The short answer
A Best Appliance washer that will not start is usually not seeing its lid closed, not getting power, or not being given water. All three are checked in a couple of minutes with no tools. On a high-duty machine the lid switch is a consumable, and it is the most common single part to fail in this list.
What you observe
- Nothing at all when start is pressed — No lights, no fill, no movement.
- The panel lights and the cycle does not begin — Power is present and a condition is not satisfied.
- It starts only if you press down on the lid — A worn lid switch, diagnosed in one action.
- NEAR MISS — it starts and stops part-way — That is a cycle fault and belongs on its own page.
Causes, most likely first on this brand
- A worn lid switch — First on a shared machine, because it is operated constantly. A switch that no longer makes contact leaves the machine waiting silently with everything else in good order.
- No power at the outlet — Second. A laundry circuit shared with a dryer trips, or a machine gets unplugged for cleaning and only half re-seated. A dark panel is almost always this.
- Supply valves closed — Third, and specific to a laundry room where somebody may have closed them after a leak. The machine waits at the fill step and never appears to start.
- The timer, start switch or control — Last, and the only group needing a meter. Everything above is quicker and far more common.
Check in this order, and why
- Press down firmly on the closed lid and press start — If it runs, the lid switch is the fault and the diagnosis is complete.
- Test the outlet with another appliance — It settles a dark panel immediately.
- Check both supply valves are fully open — A closed valve stalls the machine at its first step.
- Only then treat it as a timer or control fault — That means a meter on live terminals.
What an owner can safely check
- Test the outlet and reset the breaker once — If it trips again, leave it off and report it.
About 10 min
- Clean around the lid switch plunger — Detergent residue and lint stop it reading a closed lid.
Tools: cloth, cotton budAbout 10 min
- Open both supply valves fully — Check the hoses are not kinked behind the machine while you are there.
About 10 min
- Re-seat the plug firmly in the outlet — A half-seated plug in a laundry room is more common than it sounds.
About 5 min
- STOP HERE if lid, power and water are all good — Switch, timer and control checks are a service call.
Before you open anything
Safety
Unplug the washer before touching the lid switch or any panel — a capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off, and in a shared laundry another user may try to start it. Never tape or wedge the lid switch closed to make the machine run: it stops the basket when the lid opens. If the breaker trips whenever the machine is plugged in, leave it off and report it.
When to call a technician
Call when the lid switch responds reliably, the outlet is proven live, both valves are open, and the machine still will not start. The remaining suspects are the start switch, the timer and the control board, all tested with a meter inside a powered cabinet. A lid switch is an inexpensive, quick repair and is usually worth doing on a building machine without hesitation.
Nearest pages of this class
What this page does not cover
This page covers Best Appliance washing machines as a class rather than one model. Deliberately absent here, because they differ by family: lid-switch and timer part identifiers, cycle timings, tub capacities and circuit requirements. Where a family- or model-specific page exists for your unit it is linked below.
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
