My GE washer knob that selects Heavy, Medium or light load just spins. I can, however, use my fingers to turn the dial in back of the knob to select my load requirements. My question is, would the groves on the knob be broken and that is the part that needs to be replaced or do I need a new control timer? Thank you.
I assume you are talking about the timer and selection of the lenght of time in the wash cycle.
My experience with these is that your problem can come from the timer breaking loose inside the console. It is poorly made and so a strong push to shut the machine off can do this. Have replaced a bunch of them for this reason.
You are going to have to open up the console (take out the screws on top and it comes open) and inspect it to see what the problem is. You will need to take off the knob, which is a little bit tricky. There is a u clip between the knob and the face plate which has to come off. Needle nose pliers works to get it off.
Click on your model number to see the exploded diagram and the part or parts you will need.