Anybody here know anything about washing machines?
I have a Kenmore top-loading 2004.
It was working fine until recently. Of note, it was disconnected when I had some work done on the house then reconnected and the problem may have started at that time.
In short, when you wash clothes it goes through a regular cycle but when you reach the rinse it stops and buzzes. The water has drained and the clothes appear clean. Pushing the knob in stops the buzzing. This seems to happen at pretty much any rinse cycle.
From what I can tell, the problem may be in the cold water inlet versus the lid switch versus the timer.
Am I on the right track?
Would trying to run a cold water wash tell me if it is the cold water inlet?
I am trying to avoid having a repairman come out and charge $300 when I could get a new machine for only slightly more.
Any quick ways to tell which of these if any is the culprit?
Buzzing?
Does it sound like an intentional buzzer, or more like an electrical component malfunctioning, because if it’s the latter, it might well be the cold water valve.
Easy stuff first… Make sure the cold water is on. Actually,before you do that, turn off the water and disconnect the hoses from the machine. Look inside the fitting where the hose was connected and see if the filter screen is clogged - very likely if there was plumbing work in the house. If it is gunked up, the screens on most newer machines pull out for cleaning.
If you start a cold water wash, does it start filling with cold water? If not, can you hear the hum/buzz of the water valve? No buzz may mean a bad valve or timer.
When it was disconnected, was it banged around or moved? If so, some wiring might have been knocked loose inside.
Is that a warning to put in softener?
Maybe a setting went to default when it was powered down?
Look under it. If there is oil the transmission is failing. I don’t think parts are available to that old of a model. I’m guessing a new one is in your future.
Thanks all. Problem solved. They apparently forgot to turn the cold water back on when they reconnected it. I turned on cold water tap and it seems to work OK now. So glad I don’t have to pay for a service call for that idiocy.
And yes-I am proud of myself for figuring that out since I am not exactly handy when it comes to things like this. (I still remember the great drain snake debacle of '98). After all, it took about 3 weeks to figure out the buzzing was coming from the washing machine and not the fluorescent light bulbs. Good thing I didn’t waste money on the bulbs as I had planned.