My husband and I just moved into a house that came with a washer/dryer due to an estate sale. The washer was working fine when we moved in, but now I’ve noticed that it will not agitate OR spin. It will go through the cycle just fine, but when it is agitate or spin time it will just make a quiet humming noise. From what I can gather from the documents left behind by the previous owner, it is about 7 years old. I have read a little bit about this issue on these forums, but I’m not sure if they are applicable to my product. My husband is away for a few weeks for work so I’d like to be able to fix it myself. Please help!
I’m having EXACTLY the same problem with mine. I’ve had this issue before. The first time it happened I was able to fix it by resetting the motor.
This time - not so much.
Youtube had a video on how to reset the motor. Hopefully that will fix yours. I’m still trying to figure out how to fix mine.
That reset procedure does not apply to your washer. I will get back to you later for help on your washer if no one else does in the meantime. I have to run out.
Eric
Yeah, I already know the reset idea won’t work; I saw that on YouTube and tried it. I don’t have the right model.
I look forward to hearing how to fix it! MamaFixedIt, hopefully we can BOTH get answers!
I’m going to test and/or replace my lid switch. I happen to have a spare.
Fingers crossed for both of us!
Is that the magnetic part on the lid? What would that do, and how would I test and/or replace it?
If it is the drive motor that is humming, the lid switch is ok. Remove the front panel by inserting a putty knife into the top groove of the panel in line with the lid opening to release the clips on each side. Tilt the panel outward and lift from the cabinet. The motor is at the bottom front. Is it the motor that is humming when it should be spinning or agitating? With washer off, try rotating the motor pulley by hand in each direction. This should rotate the belt and main drive pulley. One direction is for agitation, the other is for spin. Your washer is different from the one MamaFixedIt has. Yours uses a mechanical timer while hers uses an electronic control board.
Eric
Ok fairbanks, what exactly am I looking for when I do this? Am I looking to see if it doesn’t spin in one direction or the other?
Sounds like you better just call in a tech.
Eric
fairbank56 said:
Sounds like you better just call in a tech.Eric
:o 
I’d like to be able to fix it myself! I’m sorry if my previous question sounded silly, but I wasn’t sure what I was looking for - a stuck motor? I was unable to go get a putty knife today, but tomorrow I will go get one and remove the front panel. I guess I’ll just keep researching the issue on other sites.
Anything sufficiently thin and stiff enough such as a butter knife will work to push into the front panel groove to release the clips. First, I need to know if it is in fact the motor that is humming when it should be in agitate or spin. Then I need to know if you can freely rotate the motor pulley in each direction and that when you do that, the belt and the larger drive pulley rotate as well. It could just be that the belt is broken although that is very rare on these washers.
Eric
Got around to inspecting the washer today. Belt is still in tact, and the motor moves both ways manually. I took a video so you can hear the noises it’s making . . . note the motor humming and the weird grinding noise up on the control panel.
Looks like you need a new timer. Unplug the washer. Open the user control panel and unplug the timer connector. Plug washer back in. Is the grinding noise gone? If so, replace the timer. If you buy from APP, you can return the timer if it isn’t the problem.
http://www.appliancepartspros.com/ge-timer-wh12x10254-ap3419314.html
Eric
It is definitely the timer. But what does that have to do with the motor humming when the washer is trying to run?
I will order a new timer ASAP! Thanks so very much!
Well, that may not be the only problem with your washer. The only way to determine that is to do some electrical troubleshooting. Hopefully, it’s just the timer. The timer has multiple sets of contacts in it to perform various functions. The motor has 4 windings in it. If it doesn’t get the proper power to the proper windings it can cause the motor to just sit there and hum. Letting it sit there and just hum without rotating can damage the windings. Hopefully, that hasn’t happened with your motor.
Eric
I hope not! I’ll update you when I replace the timer. Thanks for all the help, Eric! I hope it helped MamaFixedIt too. 
Good luck getting your problem fixed Kerri. My motor is dead. I should change my screen name to MamaBoughtaNewOne!
That wasn’t the issue. Same noises, same behavior. How do I go about returning the timer?
I have a GE washer Model WBSR3140G5CC that won’t agitate or spin. It goes through the cycles normally, so timer appears to be working, but doesn’t agitate or spin when supposed to. The LED on the motor flashes normally. I followed the reset procedure, but it made no difference. I have bypassed the lid switch - same result. The belt is on, drum and shaft to agitator appear to turn freely. What do I try next?