Admiral washers have a safety feature that stops it from being opened when it’s agitating and spinning. In rare cases this small mechanism can fail or have an issue which needs to be fixed to get your Admiral washer working again. Today, I will cover what to do if your Admiral washer lid lock is stuck, and how to bypass it.
Overall, begin by restarting your Admiral washer. This will reset the internal computer. To do that, unplug it at the wall outlet for 30 seconds, then plug it back in again. To bypass the lid lock, unscrew the lid lock mechanism on the lid, and fit it into the other side of the lid lock mechanism.
The other issue is that the child lock is on, and needs to be disabled. There will be a button on the control panel to turn off the child lock if your Admiral washer model has one. Below, I will provide detailed step by step instructions for bypassing the lid lock, and what to do if you restart it and your washer still won’t work because of the issue with the lid lock.
Admiral Washer Lid Lock Not Working (Reset/Bypass)
The lock is a small mechanism that is closed electronically by the internal computer before the wash cycle starts. It remains closed during the entire wash cycle, but if there’s an issue with it, it can not lock and your Admiral washer won’t start. Or, it won’t unlock and you can’t open the lid, here’s what to do when your Admiral washer lid lock is not working.
As a general rule, start by restarting your Admiral washer by unplugging it for 30 seconds and then plugging it back in again. After that if the lid lock won’t lock the lid lock is faulty, and needs to be repaired or replaced. The child lock can also be enabled, and needs to be disabled.
Not all Admiral washers have a child lock. There will be a button on the control panel for the child lock if it has one. Or, a key icon.
See if there is one for your Admiral washer model, otherwise it doesn’t have one. Bypassing the lid lock is only really recommended if there is another issue with your Admiral washer and you want to observe what is happening inside the washer when it is operating.
If the lid lock is permanently locked and won’t open, there is no way to get the lid lock open without mechanically prying it open. Or, disconnecting the wires to it completely, which is complicated, is best done by a repair technician.
Admiral Washer Lid Lock Flashing
The lid lock has a handy light which is illuminated when the lid lock is on. At the end of a cycle it will go off, to indicate that you can open the lid, but in some cases it will also flash. Here’s what to do if the lid lock light is flashing.
Overall, the lid is not completely closed, or there is a fault with the lid lock mechanism. Start by restarting your Admiral washer by unplugging it at the wall for 30 seconds, then plug it back in. After that, make sure the lid is closed all the way. If it’s still not working contact Admiral support.
In general, there is a fault with the control board, or the lid lock mechanism, and the lid lock can’t operate. Otherwise, it’s telling you the lid is not completely closed. This can happen if you haven’t pressed the lid closed firmly.
Or, if the lid lock mechanism is broken or slightly out of place and didn’t click in. This will cause the internal computer to register that the lid is still open.
Admiral Washer Lid Lock Clicking
When your Admiral washer is operating normally the lid lock should not click, and your washer should begin as soon as you press the start button or push in the turn knob – depending on what Admiral washer model you have. This is what to do if the lid lock on your Admiral washer is making a clicking sound.
As a general rule, the lid lock mechanism is faulty, and needs to be repaired or replaced. The clicking sound is the power board trying to send power to the lid lock mechanism. But, because it has failed it just clicks. Begin, by doing a few troubleshooting steps explained below.
Begin by restarting your Admiral washer, which will reset the internal computer. To do that, unplug your Admiral washer from the wall outlet, wait for around 30 seconds, and then plug it back in again. Then try to start your Admiral washer.
If it’s still not starting or making a clicking noise then you should contact Admiral support to have a repair technician take a look at it. It may also be covered under warranty. Admiral is owned by Whirlpool, so you should contact the Whirlpool customer care team on this page of the official Whirlpool website.
Admiral Washer Lid Lock Error
The lid lock needs to be engaged for an Admiral washer to start. The lid lock is a small mechanism that has two parts and is controlled by the internal computer on your Admiral washer. If the lid lock has an error and isn’t working as it should, here’s what you should do to troubleshoot this problem.
In general, begin by restarting your Admiral washer by unplugging it at the wall. Then wait for about 30 seconds and plug it back in again. After that, check that the lid is completely closed, and if possible open the lid and inspect the lid lock mechanism for any damage.
Restarting your Admiral washer will restart the internal computer. The internal computer can sometimes have a glitch or be frozen which causes it not to function correctly, and restarting it can clear the glitch. After restarting it attempt to start your Admiral washer again.
If the lid is closed all the way and the lid lock still won’t engage and your Admiral won’t start then you should contact Admiral support to have a repair technician come out and see what the issue is. And advise what the next step is.
They could repair it for you, or advise you that there is some other issue. It’s common for the control board to also be the cause of the issue, which also may need to be replaced rather than the lid lock mechanism.
Admiral Washer Lid Lock Stuck
After a wash cycle the lid lock on an Admiral washer will release, and you can open the lid. It will also unlock if you pause or cancel a wash cycle. The lid lock can have an issue and won’t unlock, here’s what to do if the lid lock is stuck.
In general, the lid lock mechanism has failed and needs to be replaced. First try restarting your Admiral washer by unplugging it at the wall, wait for 30 seconds, and then plug it back in again. If it still won’t open, contact Admiral to have it repaired as it needs to be mechanically opened.
Some Admiral washer models also have a child lock. This will be a button or two buttons that you need to hold down to disable it. The child lock should be visible on the controls for your Admiral washer if it has one.
It will say ‘child lock’, or have a lock icon. Pressing it once or holding down the button or buttons until it disables will turn it off, and can be why the lid won’t open. Whether the lid lock is locked or unlocked is controlled by the internal computer.
When there’s a fault with the internal computer the lid lock will remain locked. In other cases, the lock mechanism got damaged, or broken and it won’t release allowing you to open it. In all of these cases a repair technician is required to open it for you.
Admiral Washer Lid Lock Broken
The lid lock needs to function for your Admiral washer to start. The lid lock can mechanically break, or won’t unlock when your Admiral washer has finished a cycle or you pause or cancel a wash cycle. This is what you should do if the lid lock on your Admiral washer is broken.
In general, the lid lock needs to be replaced by a repair technician. It is a fairly easy repair if you’re comfortable repairing appliances. Otherwise contact Admiral to have a repair technician repair it for you. It may be covered under warranty so contact Admiral first.
Copyright protected content owner: ReadyToDIY.com and was initially posted on August 18, 2022.
If the repair is not covered under warranty, it can be a good idea to replace it yourself. It’s fairly easy to do. A replacement lid lock can be ordered online, from websites like Appliance Parts Pros.
There are many large websites that have replacement parts, and to find the one for your Admiral washer you put in your model number and it will bring up the part for your specific Admiral washer model. Admiral washers are a brand of Whirlpool, so they are virtually identical to Whirlpool washers.
How to Reset Admiral Washer Lid Lock
The lid lock can malfunction and won’t release at the end of a wash cycle, and as a result you can get the laundry out. Other times, the lid lock won’t engage and your Admiral washer won’t start and it’s a good idea to reset the lid lock. Here’s how to do that.
In general, unplug your Admiral washer from the wall, wait for about 30 seconds, then plug it back in and power it back on. Doing so will reset the internal computer. If the lid lock still won’t engage or release then contact Admiral support to have it repaired.
Your Admiral washer may still be covered under warranty, and therefore the repair may be covered free of charge. So, it’s best to contact Admiral first. If it’s not covered under warranty then have a repair technician repair it for you.
The other thing that can cause the problem is the control board/internal computer. Therefore, if you replace the lid lock the problem may still persist. For this reason, it’s typically best to have a repair technician fix it for you.
Can You Bypass Admiral Washer Lid Lock?
The lid lock is controlled by the internal computer on your Admiral washer, and it won’t start a wash cycle if it’s not engaged by the internal computer on your Admiral washer. Here’s a summary of whether it’s possible to bypass the lid lock on an Admiral washer.
Overall, you can bypass an Admiral washer lid lock. But, only if the lid can be opened. To bypass it, remove the clip – called a striker – for the lid lock located on the lid, and fit it into the other side of the lid lock. It will then detect that the lid is closed which bypasses the lid lock.
There is internal wiring on an Admiral washer that can be disconnected to disable the lid lock. But, this is a quick fix, and is not recommended because it requires a good understanding of electronics.
Each Admiral washer model is also a little bit different and the colors of the wires that you should cut can vary. Therefore, this should only be done by a repair technician.
Copyright article owner is ReadyToDiy.com for this article. This post was first published on August 18, 2022.
How to Bypass Admiral Washer Lid Lock
When there’s an issue with the lid lock and it won’t lock, it’s a good idea to bypass the lid lock while you organize getting it repaired. That way you can keep using your Admiral washer. This is how to bypass your Admiral washer lid lock.
In general, remove the clip mechanism, called a striker, on the lid that fits into the lid lock mechanism. This is done by unscrewing the two screws that hold it into place. Then fit the striker into the lid lock mechanism, this will cause your Admiral washer to detect the lid is closed when it is not.
Overall, this is only a good idea to identify an issue that happens when your Admiral washer is doing a wash cycle. And if the lid lock is not working, you need to have it replaced by a repair technician. If you don’t want to have it replaced it is possible to disconnect the lid lock mechanism from the control board.
But, this is best done by a repair technician. First, it’s a good idea to contact Admiral to see if the repair is covered under warranty, and to then organize a qualified technician to replace it for you.
If you do have some handyman type experience replacing the lid lock is fairly easy. A video that shows how to do it is explained in the section above that is titled: ‘Admiral Washer Lid Lock Broken’.
ReadyToDIY is the owner of this article. This post was published on August 18, 2022.
Overall, begin by restarting your Admiral washer, then check the child lock is not enabled. To restart your Admiral washer unplug it from the wall outlet for 30 seconds, then plug it back in again. It’s not practical to bypass the lid lock, and requires a repair technician to do it.