What this usually means
A washer that does nothing is either not being fed, or is waiting on a door or lid it does not consider closed — and those two account for most dead machines before anything inside is suspected. The reason no power at the outlet or a tripped breaker heads the ranking on a Criterion is simple: these units are frequently owner-installed in a closet, a garage or a basement corner, so what feeds the machine is as suspect as the machine. Supply, door catch and a control lockout are owner checks; a control or motor diagnosis is not.
What you can see and hear
- It clicks repeatedly and stops — The door lock is trying to engage and failing.
- It starts only if you press or lift the door while starting — A worn catch or a lock that is no longer being made.
- No lights, no sound, nothing at all — A completely dead cabinet is a supply story until proven otherwise.
- NEAR MISS — It fills and then stops — That is a cycle fault rather than a start fault, and the cycle page covers it.
The causes and their order
- No power at the outlet or a tripped breaker — First on this brand: these units are frequently owner-installed in a closet, a garage or a basement corner, so what feeds the machine is as suspect as the machine. A washer shares its circuit more often than any other laundry appliance, so a trip caused by something else leaves it completely dead.
- Transit bolts left in, or a machine that has just been moved — Second: Transit bolts do not stop a machine starting on most designs, but a move that trapped the cord or knocked a connection does exactly that.
- A door lock or lid switch that will not make — Third: On a front-loader the lock must engage before anything happens; on a top-loader the lid switch does the same job with a simpler mechanism.
- A worn start button or selector — Fourth, and the last to suspect: A mechanical selector wears at the contacts it uses most, so one or two cycle positions stop working while the rest are fine. The drivetrain is simple, which makes it durable — it is a real cause but rarely the first one.
The order to work in
- Test the outlet with something else and cycle the breaker fully — Off, pause, on. A breaker that looks set can still be tripped. It goes first because it is the cheapest thing to rule out and it decides which half of this list you are in.
- Ask what changed just before it stopped working — A machine that was moved, plumbed or serviced the same week is telling you where to look.
- Listen for the lock clicking when you press start — A click with no cycle is a lock that engages but is not reporting; silence is a lock that is not being told to engage.
Owner-side steps
- Cycle the breaker properly and prove the outlet with a known-good appliance — Do not use an extension lead to test it; the lead becomes a second variable.
About 10 min
- Check the cord is not trapped behind the cabinet and that the plug is fully home — Pull the machine out gently and look before assuming an internal fault.
About 10 min
- Stop here if the next move needs a meter on live terminals — That is where an owner check ends and a service call begins.
Working safely on this machine
Safety
Unplug the appliance or switch off its breaker before removing any panel. A capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off. Close the taps before any hose comes off, and never bypass a door or lid switch to run the machine open.
When to stop and call
Call once the outlet is proven live, the breaker cycled, the door latching firmly and no lock state is set. Beyond that the checks are inside the cabinet on live terminals.
Nearest pages of this class
The limits of this page
This is the family-agnostic page for Criterion washers. Nothing more specific exists to send you to at the moment; a model-level page, once written, is linked here and is the better answer. Deliberately not here: wiring colours, resistance values, torque figures and part numbers, which differ between families.
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
