How to connect up new washing machine?

For a full article about various aspects of aqua stop fill hoses and can you replace them with a normal hose see my blog article here - http://www.whitegoodshelp.co.uk/aqua-stop-hoses/

Thanks for the feedback, I'll stop checking the fittings every two hours now!

Sounds OK to me Simon.

Hi

I have just had a Siemens delivered and have a similar problem.

I would be interested if any experts can confirm what I have done will be OK (it seems to be working OK at the moment);

I bought a new water inlet hose which I connected to the pipe.

I also bought a straight 3/4" plastic hose connector, with the hose going in one side and the aqua-stop block in the other.

I put the hose behind the machine hanging over the outlet bracket so the aqua-stop block was hanging down as suggested in the manual.

Is there anything I need to be wary of regarding the fittings?

Any comments gratefully received.

Thanks

Great news. Luckily there are some decent tradesmen out there who won't charge too much for a simple job like that. I always advise hand tight followed by a tweak up with pipe pliers of about a couple of millimetres, but the exact method and level of tightening is something learned over many years of trial and error with various fittings. The problem is that one person's "hand tight" can be a lot less tight than someone else's. The safest method with any plumbing connection (including compression joints) is to nip them up fairly but not overly tight, then, after monitoring for a while, if there are any leaks, tweak up a little bit at a time until they stop. Then, keep an eye on the connections (if practical) for at least a few hours and preferably over the next few days.

The principle should be the same for plastic or metal, but the difference he refers to is that plastic fittings can easily crack or break, so you shouldn't use a tool (unless you know exactly what you are doing). I personally always use pipe pliers on plastic fittings but I know exactly how much pressure they can take ('cause I've broken a few in the past ).

Finally, I can post to say the problem is sorted out!

I did need a plumber to come around, he thought that the setup was great, and just tightened the fittings with a plumber's spanner. He made the recommendation that handtight is best for plastic fittings, whilst for metal fittings tool tight is best. Not sure how true that is but - voila! The leaks have stopped. (Luckily he didn't charge me much to sort it out either, there are some lovely people in the world!)

Thanks for all your help and happy washerhelp forum-ing!

V

Did you make sure there were rubber seals inside the caps at both ends? With those type of hose extensions the rubber seals often just sit inside and can easily fall out prior to fitting. Without them even a plumber wont get it to seal. Otherwise they may need tweeking up just a little bit more with a pair of pipe pliers but overtightening can cut into the rubber seal and cause it to leak.

Hi there and thanks once again for the advice.

Well, what a week! After a visit to three diy stores and two plumbers merchants, managed to get a metal extension hose, with 3/4 fitting on one side, and a larger fitting on the other, with an adaptor to get it to the right size. Great news!

However, having screwed it in well by hand and used some of that white sealing tape, the fitting is leaking ever so slightly.

Have tried tightening it further, but water is definitely forming, and on both sides of the fitting. Can still use the machine, just have to have a bucket under one side and a towel around the other, and turn the tap off when not in use - so not ideal, will need fixing soon.

Is it time to call in the professionals, or is there any advice on what may be able to do myself to fix this problem?

oh yeah, they sure do

I was getting pretty hacked off at the DIY stores I went to did it for the washing machine fitting, but NOT the dishwasher when I had the same problem plumbing my dishwasher in.

My 'cheap' LG washing machine would have plumbed in fine, but it had a Water Protection System 'block' on the end of the hose which got in the way. To my surprise this is only available on very expensive Miele washing machines.

Thanks for the advice.

I'll be able to make it to a plumber's merchant on saturday so will post an update next week to let you know if my washing machine is (finally) up and running!

Thanks once again.

Thanks for that contribution, I wasn't positive that they did them with 3/4 inch threads. I recently used some smaller ones for plumbing my sink taps to the pipework and they were great.

You can get flexible adaptors - they look like steel briaded pipes, about 6-8 inches long from DIY stores.

I was looking for one for my dishwasher, but dispite looking similar they are the wrong size for dishwashers. In the end I bought a right angle adapter, and I think I recall seeing these for washing machines too.

Hi there and thanks for your reply.

I'm a little confused - I did read your post and the plumbing in guides before posting but thought andy's reply related to turning the taps on ie moving the plastic handle by 90 degrees. I need to know how I can change the angle of the cold water fill tap so it either faces downwards or 90 degrees to be compatible with my new siemens washing machine.

Can I just bend the tap by 90 degrees then? Or is there an adaptor I can use easily?

Or maybe someone has one of these siemens and knows that you can plumb it in fine even with the tap facing upwards, despite what the manual says?

Any advice is more than welcome!

Have a look at the thread I started off - I have a photo of the 'standard' fixings

Andy the admin, has added a very comprehensive reply with some further links that might be of help regarding installation.

http://www.washerhelp.co.uk/forums/index.php?showtopic=295