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I sometimes give advice on the DIYnot forum. Another member on there was advising someone to remove the heater to retrieve a bra wire. They said you will need a new heater as the old one won’t go back in. I pointed out that, whilst it is more difficult to refit a used heater it is not impossible and that if I did this I would feel that the customer was paying extra because of my lack of skill. I was told it is bad practice to re-fit a heater as the rubber gasket will be distorted. Who is wrong, them or me?
Re: Washer Heaters
Theres only one way to find out…F-I-G-H-T!
On a more serious note, as most of the heaters I remove have got so damaged in the removal process i would always quote for a new heater before I start. Very occassionally a heater will pop out with no trouble at all, on these occasions I would refit with a bit of debor. (In my area because not many people have water softners this isnt very often).
Re: Washer Heaters
I had to replace a heater on a Candy last week after bra wire removal, impossible to get the old one back in but I would say on balance that I manage to refit around 80{e5d1b7155a01ef1f3b9c9968eaba33524ee81600d00d4be2b4d93ac2e58cec2d} of them, sometimes with a bit of a struggle but touch wood have never had any call backs to subsequent heater problems that where not caused by the heater failing electrically.
Re: Washer Heaters
Hell, DIYnot.com? Is this what I have to look forward to when I retire? Squabbling with some prigs who say it’s “bad practice” to do this or that?
I think you’ll find the ulterior motive behind, “it’s bad practice” is very often, though they will never admit it, “I’ll get more money out of the job this way.”
Mike.Re: Washer Heaters
Or, like one the other day on another forum that told someone to replace a thermostat in his or her fridge when they’re wasn’t even a thermostat in it!
But, shocker, he did have a link to his website selling universal thermostats at slightly inflated prices. :rolls:
K.
Re: Washer Heaters
lifes too short to mess around squeezing swolen rubber seals back into a slot way smaller. Would find a better way of getting the bra wire out. Very rarely have removed heaters for any other reason than replacing them, tub changes being the exception then I would always quote for new heater in the price, (drum probably have scored it anway) and with any luck this extra cost will tip the balance cost wise and persuade the customer to scrap it.
Re: Washer Heaters
It’s a pity I didn’t ask this question years ago! I had always assumed there was some trick to fitting them and I was just inept!
Re: Washer Heaters
I have a very small one of those extendable magnetic retrieving tools, so small it fits in the drum holes… Excellent for getting bra wires to poke through a hole to retrieve… Also I have a very strong larger magnet which sometimes works..
And it’s possible to remove the door seal and retrieve them through the gap between the drums
Must be a better way tho?
Martin
Re: Washer Heaters
In short,do what you are familiar and happy with,what works best for you.
There’s more than one way of skinning a ?Re: Washer Heaters
It really depends on where the wires are stuck, if they are lodged under the heater, away from the sump outlet then removing the heater is often the only option. And if they are stuck between the drum spider and the back of the inner drum on a sealed drum setup you, or at least the customer is stuffed.
Jim.
Re: Washer Heaters
The difference in attitudes is what amazes me and, I see this a lot.
You get the engineers that will take the time to refit the likes of a heater, knock out bearings and so on and you get those that, TBH, just can’t seem to be arsed and instead take the easiest way they can find.
For the record I never, once, replaced a heater just because the seal was a bit distorted and needed a bit of effort to be put back in, I never came across one that was so bad that it needed replaced for that. My old man or Robert, I cannot recall a single instance where they did it either.
Some washing up liquid and a little patience is all I ever required as well as a little care in taking them out in the first place.
But then, I don’t get the whole “throw parts at it till you fix it” attitude. I always had assumed, perhaps wrongly, that we were supposed to diagnose problems correctly and find the best and lowest cost solution, not just chuck in a new part because you have to spend a few minutes more on something.
I see that happening all the time and, if I do then so do others. Such as the ones that crack me up where the customer phones chasing a call as they’ve had no contact yet the repairer has ordered umpteen parts, they’ve become so damned lazy that they don’t even bother calling the customer to see what the problem is and try to pre-diagnose, just order up a heap of parts and hope for the best.
Guess when it’s your customer or client that’s paying for it it doesn’t matter to some.
But just maybe that attitude by some is what gets us the reputation with the public that repairs are too expensive so they’ll just buy another one.
I do think that, from experience, this is more the attitude from ex large company engineers where the cost is either lost or, they were running about with a van full of bits so they could just swap stuff out. Fine when you’ve got that option but, when you work for yourself across multiple contracts or directly for customers you don’t have that safety net.
It’s also why they’re much more expensive in part.
I see recently companies like DAG moving more toward using OEM service and, if the above holds true do you blame them? Some repairers doing the above simply price the indies out the game as due to high spares costs you become more expensive than just using the OEM service.
I’d urge all repairers to consider what they do.
K.
Re: Washer Heaters
I must admit that i have not had any issues replacing a used element back where it came from after removal ! As Ken says some fairy liquid and a little wiggle here and there and they do go back in .Was a little surprised that a few are having trouble getting them back in .Fair enough if the bra wire etc has damaged the element then replace with new one ,other than that just manoeuvre it back in. 🙂
Re: Washer Heaters
probably depens on the design of the drum and how tight the heater has been fitted in the first place. If anyone can claim that all heaters can be refitted are obviously not very experienced ‘cos I assure you that is not the case. Some rubber seals come out in the same shape as new ones which of course is no problem, others are swollen maybe a 1/4 larger so no way would I risk even attempting to get one in for fear it might pop out again even if you managed to squeeze it back in. And then there is the stainless tubs with the flange facing outwards….. like a razor blade slicing the gasket as it goes in. All of this assuming the heater comes out in the first place of course.
No one is suggesting you cannot refit heaters, whether it is wise or profitable to do so is another matter. I would happily flaff around with fairy for half an hour if I was getting paid for it…..Re: Washer Heaters
eastlmark wrote: No one is suggesting you cannot refit heaters, whether it is wise or profitable to do so is another matter. I would happily flaff around with fairy for half an hour if I was getting paid for it…..
I agree totally with all the Mark has said in this thread. His approach to the problem I echo and would advise.
Of all that’s been said so far I don’t recall anyone touching on the ‘risk factor’ involved when making a habit of attempting to refit old heaters? That without doubt It is a risky business refitting a heater. The chances of it popping out the moment your customer puts on a long hot wash is very high indeed. I’ve suffered a Zanussi Nexus and Bosch Maxx both popping out and flooding the whole ground floor. The former a massive claim against me, the latter I was able to appease my angry customer with a full refund.
Many of the guys I suspect don’t carry replacement heaters on their van. Get faced with the need to fish the bra wire out via the heater and fiddle and fart about stuffing the old heater back in in order to complete the job. These guys are resourceful in the extreme but are taking an awful risk nevertheless. Indeed boastful at their apparent success rate toward this type of job, well done you lucky B you!
Those that carry a comprehensive stock of replacement heaters fair far far better however. Most heaters are cheap to replace after all. A simple explanation to your customer of the reason behind the need to replace the heater guarantees a better, more secure job. More profit from the job and a customer more mindful about washing wired bras in their machine in future.
My adopted ‘rule of thumb’ therefore, and with little exception, is to advise that the heater has to be removed in order to fish out the wire. Because it is a compression fit disturbing the heater and attempting to refit is NOT recommended and will not be undertaken by me.
( writing a disclaimer for your customer to sign will not cover you at all if the ruddy thing pops out and floods the house anyway, don’t kid yourself matey! )
If I was running a team of engineers then I would insist they do not attempt refitting the heater without my permission. 👿
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