OE on an LG washer is a drain error — the machine tried to pump the water out and it didn't leave fast enough, so it stops with water sitting in the tub. The good news: the most common cause is something you can clear yourself in a few minutes. Here's the exact order a tech works it.
This is the #1 cause of OE by far. Lint, coins, hairpins, and small socks collect in the pump filter behind a small door on the lower front of the washer and block the drain.
Check it: Open the little access panel at the bottom-front, unscrew the round filter cap slowly (water will drain), and clean out everything caught in it. Run a rinse+spin to confirm OE is gone.
If the drain hose behind the washer is kinked, crushed against the wall, or pushed too far down the standpipe, water can't leave and the washer throws OE.
Check it: Pull the washer out gently and make sure the drain hose isn't kinked and only goes a few inches into the standpipe. Straighten any bends.
If the wall standpipe the hose empties into is partially clogged, water backs up and the washer can't drain — same OE code, different cause.
Check it: Pour water down the standpipe with the hose removed; if it backs up, the house drain needs clearing.
If the filter and hoses are clear but you still get OE, the drain pump motor itself may have failed and isn't moving water.
Check it: Listen for the pump humming during the drain step. No sound or a dead hum with a clear filter points at the pump — a straightforward tech replacement.
Almost always repair — most OE codes clear for free by cleaning the pump filter, and even a failed drain pump is an affordable part plus flat labor, far below a new washer.
In Middle Tennessee or the Baton Rouge area? We'll come to you, same-day. Anywhere else in the U.S.? Send a 10-second video, a real technician tells you exactly what's wrong for $50 (credited toward the repair), and we ship you the exact part. 24/7 — text, call, or upload anytime.
Clean the drain pump filter behind the small door on the lower front (have a towel ready — water will come out), then check that the drain hose isn't kinked. That clears the large majority of OE codes.
If OE comes back after a clean filter, check the drain hose for kinks and the wall standpipe for a backup. If both are clear, the drain pump itself is likely failing — a quick tech replacement.
Often nothing (a filter clean) or an affordable drain pump if it failed. Your $50 Quick Check credits toward the repair if a part is needed.