Hi,

I have a Bosch Aqua-Star W1000 washing machine, and the water stop by the inlet tap has developed a very loud (and annoying) whine. I have uploaded a video of it to Youtube (SDC11523 - YouTube) - does anyone know how to fix it?

Any help would be much appreciated.

Sorry if this is poorly phrased - first post on this forum...

Kind regards,

Jim

On Sep 6, 3:03*pm, jimster wrote:
Hi,

I have a Bosch Aqua-Star W1000 washing machine, and the water stop by
the inlet tap has developed a very loud (and annoying) whine. I have
uploaded a video of it to Youtube ('SDC11523 - YouTube'
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRIuIADo0Gc)) - does anyone know how to
fix it?

Any help would be much appreciated.

Sorry if this is poorly phrased - first post on this forum...

Kind regards,

Jim

--
jimster

Don't worry about your phrasing.

Hang out in a.h.r long enough and it will get worser and worser.

Jim:

I can't watch your video because I'm on dial-up and it takes forever for me to download videos.

But, it sounds to me like either the rubber washer (if there is one) in the water shut off valve to the machine is loose and vibrating, or one of the rubber diaphragms in the water mixing valve is vibrating. I'm thinking that if the noise made by the water mixing valve inside the washer is bouncing off the wall behind the washer, it could sound like it's coming from the water shut-off valves.

Two things to note:

1. A real good way to pinpoint the source of noises in machinery (like a washing machine, clothes dryer or car engine) is with an inexpensive tool called a "mechanic's stethoscope", which will cost between $10 and $15 at any place that sells tools:



You just wear them on your head, and the noise you hear through the "headphones" will grow louder and louder as you touch the probe closer and closer to the part that's actually making the noise. You can get electronic version of this tool that have a LED display that indicates the sound pressure level as you point the tool in different directions, but I don't know what they cost. I just have a cheapie that cost me about $12, and it works very well.

2. Washing machines use something called a "mixing valve" to allow hot water, cold water, or both to flow into the machine during the wash and rinse cycles. The way these mixing valves work is that they actually use the water pressure itself to stop the flow into the washing machine. It's a very reliable system, but it can be screwed up by dirt in the water, like rust and sand.

What I would do is: (after checking that both shut off valves are wide open...)

a. While the machine is filling on a WARM WASH setting, change your temperature setting on the console of the machine between a hot wash and a cold wash to see if the noise changes or disappears altogether. If your washer doesn't allow you to do that, then close the hot and cold water supply valves to the washer individually to see whether the hot or cold side is making the noise. If the noise changes or stops when you change the setting to hot or close the cold water supply valve, then it's the cold water side that's making the noise. If the noise stops when you set the washer to a cold wash, or close the hot water supply valve, then it's the hot side that's making the noise.

b. Shut the water off to your house or laundry room, and take the cartridge out of the water shut off valve on the side that's making the noise (if it has a cartride). Confirm that the screw that holds the rubber washer is in tight.
(see Note below)

c. Take the hose to the washing machine off on the side that's making noise and check the screen washer in the end of the hose to ensure it's not clogged up with crap. The screens will either be brass or stainless steel and you can buy replacement screened hose washers at any hardware store or appliance parts store. Normally the screen is installed at the end of the supply hose that connects to the water shut off valves, but they could be at either end of the washer's supply hoses.

d. If you still come up empty, then I would buy a mechanic's stethoscope and check the mixing valve in the washer to see if the whine is coming from there. Both of the hoses that go to your washer will screw directly on to the washer's water mixing valve, so you can locate it by following the hoses. If the mixing valve is making the noise, the fix is to replace the mixing valve. (Some appliance manufacturers used to sell overhaul kits for their washer mixing valves, but I don't think they're available anymore.) Expect to pay between $20 and $30 for a new water mixing valve for your washer.

Note:
If your washer supply valves have brass screws in them holding the rubber washers in, and you notice that the screw is an odd colour, it will probably crumble under the force of the screw driver when you try to tighten it or loosen it. That kind of corrosion in brass is called "dezincification".

If the screw head crumbles, then your best bet is to cut out the rubber washer using a hooked blade, like this:



in a utility knife, like this:



Once you have all the rubber out of the way, grip what's left of the brass screw with a pair of locking pliers and twist it out of the spindle. I find that usually works.

It's actually best to replace the brass "bibb" screws in valves with stainless steel screws, but most often stainless steel screws aren't sold at hardware stores or home centers. You typically have to go to places that sell fasteners, and they're typically closed after 5:00 PM and on weekends.

On Sep 6, 3:03*pm, jimster wrote:
Hi,

I have a Bosch Aqua-Star W1000 washing machine, and the water stop by
the inlet tap has developed a very loud (and annoying) whine. I have
uploaded a video of it to Youtube ('SDC11523 - YouTube'
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRIuIADo0Gc)) - does anyone know how to
fix it?

Any help would be much appreciated.

Sorry if this is poorly phrased - first post on this forum...

Kind regards,

Jim

--
jimster

Your water stop sounds like it is failing, that "whine"
is the valve within it or the gasket on that valve modulating
in the water flow...

Replace it with a new one as it is not likely to do what
it is intended to do and stop the water from flowing if
your hose bursts...

On Sep 6, 5:26*pm, nestork wrote:
Jim:

I can't watch your video because I'm on dial-up and it takes forever to
download videos for me.

But, it sounds to me like either the rubber washer (if there is one) in
the water shut off valve to the machine is loose and vibrating, or one
of the rubber diaphragms in the water mixing valve is vibrating. *I'm
thinking that if the noise made by the water mixing valve inside the
washer is bouncing off the wall behind the washer, it could sound like
it's coming from the water shut-off valves.

Two things to note:

1. The way to pinpoint the source of noises in machinery (like a washing
machine) is with an inexpensive tool called a "mechanic's stethoscope",
which will cost between $10 and $15 at any place that sells tools:

[image:http://forums.tweaktown.com/attachme...4281d13284...]

You just wear them on your head, and the noise you hear through the
"headphones" will be loudest when you're touching the metal probe to the
part that's actually making the noise.

2. *Washing machines use something called a "mixing valve" to allow hot
water, cold water, or both to flow into the machine during the wash and
rinse cycles. *The way these mixing valves work is that they actually
use the water pressure itself to stop the flow into the washing machine.
It's a very reliable system, but it can be screwed up by dirt in the
water, like rust and sand.

What I would do is:

a. While the machine is filling on a WARM WASH setting, close the hot
and cold water supply valves to the washer individually to see whether
the hot or cold side is making the noise. *If the noise changes or stops
when you close the cold water supply valve, then it's the cold water
side that's making the noise. *Ditto for the hot side.

b. *Shut the water off to your house or laundry room, and take the
cartridge out of the water shut off valve on the side that's making the
noise (if it has a cartride). *Confirm that the screw that holds the
rubber washer is in tight.

c. *Take the hose to the washing machine off on the side that's making
noise and check the screen washer in the end of the hose to ensure it's
not clogged up with crap. *The screens will either be brass or stainless
steel and you can buy replacement screened hose washers at any hardware
store or appliance parts store.

d. *If you still come up empty, then I would buy a mechanic's
stethoscope and check the mixing valve in the washer to see if the whine
is coming from there. *If so, replace the mixing valve. *(Some appliance
companies used to sell overhaul kits for their washer mixing valves, but
I don't think they're available anymore.) *Expect to pay between $20 and
$30 for a new water mixing valve for your washer.

--
nestork

A wooden or metal stick works just about as well as an actual
stethescope and is a LOT cheaper.

In article
,
DerbyDad03 wrote:

On Sep 6, 3:03*pm, jimster wrote:
Hi,

I have a Bosch Aqua-Star W1000 washing machine, and the water stop by
the inlet tap has developed a very loud (and annoying) whine. I have
uploaded a video of it to Youtube ('SDC11523 - YouTube'
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRIuIADo0Gc)) - does anyone know how to
fix it?

Any help would be much appreciated.

Sorry if this is poorly phrased - first post on this forum...

Kind regards,

Jim

--
jimster

Don't worry about your phrasing.

Hang out in a.h.r long enough and it will get worser and worser.

He ain't on a.h.r., he's on one of those ****ed up websites that
plagiarizes us.