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The classic Sears Kenmore top loading
washer on the right, with matching Kenmore front loading dryer on left. The
dryer
has had its share of problems too, but that deserves its own web page. The
most common problem
with the washer is it fills and drains and sounds like its washing, but
the agitator does not agitate, and the tub does not spin. When you open the
washer at the end of the cycle, your clothes are soaking wet. The usual
cause is a broken direct drive motor coupling. |
Black rubber dust and broken pieces of
plastic under the machine are
sure signs that the motor coupling is the culprit. According to a Sears
technician, the motor coupling is designed to fail to protect the motor or
the transmission from catastrophic damage in the event that either one
fails. Instead, the inexpensive plastic coupling breaks, preventing more expensive damage to
your precious washing machine. |
WARNING: Electricity can
kill you! Before you do
anything else, unplug the machine! |
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Tools required to do this job
are a Phillips head screwdriver, flat blade screwdriver, and a 1/4" socket
wrench or nut driver. Santa brought
me this handy little Black and Decker tool set for
Christmas and it contains everything I need
to do this job, plus lots of other jobs around the house. It even has several obscure tools
such as Torx drivers that you never seem to have in your tool box when you
need one. Thanks Santa! |
As is so often the case, figuring out how
to take the appliance apart is half the battle.
There are two pieces of
plastic trim, one on each side of the control panel. With your fingers,
press down on the top of the trim to disengage the clip (don't use a tool or you may
break it).
If it doesn't disengage
easily, it may just be on tight. I'll repeat, you do not need a tool for
this. Try hooking your fingers behind the trim, and then lift up and
gently but firmly pull forward while pressing down with your thumb. It
is a snap fit and it will just pop off.
You don't need gloves to do
this, but I hate
skinning my knuckles, cutting my fingers, and getting grease all over my
hands, so I wear work gloves whenever I do stuff like this. Just a
suggestion.
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Removing the left side trim. |
Removing the right side trim.
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Tilt the trim back towards
you and lift it up. |
This exposes a Phillips head
screw (one on each side) which holds the control panel to the cabinet. |
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Both pieces of trim removed.
Put them someplace where you won't lose them, out of the way where you won't
step on them and break them.
Now it is time to remove the screws. You will need a
Phillips screwdriver * for this.
* 2011 update: A sharp eyed reader pointed out
that these screws are actually Pozidriv,
not Phillips. They look almost identical and I'm not going into the
differences here. Google if you're interested. If you have a Pozidriv, use
it. In a pinch you can use a Phillips if you're careful, and later do yourself a favor and get a Pozidriv for next time. |
Remove the left side screw. |
Remove the right side screw. |
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Put the screws with the trim somewhere you won't
lose them. Lift and tilt the control panel back. |
Careful. Don't let it just flop back. It
will feel very loose, but the control panel is hinged at the back and will
stand up on its own. |
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Here the control panel is tilted back.
The next step is to remove the cabinet, which is attached to the back panel
by two metal clips. Click the picture for a larger view highlighting the two
clips to be removed and the electrical connector to be disconnected.
Also highlighted is the sink full of wet clothes
waiting for the washer to be repaired. |
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This is how to remove the two brass
colored clips holding the cabinet to the back of the washer. Insert a flat
bladed screwdriver into the forward slot and push down while simultaneously
pushing the handle of the screwdriver towards the back of the washer.
Please excuse all the grunge on my washer. |
The clip will rotate forward and pop out.
Note how the rear of the clip inserts up into a tab on the back of the
machine. Click here to see this in more detail.
You will need to remember this later when reassembling the washer.
Completely remove the clips and put them where you put
the trim. |
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Disconnect the electrical connector. It
may need some gentle persuasion with a screwdriver.
Click here to see. |
At this point the cabinet is complexly
disconnected from the rest of the washer and ready to be removed. |
Tilt the sheet metal cabinet forward to
disengage little metal tabs that hold it in place on the bottom frame of
the washer. Don't worry about these now - I'll show this in detail later
when we reassemble the washer. |
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Slide the cabinet forward a couple
inches. Now it can be lifted up and moved out of the way. It is not heavy
but it is a little clumsy. You can certainly move it by yourself but its
nice to have a helper for this part. |
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If the problem is the lid switch, it is
mounted inside the cabinet towards the right rear and is held on by two
screws. You need to remove the cabinet to access it. If the switch is bad,
replace it, and then reassemble the machine. Skip all the following motor
coupling instructions and see below for some tips on replacing the cabinet. |
Don't assume the lid
switch itself is the problem. First make sure that the plastic pin on the
lid that engages the lid switch is not broken. A good way to break this
pin is to slam the lid. |
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The cabinet has been removed, exposing
the tub, and below the tub, the pump. The pump is the white thing with the
hoses attached to it. The motor is behind the pump. |
Here I have all my tools lined up along
with my new motor coupling. The green thing is a foam rubber pad for
kneeling on - another suggestion - it is much easier on the knees than a
cold, hard tile floor. If you click this picture
you will see two red arrows pointing to the tabs on the washer base that fit
into slots on the cabinet. More about this later. |
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Detach the pump from the motor. The pump
is held to the motor by two metal thumb clips. |
Remove the clips. You can use your
fingers, but I think its easier to just pop them off with a screwdriver. |
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Pull the pump away from the
motor. You do not have to remove the hoses. Put the clips someplace safe
where you won't lose them (like maybe with the trim?). |
Disconnect the electrical connections to the
motor. In addition to the large one shown here, there are a couple of
smaller ones behind it. Don't worry about mixing them up. They are all
different sizes and only fit one way. |
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Now you will need your nut driver or 1/4" socket wrench.
There are two hex head screws securing metal mounting clamps. These clamps
are what actually hold the motor on. Here I am removing the lower screw.
Tip: Put a scrap of 2x4 or a couple of hockey
pucks under the motor to help support it. |
Removing the upper screw. Actually I don't think it matters
which one you remove first.
Be careful after the screws are removed because as soon as you
release the mounting clamps the motor will drop. It is quite heavy, so
support the motor underneath so it doesn't fall on
the floor. I don't know if that would break it, but I don't want to find
out. |
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Here the motor has been
removed and now we can see the broken motor coupling.
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This is the part you need.
The part number is 285753. It is available from a variety of sources, so it
is not necessary to buy it from Sears. Shop around to get the best price,
which is usually well under $10 including shipping. I order
two of these at a time so that I always have one on hand. You never know when the
part will fail, but it will never be at a good time.
Unfortunately, if you are reading this now you probably
already have a broken motor coupling, a sink full of wet laundry, and your
family anxiously asking you when the washer will be fixed. You need this part ASAP,
and you don't have the luxury of shopping around for it. Just get one locally if
you can, or buy online with overnight delivery if you must, but do yourself
a favor and buy two of them so that you will have a spare for the next time this
happens (or God forbid in case you break the part while installing it). |
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The new part consists of two hard plastic
gears, one of which goes on the motor shaft and the other on the
transmission, with a thick black rubber washer between them. This is an
older picture. The newer parts have a metal sleeve inside the plastic pieces
that mount on the motor and transmission shafts. I'm not sure how that will
help since usually it is the prongs that break off. |
Here is a picture of the old and new
motor couplings. Can you tell which is which? Hint: The teeth have been
broken off of the old part. You can clearly see how
the rubber has been stretched and distended. |
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Here is the motor removed from the washer. I have already
mounted the new motor coupling. Note that two sides of the motor shaft are
flat and two sides of the motor coupler are flat. You want to line them up
and then
very gently tap half of the motor coupler on with a block of wood,
an inverted screwdriver, or a socket wrench extension. Tap, not hammer! When
installed properly, the end of the motor shaft is
flush with the inside face of the motor coupling. Click the picture for a
larger view to see what I mean. Also note that there are four metal pins
on the face of the motor, and on each of these pins there should be a rubber
vibration damper that looks like a small doughnut. When you remove the
motor, sometimes these vibration dampers are stuck into the plate
on the front of the transmission, and sometimes they fall off onto the floor. In
this picture, only the two pins on the right have the vibration dampers
mounted, and the pins on the left are bare. |
Here I am mounting the other half of the motor coupling onto
the transmission shaft. Note the red arrow pointing to a rubber vibration
damper. The fourth one had fallen off and rolled under the machine. Luckily
I found it, and stuck it on the motor when I remounted it. Just make sure
that when you remount the motor, you have all four vibration dampers where
they belong. I find it easier to put them on the motor when remounting it,
but this is personal preference.
Sometimes it can be difficult to get the plastic motor
coupling onto either the motor or transmission shaft. If it doesn't want to
go, there are a couple of tricks you can try. Soak the plastic parts in hot
water for a few minutes prior to mounting. If that doesn't help, try a drop
of silicone spray. Make sure the flat sides are lined up. Please don't break the new part, whatever you do! |
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The motor coupling mounted on the transmission shaft. Once
again note that the end of the transmission shaft is flush with the face of
the motor coupling. This is important.
Mounting the motor is a little tricky because you have to
get the holes in the black rubber isolator piece to line up with the pins in
the motor coupling. You are in an awkward position, guiding the heavy motor
in, trying to not let the vibration dampers fall off. I find it easier to
put the rubber isolator on the transmission rather than the motor, because
then you can see the holes as you guide the motor in.
Again, it may help to support the motor with some scraps
of wood or something similar so that you're not holding all its weight with
your hand.
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Here I am about to fit the black rubber
isolator part of the coupling on to the transmission, and then remount the motor.
To make life easy for yourself, put one of the holes in the black rubber
isolator at the 12:00 (top) position, and rotate the shaft of the motor so
that one of the white plastic teeth is also at the 12:00 position.
You will know when the motor is in the correct position mostly by
feel. You can also see that the vibration dampers are snug between the motor
and the transmission plate.
It's not too terribly difficult but it may take a couple of
attempts. Be careful, take your time and don't force it. The last thing you want to do is
break your new part. Did I mention that I always order more than one of
these parts at a time? That's why.
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Once the motor is on, the rest is easy.
Follow my instructions in reverse.
Put the clamps on the motor and secure with the hex
screws.
Reattach the electrical connections to the motor.
Reattach the pump to the motor and secure with the
metal clips. |
Next come the final, slightly tricky
part: remounting the cabinet. Put the cabinet
back on taking care to slide the lip on the front of the cabinet under the
base, and then tilt the cabinet back into position while lining up the metal
tabs on the sides of the base of the washer with the slots on the cabinet.
Maybe a few more pictures will help. |
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This is a view from inside the cabinet of
the left front corner of the washer. You can see the pump at lower right.
What is important to note is the cabinet is tilted forward, and the lip on
the front of the cabinet is about to be slid under the front of the frame on
the base. Click the picture for more details. I have also highlighted the slot on
the cabinet where the tab on the base inserts into. |
Here is the same view but
now I have slid the
cabinet forward a couple of inches, and you can clearly see that the lip
of the cabinet front is under the base frame. The cabinet is still tilted slightly
forward. All that remains is to lower the cabinet onto the base and make
sure the
tab and slots are lined up. |
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Here you can see that the tab and slot are lined up.
Lower the cabinet and make sure the back of the cabinet and the rear panel
are flush. Reattach the brass colored clips that
secure the cabinet to the back panel. You don't need the screwdriver for
this. Just press them in with the heel of your hand.
Gently lower the control panel and reattach the two
screws. Finally, snap on the two pieces of
plastic trim. Congratulations! You're
done! You've just repaired your washer and saved yourself a bunch of
money.
Isn't that a nice feeling?
Be sure to read my tips for best washer performance. |
You are back in business and ready to wash!
TIP: The primary causes of premature motor coupling
failure are overuse of the heavy duty cycle and overstuffing the machine.
Fill your machine only to the top of the agitator
blades and DO NOT pack your clothes down! Your clothes won't get clean, and
you risk breaking the motor coupling. If you have too many clothes for
one load, do a second load.
Heavy duty cycle is really hard on your clothes and
also puts unnecessary stress on the machine. Use it only when necessary, not
all the time.
Follow these simple rules and your motor coupling
will last for years!
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