Drum Catching On Something
After reading the troubleshooting tips, I thought it might be a broken spider as, when you turn the drum, it becomes difficult at one point and makes a scraping noise.
Just had someone out and he said it's not obvious what it is. Has taken it apart and now now drum turning better but still a little scraping. He took out the heating element and now it won't go back in ( which he warned me might happen).
Possible solutions:
1. Replace heating element and front plate (£128 plus vat)
2. Just replace heating element (£48 plus vat) but he says drum will still be catching a bit.
3. Get a new washer (this one is about 7 years old and don't use the drier much).
Would be grateful for any thoughts as never know what to think about what engineers tell me.
Many thanks!
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.
Washer drum scraping with resistance at one point; exact cause not identified
- The problem
- The washing machine drum became difficult to turn at one point and made a metal-on-metal scraping noise. During a spin cycle there had also been a loud bang. An engineer dismantled the machine, after which the drum turned better but still had slight scraping/squeaking. The heating element was removed and then would not go back in.
- Likely cause
- No fault was confirmed. The discussion suggested the noise might be from something catching within the tub/drum area, possibly a trapped object at the back of the drum or a buckled internal part. It was also noted that motor or belt noise can be mistaken for drum noise unless the drive belt is disconnected.
- What fixed it
- The accepted advice was not to replace the front plate unless it was definitely proven to be the cause. If the heater has been removed, fitting a new heating element was preferred rather than trying to refit the old one. The exact scraping fault required further strip-down and visual inspection of the tub/drum area, potentially with the front plate removed and possibly the drum taken out.
- Checks to try
- Drum turned by hand and found to tighten at one point with scraping noise
- Engineer dismantled machine and removed heating element
- Noise location described as top right corner
- Advice to determine whether noise remains with the drive belt disconnected
- Advice to inspect inside with front plate removed and possibly remove drum
- Parts or tools mentioned
- heating element
- front plate
- drive belt
Safety: Further diagnosis should be carried out by a suitably qualified appliance engineer.
5 Answers
Yes taking the heater out often results in it not going back in because of the way the rubber is squashed to hold it in place though I usually managed to trim some of the bulbous rubber with a sharp Stanley knife and get most back. Having said if I had a new heater I would always prefer to fit a new one.
It's strange that an engineer couldn't find what was scraping especially if he took it apart. There's no point replacing the front plate unless he says it's definitely the problem and the fault would disappear after.
What kind of scraping noise is it? And does the noise still happen with the drive belt disconnected?
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It was like a metal scraping noise - metal against metal - coming from the top right corner, and resistance going past that point. I'm not sure what you mean by the drive belt disconnected. He's left the front off etc so it may be disconnected now. When I turn the drum it is making a slight squeaking now but not as much as before.
He said that possibly something had buckled. When it was going through a spin cycle the other day, there was a loud noise a bit like a minor explosion.
Thanks
Whilst ever the drive belt is connected when you turn the drum you are not just listening to the drum turn you are also listening to the belt and the motor. It's possible for a motor to make noises that the drum is blamed for. I once knew an engineer who replaced all the drum bearings because when he turned the drum by hand it made an awful rumbling noise. However, when he'd changed them he found no difference and discovered to his shock that it was the motor bearings making the noise.
Having said that, if you are confident the noise is coming from the tub, and you can identify where and the front is off I don't understand how no one can see what is catching so maybe it is something trapped at the back of the drum. Metal to metal can be an underwire from a bra caught in one of the drum holes or even caught at the back of the drum out of sight.
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It sounds like something between the inner lining of the drum and the outside casing (if that's how it's made up). When I say the front is off, I mean the front of the machine and not the front bit of the drum, so I can't see inside - if that makes sense. It's definitely not a bra wire. Just wondering what the bang could have been.
Stupidly, I didn't stand over him while he was looking inside as was busy doing some work.
The only way to diagnose it is to take off the front plate and look inside, maybe even take out the drum.
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