Editorial Policy

Appliance Sleuth's guides decode error codes and diagnose symptoms from washers, dryers, fridges, dishwashers and ranges. This page states plainly how we decide what to write, where the information comes from, and how we handle mistakes. Short version: manufacturer documentation first, uncertainty labeled, corrections welcomed.

How we choose topics

We write about error codes and symptoms that real owners actually hit — the ones that show up repeatedly in service documentation and owner reports. A topic only becomes a guide when two things are true: people need it answered, and we can answer it from the manufacturer's own documentation. If we can't verify a code or a fix against reliable sources, we don't publish a guess to fill the page.

How we choose sources

We work from primary and technical sources only:

• Manufacturer documentation — OEM service manuals, official error-code charts, technical service bulletins, and the brand's published support documentation.
• Independent technical references — used only to cross-check, never as a primary basis.

We don't build guides from other error-code blogs. Many of those republish each other's tables until no one can trace the original source, and a mistyped code meaning spreads through all of them. We don't cite low-quality SEO content, and we don't repeat a fact we can't trace. When we can't confirm something, we say so instead of copying it.

Verified meanings vs. unverified leads

Not everything we list is equally confirmed, and we label the difference instead of flattening it:

• Manufacturer-verified — the code's meaning is checked against the manufacturer's own documentation, and the source is cited on the page.
• Partially verified / unverified leads — the code's existence is confirmed (for example, on an official code list) but its meaning hasn't been captured from a first-party source. These are published only as clearly labeled leads in the lookup, never as confirmed meanings, and never with their own page.

A verified meaning does not automatically verify every step: procedures are only stated where a source supports them, and a step that needs component testing or opening the machine is referred to a technician rather than written out. Automated checks catch broken structure, duplicate codes and unsupported certainty wording — they are consistency checks, not proof that every claim is correct.

Manufacturer documentation comes first

Error codes are not universal — they mean whatever the manufacturer's engineers decided they mean for that machine. So every guide starts from the manufacturer's own documentation, the same documents professional repair techs work from. Where behavior varies by model family or model year, the guide says so and tells you what to check for your specific machine. When the manufacturer's documentation doesn't answer a question, we flag it as unconfirmed rather than fill the gap with a guess.

Corrections

If you spot an error — a wrong code meaning, a bad part reference, a confusing step — tell us via the contact & corrections page. We verify every report against the documentation before acting on it, and when a correction is confirmed we fix the guide promptly and update its dates. We don't quietly rewrite history: when we get something wrong, the correction is visible in the guide's updated date and verification note.

How pages are updated

Every guide shows the date it was last reviewed and last updated, near the top and again in its verification note at the bottom. Manufacturers revise error codes and change parts between model years; when documentation changes, we update the affected guide and refresh its dates. If a guide hasn't needed changes, the visible dates tell you that honestly — we don't stamp pages with fake "updated today" dates to look fresh.

Affiliate relationships

Appliance Sleuth is reader-supported. Some links on the site — parts, tools, related products — are affiliate links: if you buy through one, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Commissions never influence what we recommend, and the reverse is also true: when the right part for a fix has no affiliate program, we link it anyway. If an affiliate product is the wrong tool for the job, we'll tell you not to buy it.

AI tools disclosure

AI tools assist our research and drafting. To be plain about how that works: AI doesn't "remember" appliance facts — it organizes text. Code meanings and procedures that cite a manufacturer source are checked against that source; anything we could not confirm is labeled unverified or left out rather than presented as fact. No guide goes live on the basis of AI output alone. We don't use AI to generate fake reviews, fake repair experience, or fake credentials — there's nothing on this site that isn't true because a machine wrote it faster.