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Why does my washing machine make noise when not in use?

I woke up this morning to a strange noise coming from my laundry room. My washer seemed to be making a noise that sounded like it was slightly running (not agitating or filling with water, just kind of humming). The noise stopped when I unplugged it. But when I tried to turn it on to run a cycle, nothing happened. None of the lights turned on or anything at all. When I plug it back in, the sound starts again after about 5 to 10 seconds.

Update (10/28/23)

The noise seems to be coming from the water drainage hose. It is like it's trying to empty water from the machine but it's not turned on.

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Hi @moriahmedina,

What is the model number of the washer?

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"The noise stopped when I unplugged it. But when I tried to turn it on to run a cycle, nothing happened." >> you didn't plug it in!

"When I plug it back in, the sound starts again after about 5 to 10 seconds." >> Your water pump may be activating. If anything is activating when it is OFF, that would indicate a defective controller.

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I did plug it back in when I tried to run the cycle. I didn't try to turn it on after I had unplugged it.

Thank you so much for the info about the defective controller. I will look into it. Thank you.

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Did you ever get it fixed? Mines doing exact same thing now

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@alison86293

What is the model number of the washer?

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Most Whirlpool washing machines will have a PCB schematic inside the unit for technician reference. The document should contain info telling you what pins connect to components from the controller. You can use a multimeter to determine if the water pump is activating at the wrong time.

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Whirlpool has a known issue of washers making noise when off and they are fixing them for free. If you have a whirlpool…call the 800 number

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1- Unplug the washing machine for 10 seconds.

2- Plug it in and wait 10 seconds. It may make the noise again.

3- Press the start button for five seconds and the noise will go away.

4- Wait five seconds and start washing a load as normal.

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The question that was posted on Dec. 2, 2025

1-3 my washer does the same thing and it be draining water out the 4 thing

when starting a normal load when water coming in the

drain keep draining water out so the tub never get fill.

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Thank you. That fixed it!

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Hi, just yesterday returning to our vacation home we discovered our washer making the same noise immediately after we turned the water back on after being away for 3 weeks. I too have model WTW4816FW3.

Since I couldn't make it stop by pressing buttons I simply unplugged it overnight. This morning I plugged it back in and after about 5 seconds the same buzzing noise started up. There were no control light indicators on, so I pressed the start/reset button for more than 3 seconds and the noise stopped. I'm currently running an empty load to see what happens next, and I will also be calling Whirlpool to check on a fix and/or warranty claim.

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Fixed it last night! Whirlpool customer "service" was a nightmare to work with, and I was not going to pay for a service visit. Tried troubleshooting over the last 2 months, ran calibration, etc. ... no joy.

Finally tried ChatGPT which recommended a couple suggestions, including to check a small rubber hose running from the tub to the control board. The board falsely thinks the tub is full of water so the pump runs nonstop.

Briefly, unplug the washer, remove hose from the control board, blow into it, leave it off and plug it in...if it's the hose, the pump will be quiet. No need to schedule someone to come out or replace a perfectly good control board!

We always turn off our water when we leave longer than a week and what likely happened was that we had a power outage back in SEPT or early OCT, and when the power came back on the control board thought the drum was full of water. After reading the manual, I discovered if you're going to be away, you need to unplug the washer while you're gone.

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Moriah Medina will be eternally grateful.
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