20 Most Recent Hotpoint WMA64 Front Load Washer - Page 5 Questions & Answers

Hi, I also have the bearing problem on a hotpoint wma and have just stated the repair job. I have found the following on different forums, so maybe it might help others. You do need to remove the drum and there are two different sizes of bearings 30mm and 35mm. To find the size you need you have to get to the bearings and measure them.
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. Ok,Hotpoint wma series drum bearing failure.Firstly very common problem since i work on these things every day-i think there is a design fault-nothing new in this trade!What follows is

the sequence of problems in changing the drum bearings:If the machine has been thrashed into oblivion just changing the oilseal/bearings will have you back to square one within a

couple of months since you would`ve damaged the drum shaft as the bigger bearing of the 2 goes into shapnell mode!So you`d best change the drum shaft(in the trade known as the

spider) however this thing is aluminium usually held onto the the drum via torx headed screws either in steel or soft Al2 also-forget it as your not going to get these out unless your mega

lucky,what we do at work is to replace the whole tank/drum/bearing assembly which comes with a new element and belt ie the whole tank unit,the trade price of this part is less than

£100.00-you can draw your own conclusions as to the retail price as you wish.If you haven`t thrashed the machine you can get away with replacing just the bearings or easier still the rear

half of the tank(trade price 30.00+vat) in which the bearings are already fitted via the factory and reuse the existing spider/drum shaft so long as it isn`t damaged by disintergrated bearing

shapnell.I hope this clears up this problem for you.Please note that this machine`s filter which is at the rear doubles up as the air trap-the oval section 8" long semi transpatent plastic tube

thing-the part that allows the water to compress the air so turning off the level of fill at the right level via the round swt behind the soap dispenser-called the pressure swt-if the filter gets

bunged up the machine o/fills and either overfills or overfills and floods or tries to spin with aload of water still inside the drum or perhaps no spin at all.Hope this helps someone.

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The drum comes out through the front on this one. Take off kick plate and remove screws holding front panel to frame. Take out soap drawer & remove screws behind it. Take off band

holding door seal & peel seal back. Remove 2 screws holding door lock &push lock through. Pull control panel forward at left side & slide to right to remove being careful with board &
wiring. Remove screws holding top end of front then lift slightly &remove front. Remove back panel & take wiring off heating element & pump. Disconnect the pump hose at the drum end,

disconnect the hose from the soap dispenser, note that wiring is fastened to the drum at several points and will need to be disconnected. Remove panel from behind control board then

carefully move everything away from the front of the machine, the drum can now be lifted clear.

Forgot to mention unplugging motor but common sense will prevail.
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Sounds like the door lock switch has failed,normally they go bang when fail,they start the machines cycle so are important,when door is shut it should click,this engages a timer which keeps door locked switch is live at mains potential,cant be tested have to be replaced about 12 pounds cost,best for a tech unless you feel competent

could be a couple of causes.First take off panel at back of machine and check that belt is in place.
Has it been noisy on spin lately?

it's possible that one of the carbon brushes have worn down to the bottom and it is sparking on the motor causing it to trip the fuse. It's just one possibility. Have you checked the carbon brushes are connected properly and that they have not 1) worn down and 2) that the wires are connected to them correctly.

I really need more information here, but hopefully the following covers manty of the possible scenarios.

Do you hear a motor spinning during the time the drum should be turning?
If you hear a motor spinning inside the machine then there is a good chance that the drive belt has simply come off. You may be able to just take the lid off michine (My article http://www.fixya.com/support/t1543617-door_seal covers how to do this), hook the belt over the small spindle on the motor and then put it on the big wheel on the back of the drum by placing it over one side of the wheel and spinning the drum to draw it around the rest of the wheel.

Now, if this is the case, you are going to have to ask yourself why it came off. Sometimes this will happen if you had a very heavy load in the machine and the spin cycle threw the machine all over the place, so what was the machine doing on the last occasion it DID work?. Sometimes, the belt comes off because the drum bearings are worn out and there is movement in the drum. To check for this, open the front door of the machine, put your fingers on the drum on the inside and try to lift the front of the drum upwards a little. Bear in mind that there is an outer drum, with the drum that spins inside it and what you are feeling for is the inner drum moving inside the outer one, this will be obvious and "Clonky" if it is worn out. You are not looking to see of the whole drum assembly rocks smoothly inside the chassis, It is supposed to do this. If your bearings are worn out and this has caused the belt to come off, it may well be accompanied by a small, but worsening leak from the back of the machine as the water slowly leaks more and more through the bearing. I'm aftaid that if this is the case, then, depending on the age of the machine it may be time to scrap it. Certainly a bearing replacement is possible as a DIY job, but it is a real pain and not for the faint hearted.
So then, on to the scenario where you CANNOT hear a motor running during the wash cycle when the drum should be turning. This is probably the motor faulting out. Once again, a few checks: does it NEVER run, or will it still spin the washing? Your motor will have up to 4 electrical windings inside it, One for the standard turning motion when there is water in the drum during a wash and up to 3 more that kick in at various stages of the spin as it gets faster and faster. If it still spins, but will not wash, then it is almost certainly a burned out winding in the motor and you have to replace the whole motor. This will cost you (as a rule of thumb) about 25-40% of the cost of the machine when you bought it.
If the belt is on but the motor does nothing at all on any cycle, there might be a loose connection on the back of the motor (A plastic connector block with around 6 wires clips into the back of the motor, check it is firmly in place). Or, the brushes in the motor may be worn out. You can get separate replaceable brushes for most motors. If you can replace an altenator on your car, you can replace a motor on your washing machine, the principle is exactly the same. If you get to the point of taking the motor out, give it a good physical inspection, looking for burn evidence on the wires of the winding, water drip damage AND have a good sniff at it. If you smell that horrible burned wire and plastic smell, you know that the motor is going in the bin.

I have reproduced the details of my article: http://www.fixya.com/support/t1543617-door_seal
here. I hope this will give you the information you need.
Rule 1: BEFORE YOU START Turn off the mains, unplug at the wall, turn off the water supply.

The gasket is held in place on the drum by a large sprung wire ring with a screw tighten/release. To access this (Depending on the model), you will either have to go in from the top or the bottom of the machine. Usually the top.

Pull the machine out, go to the back and unscrew, usually 2 screws that hold the "Work top surface" top on the machine at the back. There are usually clips at the front of the top, so by lifting the rear clear and either pulling the top back, or giving it a tap forward, depending on the design, the top should now lift off.

You should now be able to look down at the drum and you should clearly see the rubber gasket fitted over the edge of the drum with the clip in place. Locate the screw in tensioner and undo it until it is possible to slip it forward and clear of the drum. You should now be able to simply pull the gasket away from the drum. Most machines rely on the door being closed to hold the gasket in place where it meets the chassis, it should just pull off if the door is open, but while you are lookiing inside, just check anyway. The assembly is simply a reverse of what is described above.

Stuff to consider: You may not be able to see the screw clip from the top, if so, tip the machine back and look from underneath. If you have to do this: Never tip the machine all the way onto its back, you may cause a water leak inside the machine. ALWAYS tip BACKWARDS, so the control panel for the machine is pointing up to avoid water getting to the control panel. I would recommend putting a chair behind the machine as you tip it, so the top back of the machine comes to rest on the seat and the machine is at about 45 degrees. this will give you access to underneath without a leak and make is a lot easier to tip it back on to its feet again afterwards.

There is a small panel at the bottom rear of washer that can be removed.
Remove this, and you will be able to see if the belt is on or not.

If it has come off, then to refit it, or fit a new one on, do the following.
Remove the top cover by undoing 2 screws located behind 2 plastic covers st the top front sides of washer.
They are torx screws, but you can usually get them undone with a small screwdriver.
Lift the top up at the front, and smartly push the top back,
towards the rear, remove the top.

Tilt the washer forward towards you, this will give you more room to work in.
Fit the belt round the motor pulley first, then pull it up towards the drum pulley, and reaching down from the top slowly feed the belt round the pulley, turning it as you do so, it is difficult, but this is
the best way to do it.
Don't get your fingers trapped.
There is no adjustment req'd, as it is a self tesioning belt.
Plz rate my solution.
Thanks.

Remove lid UN PLUG MACHINE FROM WALL SOCKET Undo motor bollts so it can be moved towards drum, GET OLD BELT AND LOWER IN YOUR HAND TOWARDS DRUM THEM MOVE BACKWARDS TILL CLEAR OF DRUM PULLEY ,get new belt and lower so it goes over rear of drum pulley (big wheel)make sure nothing is in drum,put one bolt of motor in loosely and roll belt over motor pulley wheel slowly forcing towards you if working from front a bit until ribs on belt are in grooves on both pulley wheels,Tighten up all motor bolts job done test it

It is possible, but it involves a strip down, which I would not recommend,
the only other way you might retrieve a foriegn object is by removing one of the drum lifters inside the drum.
Grasp one of the lifters and pull it firmly towards you, this should then lift out ,and you can feel around to see if you can locate anyhing.
to replace lifter, insert it into the slots, and push it firmly towards the rear, you should feel it click into place.
Plz rate my solution.
Thanks.

It sounds as though the main drum bearings are failing, if you spin the drum by hand and it feels rough or sounds niosy, then it is definately the main bearings. there should be little or no noise when you spin the drum by hand.. Re the door lock,I do not think the two problems are related, could be a faulty door lock that is taking too long to release.

If the m/c is under 5 years old, then you should be able to get it put right under Hotpoint 5 year guarantee

You pay for labour, all parts are free, and in your case the cost of parts, would in excess of £100.00
So it would be worth a phone call to Hotpoint to confirm if you are covered.
Plz rate my solution,
Thanks.

The drum comes out through the front on this one.Take off kick plate and remove screws holding front panel to frame. Take out soap drawer & remove screws behind it. Take off band holding door seal & peel seal back.Remove 2 screws holding door lock &push lock through. Pull control panel forward at left side &slide to right to remove being carefull with board & wiring.Remove screws holding top end of front then lift slightly &remove front.Remove back panel &take wiring off heating element & pump. Disconnect the pump hose at the drum end, disconnect the hose from the soap dispenser, note that wiring is fastened to the drum at several points and will need to be disconnected. Remove panel from behind control board then carefully move everything away from the front of the machine, the drum can now be lifted clear.

Forgot to mention unplugging motor but common sense will prevail.

If you need any further assistance please post back

Good luck & thanks for using Fixya

sounds like maybe a blocked pump.Probably got a coin or sock or some lint in the pump.Has your machine got a filter ? What happens when you position the program switch on a spin section and turn it on ? does it pump out the water ?

Hi.

Have you managed to sort out your problem?

If not let me know, and I will tell you how to proceed.

Cheers.

Remove top cover, tilt m/c towards you, this gives you more space to work in, and slip belt over motor pulley first, then gradually ease belt over drum pulley turning the drum with the belt,until it is on.
Keep your fingers from getting trapped as the belt is very tight

Hi.

The main drum bearigs have failed, you have to disconnect everything you can to enable you have to
remove the whole drum and container through the top of the m/c.
It is quite an involved repair, and could prove to be expensive. more so if the drum shaft is worn.
Good luck.
if you need any further info, let me know

Check you drain hose for obstruction.

check your brushes in the motor if they start to fail then it would act like this failing that then it will probably be the programer.

Have you checked the Water Valve Filters? Remove the hoses from the back of the machine and look into the back of the Valves. You will see the mesh filters in there. Remove them with a pair of pliers and clean them before replacing them.

Also behind the removed filter on the HOT Valve you will see a black rubber grommet. With a pair of Long Nose Pliers, Remove this and the plastic seating base behind it. This is a Restrictor Valve which reduces the flow of water into the machine as required when you use a combination boiler or you are cold mains filling only. This should be removed in Low Pressure Situations.

the brushes have probably gone sometimes it will work sometimes it wont when it does it will make a burring sound from the motor as it is trying to make a contact try shaking it while in spin it may start up then stop then you will know.

Remove Two pin socket carefully with pliers. Refit of new one is reverse of remove.