FIXED Samsung Washer WF42H5600AW New Bearings & Shocks but Washer Still Makes Racket During Spin Cycle

[lothian]

Model Number

WF42H5600AW

Brand

Samsung

Age

6-10 years

Samsung WF42H5600AW/A2
mfd: April 2014

Issue: Despite new bearings and shocks, washer continues to make a loud noise during spin cycle.

For months, our washer makes an awful racket during the spin cycle and had a small leak. I disassembled the washer and discovered that half of the lower counterweight had broken off. I presume this threw off the tub balance and likely caused premature failure to the shocks and bearings. I found that the broken edge of the lower counterweight had also worn a small hole into the door boot seal—the source of the leak. I replaced the following:

- bearing set (6601-002637 & 6601-000148)
- tub seal (DC62-00156A)
- four shock absorbers (DC66-00470A & DC66-00470B)
- door boot seal (DC97-18094C)
- counterweight (DC67-00749A)

I pressed each new bearing and the tub seal into their respective seat rather than beat them into place. Counterweight, shocks and door boot seal were straightforward part swaps. There were no other issues.

After I put the washer back together, I ran a full test cycle with an empty tub—I heard no unusual noise during wash or spin cycles and I saw no leaks. I then ran the washer with a full load. While there was no unusual noise during the wash cycle, the spin cycle made the same awful racket just as bad as before. The leak, however, is gone.

With the washer spinning, I removed the top and rear covers to try and locate the source of the noise with a flashlight. It seems to be coming from the front right, though I cannot positively identify its source. I jostled the tub from the rear while it was still spinning which had absolutely no affect on the noise—I interpret this to mean that the tub is NOT making contact with any part of the machine and the new shocks are likely ok. The tub vibrates noticeably (with a full load) but not so bad that It contacts a body panel of the machine.

I am stumped and mildly frustrated. I believe there was value in replacing the bearings, but clearly they were not the source of the noise as I had originally thought. What other part—seemingly located near the front right of the machine—could be the cause of the racket we hear?

 

[jeff1]

Hi,

Has no number but can see the hose in this parts breakdown.

Have hear the hose that comes out of the door boot and goes down the left front side of the washer come out of the hose clips and slap the tub and cabinet making a terrible noise during the spin mode.

jeff sr.

 

[lothian]

The hose you refer to runs along the left side of the front cover panel. The source of the noise I hear seems to come from the right front side--I say "seems" 'cause I cannot positively identify the source of the noise. In any case, I did check that hose: It is secure in its clips and not the source of the noise I hear.

I've been spending this evening researching this problem. It seems the noise this washer makes was likely never the bearings (which tend to make a roaring a/o grinding noise when bad) or the shocks (which tend to make a knocking noise when bad and allow excessive movement of the tub during the wash cycle). With my washer, the new bearings are quiet, of course; and the tub movement during the wash and spin cycles is minimal indicating the new shocks are doing their job.

Presuming loose hoses are not the cause of the racket, it seems a knocking noise during the spin cycle can be caused by three items:
- worn shocks;
- loose counterweights;
- broken drum shaft assembly (aka, "spider").

My washer makes noise ONLY during spin cycle, and it can be broken into two distinct sounds: (1) a knocking during initial spin up followed by (2) a loud vibration-type racket during max RPM. Furthermore, knocking occurs at the start of the spin cycle during low PRPM as the washer seeks to balance the load; the washer then stops, begins again, stops, restarts, et cetera, some random number of times until it begins to spin in earnest and the second, louder vibration-type noise occurs. All of this--apparently--are symptoms of a broken spider. ...grumble.

I did inspect the spider when I had the drum out of the tub halves and I did NOT notice any obvious broken bits, or anything unusual whatsoever. I did NOT grip the axel shaft to feel for movement, and I regret not having done this simple test.

I need to make a recording of the noise(s) my washer is making.

 

[jeff1]

I did inspect the spider when I had the drum out of the tub halves

The drum spider was my first thought....but figured you would have seen that when you changed out the bearings.

jeff sr.

 

[lothian]

FIXED!

Jeff, your "first thought" was correct: It was the spider.

With all other suspects eliminated and despite my presumption that the spider WASN'T the source of the problem (based on my inspection of the part) I replaced the thing with a Samsung-brand part (rather than an aftermarket). The noise disappeared upon first use of the washing machine and hasn't returned since. My speculation is that a hairline crack somewhere on the spider that was not visible during inspection would open up under the normal stresses of a fully-loaded drum, and would cause the thing to spin out of balance.

Sheesh!

 

[lothian]

Short story: the lower counterweight broke in half, which caused other parts to fail in turn, all of which was exacerbated by running the washer for years in this state.

The following is the complete story on the successful repair of both problems—banging and water leak—that afflicted our venerable Samsung WF42H5600AW front loading washer.

First, the washer had a small leak. A small puddle appeared on the floor after every load. Second, we heard a subtle though steady grinding noise. Third, we heard distinct squeaking sounds when we jostled the tub. Fourth, we noticed that when the washer began the spin cycle, it would constantly start spinning slowly, then stop, start, stop, start, stop some random number of counts, and with an accompanying knocking sound, until it would begin spinning in earnest. And then there was the gawd'awful racket during the full-RPM spin cycle.

With all parts in hand, we rolled up our sleeves and got to work dismantling the machine. After we removed the front panel, concrete chunks fell onto the floor! Turns out, that gawd'awful racket during the spin cycle was indication of a problem in situ, and years of letting the thing run under this condition broke some... uh'mmm... other stuff.

The lower counterweight had broken into six chunks, two of which remained bolted to the tub; the rest were laying in a pile of concrete detritus at the foot of the front panel. With the loss of this important suspension component, the washer tub was out of balance. This caused it to wobble excessively which caused additional stress to the bearings, shocks, and flange shaft assembly (a.k.a, “spider”) and led to the premature failure of each of these parts. Additionally, a sharp edge of the broken counterweight wore a hole in the door boot, the source of the water leak. Finally, the water from the leaking boot combined with excessive tub wobble caused the front two shocks to rust, the source of the squeaking. Some corrosion had compromised some of the rust-preventative coating on the inside of the front cover panel, so we had to deal with that also.

Total inventory of broken bits replaced:
- four shocks (DC66-00470A & DC66-00470B)
- two bearings (6601-002637 & 6601-000148)
- tub seal (DC62-00156A)
- door boot (DC97-18094C)
- spider (DC97-17004E)
- tub gasket (DC69-00804A)
- lower counterweight (DC67-00749A)

The actual source of the “violent rhythmic vibration-type racket during the spin cycle” was due to a hairline fracture in one of the arms of the spider—just as Jeff suggested in his reply within this thread. It seems the centrifugal weight of wet clothes caused flexion to the weakened arm (likely caused by the stresses caused by the broken counterweight) that made the drum spin off-center just enough to cause imbalance. Frankly, we're surprised the thing held together for as long as it did in this condition. A nod of respect to OEM Samsung parts and acknowledgement of build quality is both fair and warranted here. Additionally, I'm pretty certain Samsung's computerized "VRT" (Vibration Reduction Technology) algorithm played an important role in steadying the ship best it could over years of deteriorating circumstances (and negligent owners).

We replaced all the parts listed above across four different vendors (no one vender offered the lowest price). Total expense was still less than a service call. The washer works perfectly.

Lesson learned: Do NOT let a noisy FLW run unchecked for years.