Robert L Los Angeles , CA October 12, 2016 Appliance: Frigidaire Washer FAFW3921NW0 Normal and heavy cycles on affinity washer would quit a few minutes after starting This is the second time I had to replace the Control Board. They die after two years. I have a stacked washer/dryer. You can do the repair without taking the dryer down. 1. Pull the washer/dryer stack from the wall so you can unscrew the 2 washer top cover screws which are on the back side. Unplug it. 2. Slide the washer and attached top cover back about an inch to reveal the screws in front on the top holding the front panel cover in place. Unscrew those screws and place on a light colored surface so you can easily see them. Place screws in the order you remove them so you can put them back the same way. 3. Remove the soap dispenser by pulling out until it stops. Press the top back plastic level to release it and pull it all the way out. 4. Remove the 2 screws located on the soap dispenser cavity holding the cover to the washer, lower left and upper right. 5. Gently lift the bottom of the control panel cover a tad and then with your fingers, pry the top away from the metal casing. This needs some force to pry it off and it seems like you're going to break it, but go for it. Don't pull it far as it has a set of wires attached to a power socket which is located on the right side. 6. LIFT the tab of the socket up while simultaneously pulling the plug out of the socket. Set the knob to Heavy Duty and put masking tape on the wash selection knob to hold it in place. Place on a surface knob down. 7. Remove the new part from its bag and place it in the same orientation next to the front panel. 8. Remove the screws from the control panel unit and place them on the contrasting surface in the order you are removing them. There are 6 screws. 9. Using both hands guide your fingers on each end of the control unit and gently pry the unit away from the cover. Take note of the Cancel button orientation because it will easily fall off as your work with it. 10. The stem that connects the control board to the knob will be stuck in either one. If it's stuck to the control board, gently pry a side at a time until you loosen it and remove it. Note that the longer end goes into the control board and the short end goes into the knob. Examine it and note that there is a tab on the shaft of the longer end and a half circle on the knob end. 11. Pick up the new control board and shine a light into the control shaft. You will notice a notch where the tab slides into. You will also notice small prongs at 9, 12, and 3 o'clock. The shaft goes inside so that the tab on the shaft goes into the notch and the top of the shaft which is notched slides over one of the prongs. It should go in with minimal pressure. DO NOT TURN IT. 12. Remove the LED readout it on the opposite side of your old unit. Use a small flat head screw driver to GENTLY pry each side to unlatch. Transfer it in the same way to your new unit and press it into place. 13. Transfer the clear plastic groups of light rods one by one from the old controller to the new one. 14. The cover which should be still be knob down is ready to receive the new unit with all it's parts transferred. Guide the stem into the half circle shape shaft of the knob. It should go in easily. 15. Put in a screw on either side of the control unit. You will put in all the screws after you test that you have the knob oriented correctly. 16. Attach the power plug to socket. Place so it will not fall. Plug the AC cord in. Turn the knob and see that the notch of the knob points correctly to each wash cycle. Heavy Duty is 50 and Rinse & Spin is 15. If this is incorrect, pull the AC plug, then the power plug. Remove the control until from the cover and using a Phillips head screwdriver, gently orient the control panel's prongs to the correct position. This can be a challenge getting right 17. Once everything is set right, put in the remaining screws and tighten firm, but not with force. 18. Attach the power plug. Put the top of the cover on the top of the metal part of the wash and push into place. It should snap into place. Replace the screws. Slide the top and replace the the screws onto the back. Slide back into place. 19. Plug in the AC and test out. For some reason, my Heavy Duty cycle doesn't work, but the rest do. The last board I put in, it didn't work either. Frigidaire makes a flawed product with poor engineering and/or manufacturing and quality control. I expect to replace this board in another two years. This makes for a high cost of ownership and not really a product of value in comparison to other products. When other parts wear out, I will certainly look for another brand. Read More... Do-It-Yourself Rating: Repair Time Estimate: 30-60 minutes Tools: Screwdrivers
Robert L Los Angeles , CA October 25, 2014 Appliance: Frigidaire Washer FAFW3921NW0 Normal and heavy cycles on affinity washer would quit a few minutes after starting Since the other cycles worked, I figured it was the control board that failed. I ordered one for $95. I was surprised how fast it showed up from AppliancePartPros after I ordered it. I searched google/YouTube and found a clear video demonstrating how you take the top front off. Mine is a stacker and it was just me so I had to come up with a way to get at it without having to take it off. First, pull the units away from the wall. Unscrew the washer top screws on either side of the back. Lift and slide the top back (alternate sides) until it clears the screws holding down the front top and unscrew them. Then pull out the detergent loader draw. Unscrew the 3 screws there and gently pull all around the outside of the until to unlatch the plastic clips holding it to the unit. Check out how the cable and plug are attached to the unit before lifting back the tab and pulling it out. On a workspace, put the bad unit in front of you and and the good one in back of it. Unscrew the control board from the front unit. One by one, remove and transfer each part from the bad to the good: there's the selector spindle, the indicator light rod units, and the timer readout unit and clip. Screw the new board back into the front unit. Plug the cable back into the unit, line up the unit to the front of the washer and work it back in place. Screw in the top screws, then the front. Slide the top unit back into place and screw in back. Tested it out and it works fine again. Read More... 4 People found this story helpful Do-It-Yourself Rating: Repair Time Estimate: 30-60 minutes Tools: Screwdrivers