[T_i_m]

electrofix wrote: i wired a Cortina fan resitor in circuit.
that would be the only robin with a 2 speed fan. Much quieter

great days lol

Dave

Hehe, they were indeed, or still are for us in some respect as we built a Mk1/2 Escort based kitcar 30+ years ago and so I can still do the sort of things you did with the Robin blower switch. 😉

Coincidentally I currently have the entirre gheater unit out of the kitcar because the motor bearings had failed and so the blower was very noisy. I have removed the fan and intend to replace it with a motorcycle cooling fan driven by a PWM controller with either a pot (full variable speed) or retain the Off / Low / High switch but still retaining a PWM controller.

[T_i_m]

Hi Dave,

I think I must be missing the reply notifications to these messages!

I just went though the holes in the spray arms and the obvious plumbing more closely and found a couple of holes towards the ends of the arms (that are probably the key drivers re making the arms rotate) were blocked with bits of plastic film (like Selotape). I’ve given it another run and I think stuff looks cleaner, especially mugs in the top basket but not all completely clean as such?

We recently bought a batch of white glass crockery from Ikea because it was simple and light (light for the Mrs). The plates in the lower basket seem to get clean most of the time, as does the cutlery in the basket, It’s just the bowels (that have 45 Deg walls) may not be completely cleaned, especially if they had dried on cereal (there are only two of us so it sometimes takes a while between DW runs, even if I do rinse etc).

I either put the bowls at 45 deg angle in the plate rack bit of the bottom basket or completely upside down along the middle of the top basket?

How much difference might the detergent make? We are currently using a Green Care tablet from Sainsbury’s that seems to work very well on the things it works on?

https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/product/greencare-dishwasher-tablets-30-wash

I might unscrew the stuff in the bottom and check the chopper again.

Cheers, T i m

[T_i_m]

HI Andy,

Sorry, I’ve only just seen your reply and thank you so much for all the detailed information.

Also thank you so much for saying ‘Reliant Robin’, not ‘Robin Reliant’ as so many people do (who obviously don’t know what they are saying!). 😉 (Uncle had a Regal then Robin and had a king-pin fail the MOT, only after 1 year of having it replaced by the garage who failed it the year before. I sorted it out for him and found they had fitted the pin but not aligned the oilways, meaning it had been run dry for the whole time. ;-(

From what you say about WB bearings you can understand why people often just throw stuff away, especially once it’s a few years old, just because (say) it’s not pumping out because of some small thing stuck in the impeller. ;-(

[T_i_m]

electrofix wrote:the spider has always been made of aluminuim but how long it last depends on lots of things

aluminium is attacked by Alkeli. so if you overdose detergent your reducing its life.

Dave

That’s for that Dave and sorry I’ve only just noticed the reply! ;-(

Time to wash some stuff on hot then I think. 😉

Cheers, T i m

[T_i_m]

electrofix wrote:the Bosch WAN series still has a drum you can split

That’s good to know Dave, thanks.

I can see me in the showroom and taking the top off the next one I’m thinking of buying to check (you know, because of ‘progress’ //// more profit for the manufacturers at to the cost of the environment). ;-(

I think we chose the Bosch over any lower spec machines at the time because it had a steel drum. Looks like that’s not enough these days.

What about machines that don’t have a pot metal spider? Do they still exist?

Cheers, Tim

[T_i_m]

Re: Whirlpool AWO 3551 bearing change advice please?

So apart from it coming up with an error code on the first test that was down the the drain pump seized (now freed), it all seems to work and no leaks or bits left over. 😉

I’ll suggest Mum doesn’t use it on the highest spin speed and we can start to look about for a replacement.

Cheers, T i m

[T_i_m]

Re: Whirlpool AWO 3551 bearing change advice please?

Hi Dave and thanks again for the reply and feedback.

So, we are currently round Mums working on the Whirlpool and after a bit of a clean-up and from a closer look at the spider (in the daylight) it would seem it is indeed cracked (in a couple of places) so I’m guessing it’s finished? ;-(

FWIW, on our old Zanussi TD the rear bearing failed and damaged the central stub on the SS drum and the bearing mount but to my surprise, all the bits were available separately, just requiring me to drill out the rivets holing the spindle mount to the drum and I re-fitted it using cap headed SS bolts and Nylok nuts and it’s been fine ever since (probably 10 years now). 😉

I’m assuming such a replacement (spider) isn’t available for this WM?

So, I think I’m just going to put it back together again (I’ll turn the tub seal 90 degrees to give it a two fresh faces to the tub halves) and hopefully Mum will be able to get a few washes out of it before it fails completely and a chance to choose / find a replacement.

Cheers, T i m

[T_i_m]

Re: Whirlpool AWO 3551 bearing change advice please?

Thanks for that Dave,

These particular brushes are loose, not in a carrier of any sort?

This should be a picture of the spider:

OOI, is it common for a WM to build up such a quantity of loose limescale that it jams the drum up?

Cheers, T i m

[T_i_m]

Re: Whirlpool AWO 3551 bearing change advice please?

So,

This afternoon we got round to looking at Mums washing machines and found it looks like just the brushes on her old WM (Hoover Ariston Auto 1000 I think? [1]) and after stripping the Whirlpool, we found it was just caked full of limescale and the like? ;-(

The spider looks like it has some surface corrosion (how do you attach a picture here please?) but seems sound and the bearings, shaft and seal all seem nice and tight, smooth, clean and greasy?

So, should I just clean it out and put it back together again and see how we get on, or replace the main seal ‘because’ and the tub gasket or what?

Cheers, T i m

[1] The remaining whole brush measures about 13 x 5mm (rule, vernier is in the garage) with a about 20mm of braid to a mini spade terminal, so would that be enough info to pin a replacement brush down please?

p.s. I used the bench grinder on a pair of large expanding circlip pliers to remove the clips that hold the tub together. It made it pretty easy work, once I’d ground the profile of the end of the jaw to suit the clip that is. 😉

[T_i_m]

Re: Whirlpool AWO 3551 bearing change advice please?

Hi and thanks again for the info.

I’ll do as you suggest and give the clips a test go etc. I just thought I’d ask in case there was a special tool required and before I broke anything etc.

Thanks again for all your help. 😉

Cheers, T i m

[T_i_m]

Re: Whirlpool AWO 3551 bearing change advice please?

Thanks once again for the prompt reply and heads up.

The bearing is now pretty well failed (drum won’t rotate but moves slightly) so I’ll check all the relevant surfaces for damage before ordering anything.

I don’t think it was *that* old when it failed and I can’t remember if it was passed on because it actually failed or was getting noisy / leaking etc (I’ll ask).

I see I mentioned that the tub was held together with clips when I mentioned this machine a few years ago so is there a particular tool required to release / re-fit them or can you advise the use of anything in particular please (if the question is actually relevant etc).

Cheers, T i m

[T_i_m]

Re: Whirlpool AWO 3551 bearing change advice please?

Excellent and thanks again for the prompt reply.

I’ll let the group know how I got on.

Assuming it’s just the bearings etc, are these machines generally ok?

Cheers, T i m

[T_i_m]

Re: Whirlpool AWO 3551 bearing change advice please?

Hi Dave and thanks very much for the prompt reply and info.

So I can tell Mum it’ll cost her about 35+ quid for the parts, once I’ve stripped it down and checked the condition of the key bits etc.

In case it makes any difference to the parts list it’s a:

12 NC 8592 032 15001 ?

Cheers, T i m

[T_i_m]

Re: Whirlpool AWO 3551 drum seized?

Thanks Martin. 😉

So, do I need a special tool to remove the multiple clips I’ve seen holding the tub halves together or would some decent external circlip pliers do the job?

Bearing and seal set and a new seal for the tub joint, or can the tub seal be re-used (if turned round etc)?

Cheers, T i m

[T_i_m]

Re: R.I.P. Zanussi ZWF 1431W (for good this time …). ;-(

Martin wrote:Looking back at the ‘history’ of this machine and the determination you applied Tim please accept my respect for your determination toward keeping your machine alive.

Thanks for that Martin. The history on the tumble-dryer is even longer. 😉

What is so interesting overall in all the ‘posts’ on the subject is the reference to the ISE10 and how that ‘history’ meanwhile has dealt with both aspects.

Yes (sad). I was talking to someone this morning on *my* perspective on all this re how ‘most people'(?), and especially ‘these days’ wouldn’t even dream of looking into what (say) stopped their washing machine from working, including checking to see if the drain pump impeller wasn’t blocked with some jewellery. ;-(

Maybe, the rules and regulations, combined with the complexity (electronics) of much machinery today, plus the comparatively low price mean that even if people were interested in repairing stuff themselves, in most cases they wouldn’t have the tools, skills or access to spares at reasonable prices (the latter being one of ISE’s goals I understand).

Luckily, I was born to a family where I wasn’t given everything I wanted and so typically had to fix other peoples broken stuff to be able to afford such things myself. I also came from an era where component level repair was still common and spent much of my time fixing stuff for others.

So, part of me regrets allowing our daughter to dispose of the old washing machine because I would have liked to at least strip it down to find what the fault was and may have been able to fix it (based on the ‘what is there to lose’ principle). But I may take solice from having given the machine another 7 years ‘life’ … but am still confused why it didn’t last that long from the factory (and the part I repaired was still good, 7 years later)?

That said, whilst the machine sounded like something fairly major had failed (is there some webbing that spreads the load from the main shaft over the end of the drum?), I know there were many bits that were still fine (and could have gone on eBay) and may now never get back into a machine? ;-(

Even if those parts are recycled into the raw materials, that still won’t be as ‘good’ as putting them back into another machine. But who would bother these days … ;-(

Cheers, T i m

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