FIXED WA45N3050AW/A4 Samsung top load washer will not spin without banging

[safetech1122]

Model Number

WA45N3050AW/A4

Brand

Samsung

Age

1-5 years

Hello,
I have a Samsung top load washer Model No. WA45N3050AW/A4. During the spin cycle when the washer is empty the washer works normally. During the spin cycle with clothes (type of clothes or towels does not matter) the drum bangs the washer cabinet. The motor sounds like it's straining but I don't know what a normal motor sounds like. I have replaced all four suspension rods with rods purchased on Amazon.
I have made sure the cabinet feet are touching the ground so there is no tittering. I have balanced the cabinet but this did not help either. Since the tub is suspended by the four rods the load should self-balance anyway. According to the flashing lights (no LED readout) translated from the owner's manual the motor is bad and the mems sensor is bad. I don't understand how a bad motor is effected by the load because it works through the other cycles until "spin." The washer has worked for years without a problem until the last 4 months. Re-arranging the load helps sometimes, but with towels or jeans or anything that holds a lot of water the spin cycle will not work. I don't know what a "mems sensor," is either. Thanks for any responses you can offer.

 

[safetech1122]

FIXED: After 92 views and no responses I figure there are many of you who were just as perplexed as I was with the womping and banging spin cycle problem. In short the problem was the suspension rods. Suspending the tub is only half the purpose of these rods. Another name for these rods are dampening rods and when the function of the rod wears out it stops dampening the wobble in an unbalance spin cycle. And lets face it, every spin cycle is going to be unbalance. The "four for $48" suspension rods I purchased on Amazon lasted about two, maybe three weeks (about 10 loads of laundry). The good news is they were hassle free to return. I purchased Samsung rods at AppliancePartsPros for $55.00 each, but they are working and much cheaper than a $700-$1200 washer. Each rod has a plastic piece on top of the spring. Within that plastic piece is a dense piece of foam material that slides on the rod with great resistance. It's this resistance that creates the dampening effect and keeps the tub from spinning out of control. If the dense foam wears out too quickly (like mine did) the washer tub will resort back to spinning out of control and banging the sides of the cabinet.
I learned about the dampening rods from a Youtube video here:

I hope this helps someone else trying to solve the same problem. Moral of the story is: don't buy cheap parts!

 

[Jake]

Thanks for the update.

Yes, many others have also mentioned the cheap aftermarket rod/spring kits only last a short time, if at all.

Glad to hear your back in business!

Thanks for posting all the additional information, that will help others too.

 

[safetech1122]

Thanks Jake,
The washer is running much better with the factory parts, but if the clothes are not loaded evenly the tub can still go out of balance. Even when clothes are loaded carefully they can move during the wash cycle. Most loads get through the entire wash cycle, but we still have loads that we have to stop the washer and adjust the clothes evenly in the tub.

 

[Jake]

but we still have loads that we have to stop the washer and adjust the clothes evenly in the tub.

Yes, that is true, it can happen from time to time.