Hoovermatic Twin Tub Washer. Advice on Repair Costs Please

[Lily61]

Hi, I wonder if any of you can give me some general advice on whether I could get this machine repared, and if so, what costs it may incur.
Apologies if this is a bit long winded, but I’d really appreciate some help, as I’m so disheartened about this 🙁 and would really love to get it working.

I bought an old Hoovermatic deluxe from ebay a few days ago. It has no information sticker on the back, but the seller said they were told it was a 3310E from the early 70s. They said that it works and has no leaks. Indeed, it does work and there are no leaks. However, I tried it out for the first time this afternoon, and there does seem to be a couple of problems. When I used the washer part, there appeared to be a droning sound (is this mormal for these old hoovermatics?). Plus there was a grating sound. I thought the grating might have been the buttons on my son’s work clothes, but then thought that it was more likely to be coming from the wheel/agitator that’s built into the side of the wash tub.

Now for the problem with the spinner – for the first maybe, 8 seconds, it sounds OK, but looked more like there were spurts of water coming from the emptying pipe, as opposed to a steady stream. Then, as it started to gain speed, it made an awful screeching noise, so I quickly lifted the lid to stop the spin. Armed with a bucket, and many short (5-6 seconds) bursts with the spinner, I managed to empty the wash tub.

So, the machine does work, but not as it should. Now I don’t know what to do. I have a real fondness for this particular make of twin tub, because my mum (sadly no longer with us) had one in the early 80s.
Her’s was an early 70s model and looked almost identical to to this one. I’d dearly love to get it up and running properly, so that I can use it to do a weekly wash. Baring in mind the problems, do you knowlegeable people think this is achievable?
And if so, is it worth getting an engineer out to come and give it a good overhaul…..Or am I just going to throw good money after bad?

If there’s a good chance of fixing it, and it’s worth getting an engineer to come out, could you give me a rough idea of what the cost would be just to come out and have a look? I do understand that any parts/labour will be extra, but a rough idea of initial costs will help me decide what to do, as I don’t have much spare cash.

Thanks 🙂

[Alex]

Re: Hoovermatic Twin Tub Washer. Advice on Repair Costs Ple

The wash noise could be the pulsator bearing, behind the black ribbed wheel.

The “screech” on spin is the resilient carbon faced seal below the spin can.

The poor drainage is either the rubber caps to the diverter valve adrift, or the rubber impellor has come off the shaft.

Sadly most parts are now obsolete including pulsators, resilient seals etc.

I would imagine no engineer would be keen to touch it as there is no locking mechanism on the lid assy which was a safety feature introduced late 1974 on subsequent models.

Alex (who is now feeling incredibly old)

[Lily61]

Re: Hoovermatic Twin Tub Washer. Advice on Repair Costs Ple

Many thanks for taking the time to reply, Alex.

Obsolete parts, and it being unlikely that an engineer would consider looking at it, really couldn’t be bleaker news.
When buying it, I did account for it being an old machine and therefor would likely need some attention, but I didn’t bargain for that. I’m so disappointed 😥

I guess I’ve learnt a costly lesson there 🙁 1) don’t get sentimental and want something because my mum had one. And 2) don’t spend money you can ill afford on really old appliances unless absolutely sure they can be fixed.

Thing is, I would still like to go from using an automatic to a twin tub. But, all the new ones (plastic bodied) I’ve seen that are available now, look like they wouldn’t come within a million miles of the quality that the old Hoover and Hotpoint twin tubs were.
I appreciate the market for twin tubs isn’t anywhere near as big as it was at one time. But, I’d really hoped that at least one manufacturer would have produced a decent quality machine, even if it is on a smaller scale.

Anyway, thanks again, Alex. It’s much appreciated 🙂

[helo_75]

all isnt lost

there are some parts available

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Hoover-Twin-Tub-M … 20ad9bd8fc

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Hoover-Twin-Tub-W … 1e5a68c4ae

will cure the droning on the wash side

your problem is with the spinner

it could be lubricated, but as to the butterfly valve in the pump, i just dunno if anyone might have one lying around?

[helo_75]

a quick google found this

http://www.spares2go.co.uk/browse-HOOVE … -s8123.htm

but your gettin into serious cash now

of course i dont rememebr twin tubs, im far too young

[Lily61]

Re: Hoovermatic Twin Tub Washer. Advice on Repair Costs Ple

Thanks for finding those Helo_75

Unfortunately though, I think it would work out very expensive with the postage. import tax, Royal Mail handling fees etc. Then there’s the cost of finding someone to fit them (if indeed I could find someone)
There’s also the possibility that they wouldn’t solve all the problems, and there may even be more problems found by an engineer, that I am not aware of now. I’d be really worried that I could be throwing good money after bad, and still not have a working machine at the end of it.
For as much as it saddens me to say it, I think I have to cut my losses and hope that, either I get very lucky and find one in excellent working condition in the future. Or, perhaps even more unlikely, hope that a manufacturer comes along that produces a decent quality twin tub, soon.

Much appreciated 🙂

[helo_75]

i still think a lot of your problems could be sorted by a good servise, i can only really see the pump being an issue

i used to fix them all the time, well built and easy to serrvice

[Penguin45]

Re: Hoovermatic Twin Tub Washer. Advice on Repair Costs Ple

It’s worth just asking round your local repairers if they’ve got anything left. We are notorious hoarders – I know for a fact that I’ve got a pump base in the garage. Don’t know exactly where it is, but I know it’s in there…

The problem with these oldies is that they are worth nothing. If you’re prepared to wield a screwdriver and a few spanners, these machines can be repaired very easily if you can track down the parts. They are far short of rocket science.

Penguin45.

[Lily61]

Thanks for the replies Helo_75 and Penguin45. Now, you’ve both got me thinking it might be do-able again. I’m just a bit concerned about cost and not wanting to waste money if it turns out that there’s something that can’t be put right. If, I decide to persue it, I guess the first thing would be to find someone to come and have a look, and service it at the same time if they think it’s worthy of repair. At least then, if it’s not worth reparing, I’ve only lost the extra cost of paying someone to look at it, and not wasted money on parts that won’t be used. I’d prefer it if the person had dealt with these before, but how do I find someone like you two that’s had experience of these maxchines? I don’t suppose either of you will be coming through Manchester at some point this year, and would consider stopping off and taking a look at it, would you?

helo_75 wrote:i still think a lot of your problems could be sorted by a good servise, i can only really see the pump being an issue

i used to fix them all the time, well built and easy to serrvice

I hope this isn’t a really silly question, but I was wondering if any Hoover parts were ever used in other brands of spin dryers?
It’s probably a completely different set of parts, but thought I’d check anyway. I’ve got an old Electra autopump spin dryer. Not sure how old it is, but it doesn’t appear to have a specific model noumber. Just two lines of numbers and letters, and says that it’s made for the electricity board. Is this likely to have any parts the same as the Hoovermatic?

Thanks again for your help 🙂

[Alex]

Re: Hoovermatic Twin Tub Washer. Advice on Repair Costs Ple

The Electra spinner, if round in shape is a Frigidaire, if Square a Creda. Totally different animals I’m afraid.

What you need to find is an old hoover eng who happens to have kept these old bits and with the knowledge.

Best of luck

Alex

[Lily61]

Re: Hoovermatic Twin Tub Washer. Advice on Repair Costs Ple

Alex wrote:The Electra spinner, if round in shape is a Frigidaire, if Square a Creda. Totally different animals I’m afraid.

What you need to find is an old hoover eng who happens to have kept these old bits and with the knowledge.

Best of luck

Alex
Ahh, that’s a shame. Thanks anyway, Alex 🙂

I’ll give it a couple of months, and do what I can to find someone that can sort it out. Then, if I can’t find anyone, I’ll have to let it go, as I don’t have the room to keep it indefinitely.

Fingers crossed 🙂

[Lily61]

Re: Hoovermatic Twin Tub Washer. Advice on Repair Costs Ple

Hi there,

Just thought I’d pop in with an update on my progress with the old Hoovermatic.

Well, I’m absolutely delighted to tell you that I’ve managed to find a local repairs service that have many years experience, and like some of you, know the old Hoovermatics well. They came to look at it yesterday, and saw how the pump emptied, and checked the pulsator. They don’t think either of them need replacing. The uneven flow from the drainage pipe, only happens when water comes from the spinner part (it drains fine from the wash tub), so it’s thought to be down to a large build up of gunk in between the spinner casings.
Anyway, they’ve taken it away to do a service and give it a good clean, plus sort out the screeching baring on the spinner.
All being well, I should have it back on Saturday :bounce: 😀

I Also wanted to say a big thank you for the advice and encouragement from the posters that helped me here. I’d have been at a loss without your input, so thank you all very much. I really do appreciate it 🙂

[helo_75]

its a worthy project to be honest

we say it a lot, but THEY DO NOT MAKE THEM LIKE THAT anymore

a fine example of brtish manufacturing at its best

good luck, let us know how u find it when it comes back

[Lily61]

helo_75 wrote:its a worthy project to be honest

we say it a lot, but THEY DO NOT MAKE THEM LIKE THAT anymore

a fine example of brtish manufacturing at its best

good luck, let us know how u find it when it comes back

Thanks Helo_75. I’m glad you think it’s worth doing. I’m sure some friends and family members would think I’m crazy spending money on such an old machine, but if it’s been around this long, then it says a lot about the quality 🙂
The two repairers that came, although they didn’t get as far as taking the back of the machine off, their initial thoughts were that it looked to be in really good condition for its age, too.
Also, the way, I look at it is….Unless they find something really amiss in there, that needs an expensive part replacing, it’s actually cost me no more than a new, low end automatic that I’d get a couple of years out of if I’m lucky.
So, either a cheap auto, or an absolute workhorse that’s been around for what?….about 36 years from what I hear…..No contest 🙂

Anyway, I’ll definitely pop back and let you know how it is after my first wash. I can’t wait to get my hands on it, and feel like a kid waiting for Christmas 😳 😆

[ravindave]

Re: Hoovermatic Twin Tub Washer. Advice on Repair Costs Ple

Hoover twin tubs are great machines – I have one of the first ones made !!
It is not too difficult to make spare parts for them, I have made a new seal for the washtub shaft, re-built the pump, bypassed the heater (it had corroded)and then the spin lid interlock and switch fell apart – this was replaced with a simple switch (but I no longer have an interlock (for safety))
My next project is to refurbish the seal on the spinner, as it squeals when it has been left for a week or so.
If you fancy having a go at repairing your own machine, and want a little advice, you can email me.

Mod edit: Giving your email address in a public forum is not a good idea, you just don’t know who may be looking in. If you want to send an email then please do so via the email button in this users profile in the box to the right of this post.

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