Washer won't drain

[Drowned Rat]

Hi guys. I have an older Kenmore washing machine and it just stopped draining. It agitates and then you hear the click like you always do before it start draining, but it won't drain. You can move the selector back to agitate and that works, but it stalls at the drain cycle. It also won't spin. I thought maybe the lid micro switch wasn't getting depressed enough, so I tried pushing it with a pen, but still nothing. I know very little about these machines. Could the microswitch be bad? Drain clogged?, although I have no idea how that could happen. Something more serious? Thanks for your help guys. The laundry is piling up!

 

[Bondo]

Re: Washer won't drain

When My washer acted like that,..... It was the Drain Pump itself...........Kauput......<br /><br />New Drain Pump,+ All is Well.....

 

[Drowned Rat]

Re: Washer won't drain

Thanks Bondo. Would that keep it from spinning too? When I advance the selector knob to spin, it does nothing, but the tub is still full of water so it may be normal. Is there another switch or something that prevents the thing from spinning til the water level gets low enough? Thanks for your help.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Washer won't drain

I don't think it will attempt to spin with water in the drum. I would call a repairman and get an estimate, I have in the past and it is not too painful on the wallet.

 

[Paul Moir]

Re: Washer won't drain

If it's the belt drive one I'm with Bondo, most likely it's the pump itself if it's going click, brrrrr but not pumping any water. It's easy to swap out, just empty out all the water you can and flop the whole washer right on it's front. It's all far easier to get to that way. $50 Canadian for the pump from Sears last time I did one (years ago).<br />The spin solenoid won't get power unless the pressure switch reads empty.<br />Normally the lid microswitch does not affect the pump. Just the spin cycle.

 

[Drowned Rat]

Re: Washer won't drain

Thanks guys. It is a belt drive one and that all makes sense. I'll see if I can change the pump out or at least see if it's getting power and go from there. How come this stuff always happens on a weekend when I should be at the lake? Thanks for your help, I'll let you know what I find.

 

[Drowned Rat]

Re: Washer won't drain

Well, it turns out it was the lid switch. When I took the thing apart, the screw holes were broken, so the switch lever wasn't moving, the whole thing was. Replaced it and it works fine. $28 fix. Plus $60 for a new appliance dolly from the Home Depot! Every honey do job is a chance to buy a new tool.

 

[Kiwi Phil]

Re: Washer won't drain

Before you leave this thread, another reason why they won't drain out at times is the pump gets blocked at the inlet end. We have a coin that fits perfectly over the inlet and makes a pretty good seal with the weight of the water behind it in the pipe.<br />That is why the wife checks ALL pockets before loading the machine.<br />When I had to manually empty ours, because I have a lot of irrigation fittings, I make up an extension pipe to run out the door, then over a bucket, whip the inlet pipe off the machine and quickly jam it on the extension, and let gravity do the job.<br />Cheers<br />Phillip

 

[KRS]

Re: Washer won't drain

DR... Woo Hoo!<br /><br />Thanks for passing it along. When I read posts like this I tuck it away in my mind, and it hopefully helps another someday.<br /><br />It must feel good to have fixed it.

 

[Paul Moir]

Re: Washer won't drain

<br />Sorry for the bad information about the switch, mine is wired differently.

 

[rottenray6402]

Re: Washer won't drain

Kiwi Phil, your wife does the laundry? Does she have a single sister?

 

[Drowned Rat]

Re: Washer won't drain

Thanks for the help guys. Whenever something breaks like this, our first gut reaction is, Buy another one! And of course you have to get the latest and greatest so... $1000.00. It does feel good to fix it yourself and save the cash.