What to check yourself
Step 1. Take it off the extension cord or power strip
This is the answer most of the time, and it is free. A washer pulls a heavy surge when the motor starts, and a cord or strip that seems fine for a lamp drops enough voltage under that load to trip this code. Plug the machine directly into a wall outlet.
Step 2. Give it a circuit of its own
Sharing with a dryer, a freezer or a space heater causes the same dip at exactly the wrong moment. Check what else is on that circuit by switching things off at the breaker one at a time, and move whatever you can.
Step 3. Look at the plug and the outlet
Unplug and inspect both. Scorching, discolouration, a smell of hot plastic or a plug that feels warm after a cycle means the connection itself is failing, and that is an electrical hazard rather than an appliance fault. Stop using the outlet.
A warm or discoloured outlet needs an electrician, not a washer repair. Do not keep using it while you decide.
Step 4. Cut power for five minutes and try again
Unplug at the wall, wait five minutes, plug back in. If the supply was briefly unstable and has settled, this clears it. If the code returns on every cycle, the supply or the machine has a real problem.
What a technician will look at
Described so you know what you are paying for, not as steps to repeat.
Have the outlet tested
An electrician measuring voltage at the outlet under load settles it in one visit, and it is the cheaper call of the two. Only if the supply measures good does the fault move inside the machine, to the power board.
When to call a technician
Call an electrician first, not an appliance technician, unless the machine is on a known good dedicated outlet. That order matters: an appliance visit that ends with 'your wiring is fine, the outlet is not' is a wasted call-out fee.
What the repair costs
| Repair | Part only | Fitted by a technician |
|---|---|---|
| Removing an extension cord, moving to another outlet | - | Free |
| Electrician testing and repairing an outlet | - | $100 to $300 |
| Power or control board replacement, if the supply is good | - | $250 to $500 |
A new machine of the same class runs $500 to $1,500. Once a quote passes about a third of that on an older appliance, the repair stops making sense.
Codes people confuse this with
Questions people ask
- Everything else in the house works fine. How can the power be the problem?
- Because nothing else in the house behaves like a washer. Lights and televisions draw a steady trickle; a washer motor demands a large surge for a fraction of a second when it starts a spin. A tired outlet or a thin extension cord holds up fine until that moment.
- The washer is on a surge protector for safety. Is that wrong?
- For this machine, yes. Surge protectors and power strips add resistance in exactly the path that has to carry the motor surge, and they are a common cause of this code. A grounded wall outlet on its own circuit is what Samsung asks for.
Which machines this applies to
Applies to
Samsung front load and top load washers. Older machines show 9E1 or 9E2, newer ones 9C1 or 9C2, and some display UC for the same condition.
Last checked
2026-08-09