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Error codes

GE error codes,
and what each one costs you.

7 codes·Reviewed

GE is the least consistent of the mainstream brands about codes, and saying so is more useful than pretending otherwise. Ranges and wall ovens use a clear F-series that has held steady for decades. Refrigerators and laundry mostly do not display codes at all — they blink, or they simply misbehave — and on those the diagnosis comes from what the machine is doing rather than from what it says. The oven codes below are the ones worth knowing, because they separate a cheap repair from an expensive one before anything is ordered.

These are what the codes mean on the series named beside them. Model years differ — send a photo of the model plate when you book and that settles it.

01 — Reading it

Where the code shows up

Ranges and wall ovens show the code on the clock display. Dishwashers on newer models show it on the panel; older ones blink the cycle lights. Refrigerators generally have no user-facing code — a technician reads them through a service mode instead. If your GE fridge is misbehaving without a display, that is normal for the brand and not a sign the board has failed.

02 — Oven / Range

Oven / Range codes

F2 / F20

Oven / Range
Needs a technician
What the machine is reporting
The oven exceeded its safe temperature and shut down.
What puts it there
The temperature sensor reading low so the control keeps heating, or a relay on the control board that has welded closed. Those two are very different bills and a sensor test separates them in minutes.
What it usually costs
Most oven & range jobs land between $150 and $400, parts included, and the $150 minimum service call is part of that rather than on top of it. This one lands anywhere in it — the same code covers a rinse-out and a part.
True for
GE ranges and wall ovens with an electronic control.

F3 / F4

Oven / Range
Needs a technician
What the machine is reporting
The oven temperature sensor circuit is open (F3) or shorted (F4).
What puts it there
The sensor probe itself, or its harness where it passes through the oven wall.
What it usually costs
Most oven & range jobs land between $150 and $400, parts included, and the $150 minimum service call is part of that rather than on top of it. This one sits around the middle of it.
True for
GE ranges and wall ovens.

F7

Oven / Range
Needs a technician
What the machine is reporting
A key on the touch panel is registering as permanently pressed.
What puts it there
The membrane rather than the board behind it — and this is the distinction that matters, because the membrane is much the cheaper part and the two present identically as a dead or erratic panel.
Before you call anyone
Cut power for five minutes and restore it. If F7 returns immediately with nothing touched, the membrane is the suspect.
What it usually costs
Most oven & range jobs land between $150 and $400, parts included, and the $150 minimum service call is part of that rather than on top of it. This one sits around the middle of it.
True for
GE ranges and wall ovens with a touch panel.

F9 / F9 E0

Oven / Range
Needs a technician
What the machine is reporting
The door lock motor or its switch is not reporting the position it should.
What puts it there
The lock motor, the switch, or something obstructing the latch. Most often noticed after a self-clean cycle.
What it usually costs
Most oven & range jobs land between $150 and $400, parts included, and the $150 minimum service call is part of that rather than on top of it. This one sits around the middle of it.
True for
GE ovens with a motorised self-clean lock.

F0

Oven / Range
Try this first
What the machine is reporting
A stuck key or a control that is not clearing.
What puts it there
The membrane, as with F7. Sometimes clears with a power cycle and stays clear.
Before you call anyone
Cut power at the breaker for five minutes.
What it usually costs
Most oven & range jobs land between $150 and $400, parts included, and the $150 minimum service call is part of that rather than on top of it. This one sits at the bottom of that range, and plenty of these end at the visit.
True for
GE ranges with an electronic clock.
03 — Dishwasher

Dishwasher codes

Blinking cycle lights

Dishwasher
Needs a technician
What the machine is reporting
A fault code, expressed as a blink pattern rather than a number.
What puts it there
The pattern is what identifies it. Count the flashes and the length of the pause between groups, and tell us both — it points at the drain, the heater or the control, which are three quite different repairs.
What it usually costs
Most dishwasher jobs land between $150 and $300, parts included, and the $150 minimum service call is part of that rather than on top of it. This one lands anywhere in it — the same code covers a rinse-out and a part.
True for
GE dishwashers without an alphanumeric display.
04 — Refrigerator

Refrigerator codes

No display, no water at the door

Refrigerator
Try this first
What the machine is reporting
Listed because GE refrigerators mostly do not announce faults, and this is the most common one.
What puts it there
The water filter overdue, then the inlet valve, then a supply line frozen where it passes through an unheated space.
Before you call anyone
Change the filter first — it is the cheapest thing it can be and it is overdue on most units we see. If a fresh filter changes nothing, the valve is next.
What it usually costs
Most refrigerator jobs land between $150 and $450, parts included, and the $150 minimum service call is part of that rather than on top of it. This one sits at the bottom of that range, and plenty of these end at the visit.
True for
GE refrigerators with a dispenser.
The brand

What we open a GE for

In more Orange County kitchens than anything else, across forty years of them.

Other brands

Codes for everything else we work on

SamsungLGWhirlpoolMaytagKitchenAidFrigidaireElectroluxBoschKenmore
CoastPro

Got a GE code you cannot clear?

Tell us the code and the model number when you book — it decides what comes on the van. Same-day appointments across Orange County.

$150 minimum service call — quick fixes included