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I think the drum spider has cracked on my Hotpoint Aquarius WM52, as it started making a loud noise on the spin cycle, then it progressed to tripping the mains ELCB. I’ve just stripped it down and the heater element has been worn through by the drum rubbing against it (hence the mains tripping) and checking for free-play of the drum bearings I discovered that there is movement and a clicking noise when I wobble the drum in line with one of the spider mounting points, slight movement (but no click) at the other mounting point, and no free play or clicking at the third. The bearings sound and feel OK.
Luckily, it’s possible to remove the drum without taking the tub out of the machine as the tub is split at the front, rather than the middle. Unfortunately, whilst I got the pulley nut off, I can’t for the life of me get the pulley off the shaft. I’ve clobbered the living daylights out of it, tried WD40, heating with a blowtorch (kept it under 100 deg ! – don’t want to melt the bearing mounts !), but it won’t come off.
Right now, I’m looking at buying a small claw puller to get the pulley off, plus (probably) a new spider and definitely a new heating element.
What would you do now ? Press on with repairing it, or abandon it and get a second hand machine ?
(any suggestions on getting the pulley off in the meantime ?)
Cheers !
Kev.
Re: Drum spider ? Should I bother repairing or just replace
Why would you want a claw puller, it will only break the pulley, why not try unscrewing the pulley in exactly the same direction as the retaining nut. 😉
You can buy the drum support spider including bearings for a reasonable price, add a new heater and a new black rubber seal for the front of the drum and you are sorted, why waste money on a second hand machine of unknown provenance.
I would strongly advise you to buy a genuine drum support, I have seen lots of problems with some of the pattern drum spiders.
THIS is what you need.
Re: Drum spider ? Should I bother repairing or just replace
Wow… I didn’t realise you could get a spider AND a bearing kit for £20 ! Many thanks for the info mate !
As for getting the pulley off… how can I unscrew the pulley if it’s a push-fit ? …or are you saying it’s actually a screw fit ? Hmmmmmm….. I’ll be right back….
Re: Drum spider ? Should I bother repairing or just replace
Awwww man…. I can’t believe I was bashing the crap out of it for an hour and all I had to do was unscrew it !!! :boops: :rotfl:
Thank you SO much for the tip !
Well, the spider is intact – much to my confusion. I’m guessing the reason for the free-play in the drum has to be the bearings then.
For the sake of £20, I may as well replace the lot. Especially as the thread on the spider shaft is now… er… less than optimal shall we say!
Re: Drum spider ? Should I bother repairing or just replace
Don’t forget to replace the black rubber drum seal, it will be very likely to leak if you don’t and slapping a load of sealant on it is very messy and unprofessional.
Re: Drum spider ? Should I bother repairing or just replace
I will. Incidentally, the kit you linked to doesn’t mention the WM52 in the models it will fit. Am I safe to go ahead and order this particular part ? Lastly, I don’t suppose it comes with a nut does it ? Mine is a bit mangled !
Re: Drum spider ? Should I bother repairing or just replace
That kit fits all Hotpoint models from the 1850 made over 35 years ago right up to the very last of the WM range.
No it does not come with a new nut, I have a very large ring spanner issued by Hotpoint so the nut never gets damaged if you take it off with the correct tools. 😉
Part number for nut is C00160131.
I have a few lying around if you really get stuck, not worth trying to force the old one back on and risk damaging the new shaft.
Re: Drum spider ? Should I bother repairing or just replace
I didn’t damage it taking it off – I had the right size socket and a 24″ breaker bar, I damaged it when I put it back on (ironically to protect the threads on the shaft!) and clobbered the hell out of it trying to get the pulley off ! When I couldn’t pull the pulley off, I tried whacking the shaft ‘through’. Oops. It’s the threads that are damaged, not the nut faces.
I’ve searched on the Whitegoods shop site for the part number you gave but it’s not finding anything. ? …or was that the Hotpoint part number ?
Many thanks for all your help mate – it’s very much appreciated.
Re: Drum spider ? Should I bother repairing or just replace
The part will not be in the store here and may not be stocked by lots of places as it is not a fast moving spare. I have never needed to order one in over 45 years but that is the correct part number.
Re: Drum spider ? Should I bother repairing or just replace
I don’t suppose it’s the same as this one for the washer/dryers is it ?
… it looks the same at first glance !Re: Drum spider ? Should I bother repairing or just replace
That’s the one. 😀
I suppose it’s likely that the ‘uninitiated’ are more likely to damage them. 😉
Not sure why they list the one for the washer dryer under a different number, it is possibly a little thicker than the standard one but until yesterday I had never even looked up the part number before.it is the same drum support so the thread will be exactly the same.
I shouldn’t really say this but you might want to try and source one using the first part number I gave you, the price in our store is more than a little overpriced which is unusual.
Re: Drum spider ? Should I bother repairing or just replace
OY ! 🙂
My mistake was not registering it was brass and therefore going to be softer than the large hammer I was hitting it with ! 🙂
Do you reckon I’ll be able to change the bearings with the tub in situ ? or should I stop being a lazy git and do it properly ? 🙂
Re: Drum spider ? Should I bother repairing or just replace
Bearings always changed without removing the drum, if it really is bearing failure that has damaged the heater then you may have a struggle to remove the larger main bearing. I would see if you can get them out before you order any parts at all.
Re: Drum spider ? Should I bother repairing or just replace
Good thinking…. I’ll tackle that after breakfast. I must admit I’m a little unsure why the inner drum hit the heater. I know I had a heavy bedsheet in there at the time. I’ll clean the crud off the spider and check for cracks. If it’s not the spider then it has to be the bearings right ? The bearings however feel fine to the touch – no grinding or detectable free play.
I couldn’t have actually distorted the drum itself surely ?
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