1974 Lady Kenmore Outer Tub Repair HELP!

Automatic Washer - The world's coolest Washing Machines, Dryers and Dishwashers

Help Support :

Since I’ve deal with rust one mine, going to have to remove the outer tub and hold it up towards the sunlight to see if there’s any pinholes. Usually, any pinholes will be clogged with debris, as soon as it’s cleaned and the tub is installed, it’ll leak. If there’s any pinholes, beat to have them welded. Tried using the JB Weld Steel-Stik which worked for awhile, but the leak ended popping up again.

I’d use a wire brush to remove as much of the rust and scale, clean it several times with Dawn dish soap, clean it with CLR, clean it up with acetone, then I’d apply the POR15 and let it cure for awhile.
 
It might be possible to apply sealant/treatment with the tub in the machine but since I’ve dealt with rust on my Whirlpool, better to disassemble and remove the outer tub just to be sure. Much wiser to go through everything while it’s out of service than to have to be constantly working on it.

Currently in the process of cleaning the outer tub on my Whirlpool while it’s out, then coating it with Flex Seal which is a rubberized coating, practically undercoating in a can. I literally had to spend a hour scraping that stuff off since I accidentally sprayed in the area I wanted to have welded, stops leaks but impossible to remove. Even going to cost the center post area in the inner tube with Flex Seal in white for more insurance purposes.
 
However, there is a leak that only happens during drain.  It appears to be coming from the pump.  It is not coming from the new self-cleaning lint filter, which I've just installed.

 

I wanted to buy this 4-port pump to replace my 4-port pump, but the box of this pump mentions manual-clean filters, but my machine has the self-cleaning lint filter.  So I don't know if this pump would work.  Could anyone confirm this please?  It would be great if anyone could point me in the right direction with a part number etc.  

 

Here are some photos of my current pump and also the one listed for sale:

marky_mark-2024092319251006329_1.jpg

marky_mark-2024092319251006329_2.jpg

marky_mark-2024092319251006329_3.jpg

marky_mark-2024092319251006329_4.jpg

marky_mark-2024092319251006329_5.jpg

marky_mark-2024092319251006329_6.jpg
 
Mark, can you tell specifically where the leak is coming from in the pump area? Maybe watch it draining while the back is off to see if you can spot the leak. It could be one of the hose connections and if so, one of them may need some slight tightening or repositioning. There also could be a small crack in one of the hoses themselves so take a look for that as well. If its coming from the seal between the two halves of the pump then yes, the gasket that seals them together may be worn out and a new pump would do the trick.

It looks like you have a worm clamp on one of the drain ports. I've found that while these are a good replacement for the corbin clamps, you have to also be careful not to overtighten as this can crack the port and cause leaks as well. There is a bit of a fine line between tight enough and too tight so be careful if you end up installing the new pump.

Good luck and let us know how it goes
 
Hi James.  With the rear access panel removed, I've watched it start dripping during draining and then I've unplugged it and put my hand in there to feel around the pump area (and other areas).  I'm not certain but it seems like it's the pump itself, it could be coming from the seal between the two halves of the pump or possibly from the top of the pump.  I removed a couple of the original hose clamps and replaced them with worm clamps a couple of days ago based on something I read on AW suggesting worm clamps might be better.  Thanks for the advice about not over tightening them -- I definitely want to avoid cracking the new pump when it arrives!

 

John, thanks very much for your help and advice.  I'm pleased I used the method you recommended rather than attempting to remove the tub.

 

Todd, I will update the post with the outcome!

 
 
I replaced the hose clamps on my Whirlpool with worm clamps back in 2021, haven’t had an issue. Recently went to Home Depot to get some more hose clamps since I haven’t got a chance to replace the hose clamps that go from the pump trap to the pump, along with the hose clamps to the hose that goes from the pump to the drain hose.

Ended up having to replace the hose from the pump trap to the pump since it ended up splitting on me when I was dismantling the machine for a cleaning and painting that I wasn’t anew to get to 3 years ago back in 2021. Crazy as this sounds, can fabricate new hoses out of plumbing parts, even made a new piece for the pressure switch and recirculating lint filter/automatic dispensers. Definitely more beefed up than the originals.
 
Water pumps on Belt Drive whirlpool machines

There’s nothing wrong with the screw type hose clamps, but they do not clamp as evenly and you don’t want to overtighten them, the spring type clamps actually work better but it’s not unusual for them to just rust a little bit and simply break after 50 years or more, so it’s not a bad idea to replace them.

The four port water pump that whirlpool used was a complex pump while they mostly worked well it was not the most durable thing they had seal and bearing problems. They had an extra diverter seal so it’s not unheard of for one of them to leak we used to buy them by the case full. Luckily, there’s still so many good new ones out there that I don’t think we’re going to run out of water pumps for belt drive machines anytime soon.

Water pumps were One of the things that Maytag did beautifully nobody had a better water pump ever than Maytag, I always carried one in my truck, but it was not unusual for me to not need one for years at a time.

The next best water pump where the GE filter flow water pumps once they changed to plastic Bodies, they often outlasted the machine. It did seem later on when the phosphates were taken out of detergent that you started seeing more seal failures, however.

Norge had a very good water pump when they went to the super capacity machine, at first they had a pot metal pump that rotted out, but once they went to black bake a light that was one of the most indestructible pumps as well. Had a nice ball bearing on the belt side

Later on Norge cheapened that water pump and it really just had a single bearing they were never any good.
 
Update:

Thanks for the advice on fixing up this washer.  I'm pleased to say it's working great with no leaks!  I removed the pump and it showed no signs of ever having leaked, so I think the dripping during draining might have been due to a loose hose.  Nevertheless I installed the new pump but I wasn't happy with how it was working, so I reinstalled the original pump and once again it was back to working great and still without leaking a single drop.

 

I've also just finished converting the dryer from electric to gas.  I salvaged the rear bulkhead and drum from another vintage LK dryer to use in this machine, as they were in better condition.  

 

This set did a great job of washing and drying 6 loads a few days ago.  Not bad considering this set is 50 years old!

 

Mark

marky_mark-2024100819313901550_1.jpg

marky_mark-2024100819313901550_2.jpg

marky_mark-2024100819313901550_3.jpg

marky_mark-2024100819313901550_4.jpg
 
Back
Top