Bosch - Weird sound and smoke.
Hello all, My four year old bosch washing machine started acting weird just two days back. During the spin session it started spinning faster than usual while making weird noises. I could see smoke coming out as i opened the washing machine door. This all started two days after my mom washed a heavy blanket ignoring my advice. I called the support guys and they said the drum needs to be changed which is expensive. I just wanted make sure if its really the drum or some other minor problem since they didn't even come and check. Manually rotating the drum, i could hear a squeaky sound caused by some friction. Please let me know if changing drum is the only solution. Thank you.
Rotating the drum
Solution Summary
AI-generated from this discussion
This thread was marked as solved. Here's a summary of the problem and the fix, generated from the discussion below.
Bosch washing machine making loud spin noise, smoke and drum rubbing door seal
- The problem
- A four-year-old Bosch washing machine began spinning unusually fast with a loud 'donkey' noise during spin, and smoke was seen when the door was opened. On manual rotation, the drum made a squeaky friction noise. The original poster then found the drum appeared to be rubbing against the front door seal.
- Likely cause
- Most strongly supported diagnosis is the drum catching on the door seal, which likely caused the smoke. Possible underlying reasons discussed were a displaced or twisted door seal, failed drum bearings allowing drum movement, or damaged suspension causing the drum to sit off-centre. Exact cause was not confirmed.
- What fixed it
- Recommended action was to disconnect the appliance from the mains and inspect whether the drum is rubbing the seal, whether the drum can be moved up and down, and whether the suspension is holding the drum centrally. A third-party engineer was to check the bearings and general drum support. No completed repair was confirmed in the discussion.
- Checks to try
- Manual drum rotation revealed a squeaky friction sound
- Visual check suggested the drum was rubbing against the door seal
- Advised to check all around the door seal for contact with the drum
- Advised to check whether the drum can be moved up and down
- Advised to inspect suspension and whether the drum sits centrally
- Advised to remove the back and lid for internal inspection after disconnecting from the mains
- Parts or tools mentioned
- door seal
- drum bearings
- suspension
Safety: Disconnect from the mains before inspection. Further diagnosis should be carried out by a suitably qualified appliance engineer.
7 Answers
Wow. That sounds just like a donkey. It sounds like the drum is catching on the door seal where the two meet in front of the drum? Can you see if it is or not? Check all around the door seal in front of the drum.
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Thanks for the reply Andy, Yup it does sound like a donkey . I checked it again it does look like its rubbing against the door seal, That explains the smoke. So the bosch guys are really trying to rip me off? They want to change the drum. What should i do here?
It depends on if the drum bearings have gone or not. If the drum has come loose or can be moved up and down it would account for it catching on the door seal. But if the door seal has just become slightly twisted and dislodged then the fault may just need the door seal replacing or refitting. Also check the suspension to make sure the drum isn't twisted and is held centrally inside the cabinet. If one of the suspension legs has become damaged and the drum has twisted that might also account for the door seal catching.
Need Professional Help or Spare Parts?
Alright, i guess ill try a third party service to check in with stuff you told me about before calling Bosch again. Thanks for your time.
I'd disconnect from the mains and have a look inside with the back off and lid off first to check if the suspension and drum seems OK. Also, if the bearings had collapsed causing the door seal to catch I'd expect the washing machine to have been very noisy for some time before. they don't just collapse for no reason.
Need Professional Help or Spare Parts?
Ill be sure to check that. I tried using it again, the donkey sound has kinda mellowed down for some reason but the drum rotation looks kinda out of proportion, i have called a third party service to check the bearings like you said. ill let you know how it goes.
Thanks for the update. The sound of the drum catching on the door seal tends to diminish quite a lot once you have water and soap suds inside although it would probably return during the spin. Please let us know you get on.
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