Identify the filter before opening anything

Stop the washer and follow its owner-care power-isolation precautions from a dry, safe position. Don’t remove an agitator or cabinet panel to search for lint. Don’t loosen a lower cap without the exact water-release procedure.

Basket lint filter

A removable lint collector inside the wash area on machines equipped with that design. Use its actual release and reassembly instructions.

Drain-pump filter

A different debris-catching part in the drain path, where fitted. Its cap may retain water. Use the drain-filter access guide.

If your manual describes a self-cleaning lint system, don’t dismantle it for routine care. GE’s top-load guidance documents systems with no owner-cleaning task, alongside space-saving designs that do have removable basket filters. A brand or approximate age alone isn’t enough to choose a procedure.

A documented removable-filter example

GE’s Spacemaker and Space-Saving filter guide describes rectangular blue basket filters on its models made since June 2018. For the matching design, it gives this monthly care:

1. Push the top of the basket filter down and pull it out of its clips.
2. Open it, gently remove the collected lint, rinse it in warm water and close it.
3. Snap it back into its correct basket position.

Match the actual filter and owner instructions before applying those steps. They aren’t instructions for a lower pump-filter cap. If the filter won’t release or latch correctly, stop rather than prying it or running with an unsecured collector.

Use the care method for the actual design

LG’s pictured top-load care guide shows two filters inside the tub. It describes removing and brushing them, and brushing the places where they attach. LG notes that the product can differ from its illustrations. Don’t infer that every LG top loader has those filters or the same release.

Older equipment can differ again. GE’s historical Filter-Flo pan is not an accessory to add to an unequipped washer. Don’t buy a filter from a familiar-looking illustration without confirming the exact machine and original arrangement.

Check what the cleaning actually changed

After permitted care, confirm that the filter is closed and securely returned before normal use. If it is torn, damaged or cannot latch, obtain the model-specific replacement and support instructions instead of improvising a fastener.

If lint still appears on clothing, check the source and load preparation through the hair and lint cleanup guide. More filter cleaning won’t resolve every shedding fabric, tissue or loading problem.

If water remains, drainage slows or leakage appears, stop treating the issue as routine lint care. Use the water-state troubleshooting route and record what remains unresolved. Collected debris doesn’t prove a failed pump.

Sources and applicability

Reviewed November 1, 2026: GE’s top-load filter-system history, its space-saving care and Filter-Flo pages, and LG’s pictured care guide linked above. Exact-model owner instructions govern location, release, frequency and safe reassembly. No universal washer lint-filter location or internal access procedure is supplied.