FIXED Speed Queen washer AWN632SP116TW01 excess foam only at drain outlet

[rwmair]

Model Number

AWN632SP116TW01

Brand

Speed Queen

Age

6-10 years

Hi,

Seeking help with a problem with a SpeedQueen washer we inherited with a new house.

Washer seems to work fine, but excess foam is generated only at the drain outlet into the wall. The water from the foam seeps out of the outlet receptacle and runs down the wall, where its done minor damage to the dry-wall.

Every web search on this topic shows photos of washers with foam bursting out the top. Not here - we use minimal detergent, and now are using a "low-sudsing" detergent to boot. Opening the lid to the tub during the cycle, I only see a tiny ring of small bubbles around the edge of the tub. There's a small amount of foam generated when the wash cycle drains; more foam generated when the rinse cycle drains, and the most of all during the spin cycle. Photos attached. Sometimes I repeat an entire wash cycle without adding further detergent - the foam deceases in quantity, but is always there. Then the next time, its back to the same amount of foam as before.

We've had a plumber look at it, who referred us to a drain company. They came and put the camera down the drain, and also checked the vent stack, and said the pipes were excellent. Just use less detergent! That was $350 well spent. :-(

I read the manual which described the importance of not putting detergent in the agitator, so I pulled the cap off per the instructions and washed it out. It seemed there had been a lot of detergent in there, but that should now be clean and the foam continues unabated. Is it possible other areas of the washer drain are coated in detergent residue (if previous owners used too much detergent or or used it incorrectly) that is slowly seeping out with ongoing use? Is it worth replacing the black drain tube?

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks

 

[WyJeff]

What diameter is your stand pipe drain? New TC5s like yours ship with a stand pipe adapter to use for pipes under 2 inch in diameter, I can't tell from your pictures if one is used or not.

SpeedQueen 36878 Adapter, Standpipe (AP2406540) - AppliancePartsPros.com

Adapter, standpipe 36878 / AP2406540 made by SpeedQueen

click.linksynergy.com

You may also consider wrapping a rag, such as an old sock, around the top of the stand pipe to catch the suds before the moisture runs down the wall.

Curiously I installed my TC5 without the adapter in my stand pipe which is less than 2" and used it for I think a few months before I saw some suds come out the drain, I inserted the adapter and still saw a small amount of suds the next time I did a wash, but haven't noticed any since. I did wrap a sock around it, but it seems to have remained dry after loads since. I'm not sure what caused those suds for only those two washes in a row and none, that I've noticed, before or since. Unless I used a little more of the liquid detergent I got than normal. Usually I use a cheap powder.

It seems to be a common problem with Speed Queens, I assume it has to do with the rapid spin drain. But other than that, in my opinion, you couldn't have inherited a much better machine. So I hope you get it sorted.

 

[rwmair]

Thanks for the quick response. Its a second house, so I'm not there all the time. When I can get a measure of the standpipe ID, I'll let you know. It would be close to 2 inches.

Does the adapter go at the end of the plastic drain hose from the washer, or inside the standpipe? The drain hose can easily be lifted fully out of the standpipe (in case that helps answer the question!)

 

[WyJeff]

Does the adapter go at the end of the plastic drain hose from the washer, or inside the standpipe?

Either or both really. As I recall I had to put it on the end of the drain hose from the washer, then insert the other end in the drain pipe. I was tight on space at first because my stand pipe stood about three inches too high in the recess and I could barely force the drain hose in even without the adapter, which I guess is why I didn't bother installing it initially. But if you can easily lift your drain hose in and out with a couple of inches to spare you shouldn't have that problem. It looks like you should be fine from what I can tell from your pictures.

The adapter is figure 4.

Other than the lack of space in the recess, I could also easily lift the drain in and out of the pipe, so I think you'll have to measure it. Don't use the adapter if the pipe is 2" or more. I guess the idea is that a pipe less than 2" is more restrictive enough to allow suds to back up.

I've never had to try, but I guess it is possible a more thorough cleaning could help if the previous owners did overuse detergent. If so it seems the problem would decrease with use. I have no experience with this, but you could try cleaning by doing an empty load on Deep Fill with hot water. Maybe add a couple cups of white vinegar. (I don't know if vinegar helps with detergent, but it is supposed to help with bacteria, mildew, or other junk. You could also use some commercial solution made for cleaning washing machines instead of vinegar.) Pause it part way through for 30 minutes or so. Then once it drains and spins a bit, I would probably cancel the cycle and start over again with another Deep Fill and hot water wash to rinse since you can't select a hot rinse.

 

[rwmair]

Hi Jeff,

My wife was there this week so took a few photos for me. It seems the standpipe is ~ 1 7/8" diameter, and we appear to already have the drain-hose adapter. So i'm at a loss other than the thorough cleaning, as you suggested. I have some washer tub-cleaning capsules I can try. I guess I can try without the drain-hose adapter and see if things are better or worse.

The clear plastic hose in the standpipe is a condensate pump drain. Could that be a contributing factor in this instance? (Even tho I've had that arrangement in multiple other houses without an issue)

Thanks

 

[WyJeff]

I don't see the adapter in the pictures, the first picture I think is just the end of the drain hose. The adapter is soft rubber and has more prominent ribs, plus I don't see how it can fit in the standpipe with the condensate drain pump hose along side it as it pretty much seals the pipe.

I'm not sure it matters anyway; your standpipe looks so close to 2" I suspect that's what it's considered. Curiously the Speed Queen installation manual doesn't even state that it means ID, although it only makes sense that that's what it would mean, and I would think that inlet and drain receptacles would come in pretty much standard sizes. But then I'm not a professional.

Install standpipe adapter onto drain hose only if diameter is 2 inches [51 mm] or less.

I don't think the condensate hose would be interfering, unless it's way down in the standpipe. I think maybe I would tape the condensate hose to the washing machine drain hose to make sure the end doesn't go past it and interfere, and so that it doesn't come out. I would think good quality electrical tape should work, but you want something that won't come apart in water and fall into the drain. Maybe secure them together up above where it goes in to the standpipe. Your experience with other machines seems to indicate the condensate hose shouldn't be a problem, but then there seems to be something different about the Classic designed Speed Queens.

I don't know if there is something else you could come up with to try to keep suds from regurgitating, other than wrapping something like rags or a sponge around the top of the pipe and see if that's enough to keep the moisture at bay, of course again being careful not to use anything that could drop in the pipe. Might be kind of inelegant, reminds me of rags stuffed in cars where the gas cap is missing, but I still have the sock wrapped around mine even though I haven't noticed any subsequent problems.

I hope you get it sorted and let us know what does or doesn't work. It's such a nice machine, in my opinion at least, even if it doesn't have a whole lot of bells and whistles (I have the sound turned off on mine anyway ) It's too bad that there always seems to have to be one aggravation.

 

[rwmair]

I was there this past weekend. I ran a cycle with the tub-cleaning tablet, and hot wash cycle with "heavy duty", "soak and extra rinse" and every other heavy-handed option I could choose on the SpeedQueen, as you had suggested. To do this, I had to turn the hot water tap on in the receptacle above the standpipe. Every time the washer drained during this "tub-cleaning" cycle, I saw no suds, and the water drained without any leaks. For good measure, I then ran a second cycle as you suggested, in Eco-Normal mode just with extra-rinse, and opened the lid after it had filled to let the hot water sit there for 10-15 mins. Again, this cycle seemed to drain without any visible extra suds that I noticed - so I thought the problem was solved.

The next day, my wife ran an actual load of sheets or clothes. Again, there were no suds visible when I checked in on it, although I noticed some dampness on the wall below the receptacle. I figured there had briefly been a small amount of suds I didn't see, but enough to cause dampness on the wall. Oh well.

The next morning after that, 18 hours or so later after the machine was last used, I check again, and noticed the wall was more damp than after the last wash. I then noticed the hot water tap (which had been turned off since we took ownership of this house/money-pit) was leaking. The dripping from the tap had cause the dampness on the wall, and most likely caused what I'd seen the previous day and mistaken for seepage from suds around the standpipe. So maybe we actually have solved the suds problem, but now have a plumber on tap to replace the hot water tap. (Its always something in this place... :-( )

Thanks so much for the suggestions ... maybe the excess foam problem is solved.

 

[WyJeff]

Thanks for the update. I'm glad it at least looks hopeful!