliance troubleshooting guides, built from the manufacturers' own documentation

What's Broke is a troubleshooting reference for household appliances. Each guide covers one problem on one kind of appliance: an error code shown on the display (LG washer LE, Bosch dishwasher E24) or a symptom with no code (a refrigerator that is not cooling, a dryer that is not heating). The guide explains what the code or symptom means, ranks the most likely causes, separates the checks that are safe to do yourself from the repairs that belong to a technician, and lists every source it used.

Nothing here is written from memory. Every statement on a guide is tied to a document we retrieved and keep on file, usually the manufacturer's own manual, help library, or service bulletin, with government safety notices and established repair publishers where they add something. The sources block at the end of each guide names the publisher and the date we last retrieved the document, and any statement we could not verify is left off the page rather than published with a caveat.

Appliances covered

50 guides across 5 appliance categories. Each category page lists its symptom guides and every brand it covers.

How to find your error code or symptom

If your appliance shows a code, start with the brand: the code pages sit under each brand within its appliance category, so an LG washer code is under Washer, then LG. Codes are listed as they appear on the display, and alternative spellings redirect to the same guide. If there is no code, start with the appliance category and pick the symptom that matches what you see. Symptom guides are written for any brand and say which manufacturer each instruction comes from.

How the site is organized

The site is organized as appliance, then brand, then problem. Each appliance category page lists its symptom guides and every brand it covers; each brand page lists that brand's codes and symptoms; and each guide links to the closely related problems on the same appliance. Every guide also opens an interactive diagnosis that asks about your machine and narrows the causes in order.

Safety comes before every check

Before any check, each guide repeats the same rules: cut the power at the plug or breaker before removing panels, shut the water supply before touching hoses, and stop and call a technician at any sign of burning, smoke, sparks, or water near wiring. Work that the manufacturer reserves for a technician, such as gas components and sealed refrigeration systems, is never presented as a DIY step. Read the safety disclaimer and the editorial and sourcing policy.