Neil was right on! Took 5 minutes to remove the 3 screws (we have the lower drawer unit). Took out 'gunk' the size of a tube of racket balls (coins, hair, dollar bills .. etc). Clearing the filter also solved the problem of 'smelly' clothes we have had for 6 months (no help from the GE service line).
GE is a bunch of idiots. We have only had our machine 12 months. This is obviously 'regular maintenance' kind of stuff (kind of like periodically cleaning the lint filter on the washing machine) and GE doesn't even make the 3" cap accessible from the outside. I checked the manual and these problems are not even FAQ's in the manual:
* machine 'pauses' between every cycle (push start to continue)
* clothes smell musty
* water doesn't drain
* cycles (consistently) take longer than timer says
* clothes still soaking wet even after spin cycle ... etc)
Our machine now runs like new. I was told by GE that a "GE certified" service technician will contact me within 5 days to set up a visit. The solution took 15 minutes. Thanks Neil
John from Iowa
July 2008