Spent $80 on a universal washing machine control board that didn't fit

I saw a deal online for a universal board that claimed it worked on most top-loaders. Bought it from a random site, waited a week for shipping. Popped it into a 5-year-old Whirlpool and the harness connector was off by three pins. Tried to rig it with jumper wires and the thing just buzzed and then smoked. Now I'm out $80 and still have the original machine sitting in my garage. Has anyone else had luck with those universal boards or are they all junk?

2 comments

2 Comments

graym4923d ago

That's rough man, I feel you on the whole "magic smoke" thing. I've been down that road with a universal board from a random parts site, and it's almost never plug and play. The connectors are always slightly different and the voltage specs are a crapshoot. Your best bet is to hit up a local appliance parts store with your model number, they usually have the exact OEM board for a similar price and it bolts right in. Have you tried checking if your old board has a simple capacitor blown on it?

gavin_reed23d ago

Yeah I had the exact same experience with a "universal" board I bought off eBay for a Kenmore. The listing said it would work with any direct drive washer. Got it in the mail and the screw holes didn't even line up, let alone the connectors. Tried forcing it in and the whole thing started making this high pitched whine before the magic smoke came out. Threw the board in the trash and just bought a used replacement board from a parts store for half that price. Those universal boards are a straight up gamble and I got burned too.