Low Hot Water Pressure - Causing Machine To Fail
Hi there, I've been having problems with my Zanussi washing machine recently, I assumed there was a mechanical fault of some kind but it appears to be fine, the problem seems to be caused by the fact that the hot water fill is not high enough pressure.
The machine runs its cycle fine until it gets to the stage where it wants hot water. It then sits there with the hot fill valve running (making a buzzing noise) until I move it on manually - but then the wash is poor. The valve itself is fine as I tried connecting the cold pipe to it then it works perfectly so there appears to be a problem with the water pressure which I assume I cannot do much about, the machine is fed directly from the HW tank but there is no pump.
How do I get around this problem? Can the machine be used with cold water only? I thought the reason it was after hot water was perhaps a fault with the heating element or thermostat but I have tested both and they're fine. If so, how do I plumb it in, because if nothing is going in through the hot inlet, it will just sit there infinitely waiting for HW?
Many thanks for any advice.
Regards,
Gary
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.
Zanussi washing machine stalls when calling for hot fill due to low hot water pressure
- The problem
- The Zanussi washing machine completed the cycle until it reached the hot water fill stage, then the hot inlet valve buzzed and the programme would not progress unless moved on manually. The owner reported poor wash results when doing this. Testing with the cold supply connected to the hot inlet showed the valve itself worked.
- Likely cause
- Low hot water pressure on the direct feed from the hot water tank is the most strongly supported diagnosis. The discussion does not confirm any internal machine fault.
- What fixed it
- The accepted advice was that the machine can be used on a cold-only supply, using the standard arrangement for a hot-and-cold-fill washing machine with only a cold water supply available. The exact plumbing steps were not repeated in the thread itself.
- Checks to try
- Hot inlet valve buzzed but the programme did not progress on hot fill
- Cold supply was connected to the hot inlet and the machine then worked
- Heating element was tested and reported fine
- Thermostat was tested and reported fine
Safety: Further diagnosis should be carried out by a suitably qualified appliance engineer.
1 Answer
Hello Gary. The machine can be used with just cold water as described here - Tips for installing a washing machine - fill hoses The relevant section is headed "Washing machine is a hot and cold fill, but I only have a cold water supply".
[ related link:]
Low water pressure has become a big problem for a minority of washing machine owners because of the way modern washing machines work. Some people have found that even though their old washer may have been slowed down by a lack of good water pressure it was still able to complete a wash cycle. However, a replacement sometimes refuses to work - Low water pressure and washing machines
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