Washing machine making strange noises

[blackrose]

Not really boat related, just that the washing machine happens to be on my boat.

 

My washing machine has just started making a rattling/grating noise when it goes onto the empty and spin cycles. It sounds as if it's emptying a load of grit. When it's on the wash cycle it sounds fine.

 

Does anyone have any idea what it could be and if there's a DIY fix?

 

Thanks

Edited February 1, 2013 by blackrose

[johnmck]

Hi. Check the pump filter first and if it is clear, the pump itself may be on the way out. These are easy to replace, must be if I can do it!

[cheshire~rose]

sounds like something escaped and is resting in the outflow to the pump or rubbing against the drum.

It could be a screw that dropped out of your pocket, a coin or the wire that has worked it's way free from a bra! yep - that happens in my machine but maybe not in yours?

 

do you have a filter you can check for blockages? Spin the drum by hand and see if it makes the noise. If not you need to detach the pump and inspect for foreign objects

Edited February 1, 2013 by cheshire~rose

[kevinl]

I do the washing in our house for a wife, daughter and (until last year) my mother. Check all your bras and see if any have the underwires missing. Trust me a washing machiner is a graveyard for them.

K

[johnmck]

I do the washing in our house for a wife, daughter and (until last year) my mother. Check all your bras and see if any have the underwires missing. Trust me a washing machiner is a graveyard for them.

K

 

Oooh Blackrose! How many Bra's you got? Secrets safe with me , honest

[pete.i]

The pump only runs when the machine is on the spin or the empty cycle. So that narrows it down to the pump. The pump bearings could be on the way out but it's much more likely that something has dropped out of something that you have washed and has found it's way into the pump. Not all washing machines have filters. The pump cover is, usually, only held on with a spring type clip and providing the washing machine is easy to move then it is a relatively easy to remove the clip and the cover and remove the offending object. If it has damaged the impellor though a new pump is probably needed. I have not tried to get an impellor for a washing machine pump as they always seem to be solid plastic ones that are force fitted to the spindle.

[blackrose]

Thanks all. I don't think my machine has a filter. My machine is fairly easy to move and I can get to the back. Is the pump cover usually on the back?

 

It's a Zanussi ZWC 1300W. About 6 years old now.

[johnmck]

I have always found this company very good for spares, no connection by the way.

 

http://www.espares.co.uk/

[kevinl]

Oooh Blackrose! How many Bra's you got? Secrets safe with me , honest

OK fair comment, I missed Balckrose is a man and Cheshire Rose is a woman and not the same person, all got mixed up in my head hence the bra wire comment, however, to avoid further confusion in my capacity as a boat's captian: Blackrose and Cheshire Rose I now pronounce you man and wife, you may kiss the bride. Now off you go Blackrose and check the washer for your wife's bra wires.

[twbm]

Thanks all. I don't think my machine has a filter. My machine is fairly easy to move and I can get to the back. Is the pump cover usually on the back?

 

It's a Zanussi ZWC 1300W. About 6 years old now.

 

Pump will be fairly obvious, attached to bottom of the outer drum with rubber hose and with it's own motor. Usually nothing more than some jubilee or plastic ratchet clips to remove it, maybe philips screws to take the front off and hopefully remove offending item. Prepare to catch the water if you want to avoid spillage.

 

There are some very helpful 'how to' videos on Youtube if it's clear and you want to get inside the drum.

[Stormbringer]

Thanks all. I don't think my machine has a filter. My machine is fairly easy to move and I can get to the back. Is the pump cover usually on the back?

 

It's a Zanussi ZWC 1300W. About 6 years old now.

 

Hi blackrose

I have got exactly the same machine with seemingly the same problem, so would be very interested in knowing how you get on with your machine.

We bought the boat with the fault but, as we are currently in a marina with facilities, it has remained on my to do list!

Ours refuses to empty the water out, and sounds like a bag of spanners when the pump runs.

Unfortunately, the machine itself is in a cupboard and will have to come out for working on, so any info that helps to plan the job would be really helpful.

 

Good luck with your fix !

Andy

[smileypete]

Thanks all. I don't think my machine has a filter. My machine is fairly easy to move and I can get to the back. Is the pump cover usually on the back?

 

It's a Zanussi ZWC 1300W. About 6 years old now.

I'd unplug, pull out, then lay the drain hose on the floor with the end in a shallow bowl to help empty more water out.

 

Then tilt it back against something and get to the pump from underneath, make sure it can't come back suddenly and squish you!

 

cheers, Pete

~smpt~

[Pennine]

Almost certainly debris in the pump;especially in there is no pump filter. Small coins are favourites - I could get several £s a week out of pumps when in the trade. A has been mentioned, debris gets into the gap between the inner aand outer drums, in particular bra wires. Not familiar with that particular model, as have been out of the biz for a good few years now. It may be necessary (if not the pump) to remove the front (or back, depending on design) of the outer tub to gain access to remove bra wires etc., although I have managed on occasion to fish through the heater hole. Removing the front (or back) will need a new tub gasket before replacing it though, regardless of how good it looks. Smileypete's method is the way to go.

Edited February 1, 2013 by Pennine

[Skye]

sounds like something escaped and is resting in the outflow to the pump or rubbing against the drum.

It could be a screw that dropped out of your pocket, a coin or the wire that has worked it's way free from a bra! yep - that happens in my machine but maybe not in yours?

 

do you have a filter you can check for blockages? Spin the drum by hand and see if it makes the noise. If not you need to detach the pump and inspect for foreign objects

Nar them buggers are like girders and lodge them selves in the door seal as they fight to escape, its probably something more delicate that's stuck in the pump

[pete.i]

I think that,judging from Blackrose's description of the fault aka "it only happens when the machine is on the empty or spin cycle," that narrows it down to the pump. Removing the back plate of the drum, in my experience, is a right pig of a job although I don't know that particular model. By far the easiest job is to remove the pump and split the body to remove any debris. If the debris was caught between the outer and the inner drum then the noise woiuld there all the time IMO. That does happen and, as has been said, removing debris from there can be a nightmare.

 

Again to reiterate the safety stuff. Remove the wall plug or disconnect the mains from the machine before working on any electrical parts and heed teh warning of the residual water. Even when a washing machine is empty there is a surprising amount of water left in the various pipes etc.

Edited February 2, 2013 by pete.i

[Serenity Malc]

Yello,

 

My last Zanussi had a "cr*p trap" on the front bottom edge. A small door behind which was a nylon nut on a cap. Remove the nut carefully ( with an old towel on the floor ) and remove the offending debris.

 

Malc.

[Grebe]

Health Warning.

 

Make sure that you unplug the machine before delving into its ribs. A pal nearly welded himself to the machine he was repairing at home when he caught a live feed - lot of pain - lots of sick time - skin grafts... Remember

[blackrose]

I can't see anything on the back of the machine to remove in order to gain access to the pump - apart from removing the entire back of the machine.

 

Is that what I'm supposed to do?

 

 

There's no cover for a trap on the front that I could remove either.

Edited February 2, 2013 by blackrose

[blackrose]

I've taken the back off.

 

 

 

 

This looks like the pump to me. Shall I try to remove it, or do I just unclip the hose?

 

 

 

 

Edit: I can't see any way of getting the pump off, but I can see the black, rubber bellows type arrangement that connects from the drum to the pump. It's full of water but the only way I could get it off would be to turn whole the machine onto its side and get access from the bottom.

 

Edited February 2, 2013 by blackrose

[romarni123]

Ours does this as well...But our noise comes from the drum bearings....

[Bobbybass]

I do the washing in our house for a wife, daughter and (until last year) my mother. Check all your bras and see if any have the underwires missing. Trust me a washing machiner is a graveyard for them.

K

I totally agree with this.

 

I have removed about 8 or 10 of these from pumps in my life...

Each time...the 'lady of the house'...has no knowledge she lost one.

Because of the curve in them, they seem attracted to the pipes that enter the pump itself...and then can't escape, instead, flicking against the spinning impeller like a kid with cardboard rattling his bike spokes.

 

Coooo......kin 'ell !!!

 

Don't like the look of those uninsulated heater connections !

 

Apart from obviously making sure its unplugged....they look easy for making contact with anything nearby ?

Have you..removed a cover ?

 

I would have thought that if you loosen the top hose clip and remove the hose , it would be enough to delve about inside and a long thin thing like bra wire, may be easy to find .

[blackrose]

There are no bra wires - I have decent pectorals from the days when I used to bench press, and fortunately they have no need of external support.

 

Uninsulated heater connections? Which ones are those? I hadn't noticed. (Edit: I see what you mean now, but surely it's only a problem if someone takes the back off while the machine is running?).

 

I've taken the big black rubber "reservior" off the drum and tried to feel inside but there's a ball in there that stops me getting to the pump. The connections to the pump are difficult to get off.

Edited February 2, 2013 by blackrose

[johnmck]

I have changed the pumps in our then 15 year old Bosch washer and a six year dishwasher. Both were barstewards to get to and remove, but off they came in the end. Replaced both and thus far had two more years out of them. The motor and pump are the two items which really get hammered in a washing machine. It is worth the effort to try a self fix though. Just be prepared for some expletives and skinned knuckles.

[blackrose]

Ok, I've got both hoses off the pump and if I stick my finger in the large port I can feel a loose plate - about the size of a 10p piece.

 

 

I can't see the plate but it feels and sounds like it's made of plastic. I can't figure out how to get the pump off - there seem to be no screws or clips.

 

Is the plate meant to be there or could it be the offending foreign body?

Edited February 2, 2013 by blackrose

[blackrose]

Done it!

 

I got the pump off and got the plate out. I don't know why I thought it was round!

 

 

It's a small plastic key fob. I hope it hasn't damaged the pump.

 

Thanks for your help everyone. Now I've just got to put everything back together!

 

Cheers

Edited February 2, 2013 by blackrose