SMEG WMI16AAA – Very noisy on spin

[RifRaf]

Hi all

New to the forum and looking for a little advice.

Have a SMEG WMI16AAA which was working fine until Christmas. We had a problem with the display board and control board, which were both replaced. Had both of these replaced and the machine has been fine until today, I noticed that during the spin cycle it had become very noisy and there seems to be quite a bit of movement from the drum.

Any ideas on what my problem may be, if so would it be something better left to an engineer ? or is it time to think about a replacement ?

Thanks in advance for any replies.

[odom]

Re: SMEG WMI16AAA – Very noisy on spin

Hi,

When you say there is quite a bit of movement in the drum, I assume you mean play? If there is any play in the drum the bearings will have gone, you will probably hear a “rumbling” noise if you spin the drum by hand.

Bearings for these machines aren’t cheap – around the £45 mark off the top of my head. Spider may well need replacing too depending on how knackered the bearings are. Although it’s made easier by the bearings being mounted in a crosspiece, it’s still a difficult DIY job to do.

Definitely worth doing though, as they’re good machines. Just don’t overload the machine when you’ve got the new bearings, as this is what causes them to fail.

[RifRaf]

Re: SMEG WMI16AAA – Very noisy on spin

Thanks for the response odom, I did mean play in the drum and when you turn it by hand there is a grinding sound, which doesn’t sound good.

I’ve had a look around and have found a part:

http://www.smeg-service.co.uk/shop/inde … t_id=59088

Drum Spider and Shaft at £95.96 🙁 I’m assuming that’s what I’m going to need. With an engineer to fit it looks like it’s going to be a costly repair, I’m assuming it has to be a genuine SMEG spare part and there going to be the same price wherever I go.

[odom]

Re: SMEG WMI16AAA – Very noisy on spin

That’s only half of what you may need I’m afraid. The first part is the actual bearings themselves. They’re the same bearings as in a Hotpoint BWM20 if you want a cheaper alternative, though obviously if they’d be the same quality is questionable.

When you have the crosspiece out you need to inspect the shaft. If there’s any scoring or pitting to the shaft, it’s best to replace it too as it will affect the quality of the seal and cause premature failure of the new bearings.

Buying from this site will probably be a bit cheaper than buying from Smeg direct, email them for a quote: –
http://shop.ukwhitegoods.co.uk/contact_us.php

Not a cheap job as you say, I’m afraid.

[petalpop]

Re: SMEG WMI16AAA – Very noisy on spin

if its a grinding/scraping sound it may just be a bra wire in the drum
get your wife to check her bras as if its that it will be a lot cheaper than changing the bearings

[RifRaf]

Re: SMEG WMI16AAA – Very noisy on spin

Thanks for the responses odom and petalpop.

I checked the drum and unfortunately no sign of bra wire 🙁

I called Smeg Service and one of the options was a fixed price repair. They gave me a price for the repair which included a 12 month warranty which included this repair and parts and labour for any further failures. I was surprised the call was routed through to Homeserve but they told me all they would do is pass the call to Smeg and they will assign an engineer and parts.

Another company RepairCare gave a fixed price repair on their website which was almost £100 cheaper, but I have never heard of the company and was just a little worried they wouldn’t use genuine parts and was unsure on the engineer quality. They may be the best out there but as I couldn’t find any reviews on the company I’d feel more comfortable using someone Smeg send.

Anyone have any dealings with either company to assist in making a decision ?

[RifRaf]

Re: SMEG WMI16AAA – Very noisy on spin

Hi all

Been a while but still without a washing machine 🙁 Smeg approved engineer came while I was at work and a neighbour let him in. He had a look around and put it through the spin cycle and said he could find a problem.

I rang him and he said he couldn’t find a problem and the washer was fine and we’d have a good few years out of the machine yet. I took this on board left the machine out in the kitchen and made sure it was level and put a load of towels in. All was good until it started to spin and then I had to hold the thing down. I recorded the racket and mailed it to the engineer and he said he’d never heard anything like it and maybe it was time to retire the machine and get a new one (less than 24 hours earlier it had years left in it).

I’ve removed the back tonight and put it through a spin cycle and although it wasn’t bouncing around (presumably as there was no weight in the drum) every now and again you could hear what sounded like a piece of metal bouncing around.

I’m at a loss now as I don’t want to trash a washing machine that can be easily repaired and pay hundereds on a replacement, but the other half is getting bored of spending the weekends with our families doing our weekly wash.

Any suggestions on what else I could check /do ?

Thanks in advance.

[Lawrence]

Re: SMEG WMI16AAA – Very noisy on spin

It does sound like a bra wire floating around ,remove the element and shine a torch inside if you are lucky it will be sitting in the bottom and may come out with a magnet ,if not something sticky on the end of a piece of wire may do the trick .
Power off of course .

[RifRaf]

Re: SMEG WMI16AAA – Very noisy on spin

Thanks for the quick reply Lawrence.

I know this is probably a stupid question, but what/where is the element and is it easy enough to remove/replace ?

I’ll have a look when I get back in tomorrow, don’t suppose there’s such thing as a repair guide readily available for home repairs is there ?

Thanks

[Author]

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