Solved

Loud Knocking On Spin

BUbutthead
Asked about 13 years ago 3,295 views
0

Loud knocking during both low-speed and high-speed spin.

The drum is aligned well and I can't get noise if manually rotating or shaking the drum even violently.

Noise is only there at constant spin speed, never when accelerating or deaccelerating.

It is not a metallic sound, it is more like it is something knocking on the outer plastic tub.

Thanks in advance.

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.

Washing machine loud knocking only at steady spin speed

The problem
The washing machine made a loud knocking noise during both low- and high-speed spin. The drum appeared aligned, and no noise could be reproduced by manually rotating or shaking the drum, even quite forcefully. The noise was reported only at a constant spin speed, not during acceleration or deceleration, and sounded like something knocking on the outer plastic tub rather than metal-to-metal contact.
Likely cause
A loose component was considered the strongest explanation. The accepted reply suggested something clearly loose, possibly a part inside another assembly. For a washer dryer, a loose item inside the fan motor or heating element housing was suggested as a possibility. Loose tub weights, nuts or bolts were also suggested, but no exact faulty part was confirmed.
What fixed it
Recommended action was to inspect the machine with the mains disconnected, remove the lid if accessible, shake the tub from the top and side to side to help locate the source, and check visible nuts, bolts and tub weights for looseness. The exact repair was not confirmed in the discussion.
Checks to try
  • Manual rotation of the drum showed no noise
  • Shaking the drum did not reproduce the noise
  • Noise occurred only at constant spin speed
  • Suggested check by shaking the tub from the top with the machine disconnected from the mains and the lid off
  • Suggested inspection of nuts, bolts and tub weights
Parts or tools mentioned
  • tub weights
  • nuts and bolts
  • fan motor
  • heating element housing

Safety: Isolate the appliance from the mains before removing the lid or carrying out checks. Further diagnosis should be carried out by a suitably qualified appliance engineer.

Cause identifiedGenerated 18 Aug 2026 · AI summaries can make mistakes — read the full thread below.
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1 Answer

Accepted Answer
0
WH
WhitegoodshelpVerified Engineer
Answered about 13 years ago

Great idea putting a video up (now been deleted). It's such a familiar sound but frustratingly I can't say exactly what it is. It's a surprise you can't hear any noise when shaking the tub because it's clearly something quite loose. Have you shook it around from the top with the machine disconnected from the mains and the lid off? It sounds like something possibly inside something else. You can normally get an idea of where the noise is coming from by shaking the tub from side to side from the top under the lid.

If it's a washer dryer there could be something lose inside the fan motor, or the heating element housing. Check all nuts and bolts on everything including the tub weights. If you can't see anything then whatever is loose must be inside another part or inaccessible to you.

General troubleshooting of noisy washing machine

Whitegoods Help — appliance repair expert and forum host.

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