Samsung HCL fault codewhat it means and how to fix it
The refrigerant has leaked out of the sealed circuit. It is propane, and Samsung’s instruction is that the machine must not be used at all until an engineer has been.
Stop — this needs an engineer
Get a qualified appliance engineer to look at your Samsung HCL
We do not pass enquiries to a repair firm, so there is no form here. When you book a qualified appliance engineer, tell them the make, the model and the exact code or message on the display, and ask whether they carry parts for this make — that is what turns one visit into a repair rather than a quote.
What HCL means
This is the most serious code a Samsung dryer can show and it is not on Samsung’s website. It appears in the manuals for their current heat pump machines, where the meaning is given as "There is a refrigerant leak" and the instruction reads, in Samsung’s own slightly broken English, "Call for service. Not available use the dryer until service engineer visits except power On/OFF."
In plain terms: do not use it, and the only thing you may do is switch it off. A heat pump dryer works by moving heat rather than making it, and the substance it moves the heat with is a refrigerant sealed inside a closed circuit.
On these machines that refrigerant is R290, which is propane — the same gas as in a camping cylinder, in a small quantity, chosen because it is efficient and environmentally far better than the alternatives. It is also flammable, which is why the circuit is sealed and why a code reporting that it is no longer sealed is a stop-now code rather than a book-someone-next-week code. There is nothing an owner can do about this one, and nothing worth attempting. Switch it off at the wall, leave the room ventilated, and call.
What causes it
| Cause | What is actually happening | How likely |
|---|---|---|
| A leak somewhere in the sealed refrigerant circuit | The circuit is welded and is not designed to be opened. A leak means a joint, a pipe run or the evaporator block has failed, and the machine detects it by the circuit no longer behaving as a pressurised system should. | Common |
| Damage from moving or installing the machine | The pipework is thin and runs close to the cabinet. A knock during delivery or a machine dragged across a floor can fracture a joint, sometimes months before the loss becomes large enough to register. | Occasional |
| Corrosion or a manufacturing weakness in a joint | A slow leak from a weak braze can take years to show. This is the version most likely to appear on a machine that has never been moved and has always worked properly until now. | Occasional |
| A sensor fault reporting a leak that has not happened | The machine infers the leak from pressure and temperature behaviour rather than sniffing for gas, so a failed sensor can produce this code with the circuit intact. Only an engineer can tell the difference, and the safe assumption until then is that the code is right. | Rare |
Can you fix it yourself?
Stop — this needs an engineer
What it costs to fix
Typical repair cost
£150–£450
Sealed system work is at the expensive end of appliance repair and on an older machine will often exceed what it is worth. Samsung publish no repair prices, so these are independent market estimates. Get the diagnosis confirmed before authorising anything, since a sensor fault reporting a phantom leak is a much cheaper outcome.
Typical UK prices including parts and labour, updated September 2026. Your quote may differ.
Own this appliance and had this code? . Nothing is published until a person has read it.
Related Samsung fault codes
- NC2Get it checkedThe inner cover of the heat exchanger is not fitted properly. Usually something an owner has just done, and usually fixable in a minute.Related: heat pump circuit
- NCGet it checkedSamsung’s prompt to deal with the lint filter. Rated more seriously here than Samsung rate it, because a blocked filter on a dryer is not the same as a blocked filter elsewhere.Related: same brand
- 5CUsually simple to fixThe machine cannot get rid of its condensed water. Samsung group four causes under this code and the commonest is simply a full tank.Related: same brand
- HCGet it checkedThe compressor is overheating. Samsung’s website tells you to get an electrician to check the heating element — your machine does not have one, and their own manual says clean the heat exchanger.Related: same brand
- dCUsually simple to fixThe dryer thinks the door is open. Samsung name a cause most people would never guess: the child lock can produce this on a machine that is not even running.Related: same brand
- tC5Get it checkedThe sensor watching the compressor temperature is not reporting properly. Samsung ask for a longer pause than usual before you try again.Related: same brand
Own a Samsung tumble dryer? Save it and its codes come first next time.
Related guides
Common questions about Samsung HCL
Is propane in my dryer actually dangerous?
In the quantity used, and sealed in the circuit, it is not something to worry about — it is in there precisely because it is efficient and kinder environmentally than what it replaced. The reason this code matters is that it is reporting the seal has failed. Ventilate the room, keep ignition sources away, switch the machine off at the wall and leave it off.
Why is HCL not on Samsung’s website?
We do not know. Samsung’s UK support page for dryer information codes was updated in July 2025 and does not list it, while the manuals for their current machines do. If you searched Samsung’s own site and found nothing, that is why, and it is the reason this page exists.
Can it be repaired?
Sometimes, but it is specialist work — a sealed refrigerant system needs someone qualified to handle refrigerant, which is a different competence from ordinary appliance repair. Ask specifically whether the engineer is qualified for sealed system work before booking, because not every appliance engineer is.
Can I use it on a cold programme in the meantime?
No. Samsung’s instruction allows nothing except switching the power on and off, and there is no cold programme on a heat pump dryer in any case — the heat pump is the whole machine, not an optional part of it.
Technical review
Not reviewed by an engineer
No engineer has read this page. Severity follows what the manufacturer publishes, and we would rather tell you that than let a byline imply a sign-off.
Sources and how we verified this
We establish the facts from the sources below and then write the explanation ourselves. We do not copy manufacturer wording and we do not host their manuals.
- Manufacturer technical and service documentation
This page has not been reviewed by an engineer, and we would rather tell you that than imply otherwise. The severity rating follows what the manufacturer publishes: where they say isolate the appliance and call someone, so do we.