GE Cooktop Help: Code - Fixable or Not?

Lavender Room
1

Our 15 year old electric cooktop started throwing an F152 code. Research shows this means the front right burner is shot.

Problem is none of the other three burners work either. When we try to use them they turn on but as soon as you go to set the temperature the F152 code lights up and beeps again and then the burner we were trying to use shuts off.

I’ve found some good videos on how to replace a heating element which I’m happy to tackle. What I’m worried about is if I replace that front right one but the rest still dont work.

I can’t find any straight answer on whether the whole unit is shot or if its just that front right burner (from the specific code thrown).

Any experience out there in the LR? I imagine I can get a good labor sale sale price this weekend if I get my ass to home depot or the like. I don’t mind buying something cheap to last us a few years as we have hopes to redo the entire kitchen in 5-7 years.

2

How much is the burner? If it’s cheap, you are not out much. I’d just give it a try.
I’m guessing any “major” fault just shits the system down.

3

Yea my thinking also. Except the replacement parts for this specific one are no longer available. Seems a bit complicated to find which specific part I need now and I need to speak to someone at GE. That won’t be for a couple days though.

I’ve also seen them range from $60 up to $190+. If a new range costs us $600 I’m not sure if I’m gonna spend $3-400 to fix a 15 year old one.

Heading to Home Depot right now to grab some things and maybe a portable cooktop to get us through a week or so.

4

My guess is, at 15 years old, you’re probably at the point of buying a new one. That’s a pretty good life span for appliances these days.

1 Like
5

Yea my wife agrees with you and says the risk of continuing to repair is going up. And no sense spending a few hundred on one this old.

6

15 years seems to be a good run. One thing with heating elements, they should be rather easy to put a multimeter on and check the resistance of the heating element.

You could test all the other burners, assuming the same size element, should be close in resistance between the others. If you have a bad one, it should show different or open. Just something stupid simple to check before buying anything.

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7

I have zero experience with this sort of thing, but there is the possibility that the element is shorted to ground, and that’s why the code keeps coming up when you try to use the pther burners, and is shutting it all down.

Try getting in the and unhooking that burner: if there is a short, amd you unhook the burner completely so that the controller doesn’t see the short any longer, it might buy you some time until you get a replacement.

Keep in mind: the knob/switch/control mechanism that turns the burner on could be the actual problem and that’s why the controller is seeing a short (or whatever it is that it’s seeing).

Again: I have no experience here and am just shooting from the hip. Good luck!

  • Jeff
1 Like
8

For a guy with no experience you seem to shoot comfortably. Far more knowledgeable than I so I will give that a shot.

No knobs; it’s all touch control. But I’d imagine there’s still a decent possibility of what you’re suggesting.

I’ll have some extra hands tomorrow so I’ll be poking around a bit more.

Thanks

9

Not a problem.

I, uhh… may know a thing or two about electricity and their controls. But seriously, what I suggested is a complete guess (albeit somewhat educated of one).

If nothing else, it can’t hurt: it’s already broken!

  • Jeff
1 Like
10

Haha that it is. And wife is already on board for a new one.

I’ve been here for a long time but I find it touch to commit to memory what a lot of our regular posters do for work. I’d have to go back to a lot of the home help/DIY threads.

Electrical is the last thing I know about. Well…I know that my hair still tingles when I get close to one outlet as we had a fun run-in back in 2007. I got lucky!

11

Haha - yeah, I’ve been lit up by damned near anything short of high voltage (which is defined as 600v or greater, for the most part). 277v lighting circuit is a good way to wake ypurself up from a hangover when you’re young and dumb!

I don’t remember a lot of people’s trades and skillsets, either, but I am employed as a controls engineer and have been a licensed master electrician for… holy shit: 21 years now. Damn, I’m getting old…

Let us know if you screw around with the old one at all - always curious about that sorta thing!

  • Jeff
1 Like
12

Nice idea Jeff. Jeff’s a great source for electrical knowledge. I’ve been a controls engineer for 30 years but i still ask him questions about some of the bigger wires!

Yeeper - if you try the disconnect, let us know if it works!

Reminds me of a time that our fancy convection toaster oven quit working. The broil/bake/toast switch melted internally. I tore it apart and rewired it so that it will only bake, and put it in the middle of my driveway on a surge strip to test :joy:. Still works.

1 Like