GE Oven Door Locked After Self Clean

GE is one of the largest companies in the world. One of their core businesses is to manufacture high-quality home appliances, such as ovens.

Many models of GE ovens include a self-cleaning function that, as the name suggests, automatically cleans a consumer’s oven without them having to do any work.

However, sometimes after the cleaning cycle is completed, the oven will not unlock (it locks during cleaning), and it can be hard for the average consumer to solve the problem.

There are a couple of ways to get your oven unlocked, which we have outlined below.

This guide covers the following GE oven models that have a self-cleaning function:

P2B940SEJSS

JD630SFSS

JM250DFBB

JM250DFWW

JD630DFBB

JS645ELES

JS645FLDS

JS645DLWW

JS645SLSS

PGB935BPTS

PGB935YPFS

JB480SMSS

JGB660FPDS

JGB660EPES

JGB660YPFS

JGB450DEKWW

JB655FKDS

JB655EKES

JB480DMBB

JGB660SPSS

JB480DMWW

JB655YKFS

JGB645SEKSS

JGB660DPWW

JGB660DPBB

JB645FKDS

JB645EKES

JB655SKSS

JGB635REKSS

JB655DKBB

JB655DKWW

JB645RKSS

JB625RKSS

JGB635DEKBB

JGB635DEKWW

JB645DKBB

JB625DKWW

JB645DKWW

JB625DKBB

JB258RMSS

JB256RMSS

JB258DMCC

JB258DMBB

JB258DMWW

JB256DMBB

JB256DMWW

Reset the Computer

The first method is to reset the oven’s computer. You can do that by following these steps:

Step1 – Reset the circuit breaker

• The first thing you need to do is reset the circuit breaker. The circuit breaker that powers your oven is probably located in your garage or outside your house.
• Once found, turn it off for five minutes. If you’re not sure which switch powers your oven/kitchen, a good tip is to leave the kitchen lights on and test each switch until you find the one that turns the kitchen lights off.
• After five minutes, turn the switch back on.
• Your oven should now be displaying a blinking “12:00.”
• Now that you have reset the circuit breaker, you should check if the oven has unlocked or not. If it is not unlocked, move to step 2.

Step 2 – Test the cleaning setting

• The first thing you need to do is press the self-cleaning button for 30 seconds and then let go. Now check if the door will open. If it still won’t open, move on to the next step. Keep in mind that the oven needs to be cool before a cleaning cycle will start – so if the oven is hot or warm, let it cool down before trying this step.

Step 3 – Set a new cycle

• The next step is to program your oven to run a short self-cleaning cycle (1 to 2 hours) and then let the cleaning cycle run.
• Once finished, let the oven cool down completely, and then try to open the oven door. Before moving on to the next step, you should wait for 1 to 3 hours to ensure that it has cooled down. If you have no luck opening the door, move on to step 4.

Step 4 – Cut the power

• The final step if you still haven’t fixed the problem is to cut the power.
• You can do this by switching off the circuit breaker that powers the oven again. You can then test if the door opens or not.
• If not, move the oven out from the wall or cabinet it is in, and unplug the power from the wall. You’ll need to keep it unplugged to run through the second method of unlocking the oven.

Unlock the Oven Manually

If trying to unlock the oven door by resetting the computer fails, the second method is to unlock your GE oven manually. Here’s how to do it:

Step 1 – Let the oven cool down

• Before doing anything, give your oven an hour or so after the self-cleaning cycle has ended so that it can properly cool down. This is because the oven will be too hot to work with until it has cooled down completely.

Step 2 – Cut the power

• Once it has cooled down, you can cut the power to the oven by turning the circuit breaker switch off or by making sure it has been turned off at the wall and the power cord pulled out.

Step 3 – Flip the latch

• For some models of GE ovens, you can flip the door lock latch by using a wire hook to unlock it. You can make a wire hook by getting a wire hanger and making a small hook at one end of it.
• Take your wire hook, place it between the oven door and the rest of the oven, place it over the latch, and pull it (the latch is usually in the top center of the oven door). This should release the lock, and you’ll be able to open the oven door. Just be careful to do it very gently so you don’t scratch the oven or cause any damage. This should get the oven door open, but you may need to consult a technician to get them to reset the latch.
• For some GE oven models, you will be able to release the latch by accessing the lock from the back of the oven or from the side of it underneath the stovetop. If this applies to your oven, pull your oven out from the wall and remove the back panel or stovetop. You can then unscrew the screws that are holding the door lock assembly in place and then release the door latching rod by pulling it down. You can then push the locking rod forward to release the door lock. You should also contact a technician to come and check it out, as if it has failed once, it will likely fail again and should be replaced.