I bought a Filter Flo Set!!

[joeypete]

Crazy but true! I was browsing the appliance ads on CL and came across an ad for a matching set that had been up for about a month. I emailed the guy and they were still available and he even offered to deliver them for only an extra $25. I paid $200 for the set, delivered.

By the serial numbers the washer was manufactured in September of 1987 and the dryer in October of 1987. He said they were in his condo when he bought it. They were described as very clean and indeed they are. I only had to do minor clean up but otherwise they are near mint condition...if not mint.

The washer is the "large" capacity and does have the mini basket setting. However it did not come with the basket, just the lint filter pan. I'll have to look and see if I can find another mini basket...I'm so excited to try it!

The dryer looks to be near TOL from what I can tell...it has a lot of options on it. I love the speckled interiors on both.

I ran a couple of clean cycles and also washed some clothes and I was able to fit my thinner queen size comforter without any problem. I just hit the reset button to fill with more water and it was fine. The comforter I use most often is thicker but I bet I can get it to work. I did a rinse and spin on it first to wet it down and condense it before doing an actual wash cycle. That really helped.

It runs beautifully....however it does make a "clink clink clink" noise when agitating and during spin. It almost sounds like something is loose somewhere...it's a definite metalic clink sound though. Without that noise it would actually be fairly quiet...though a heck of lot louder than I'm used to with newer washers. I forgot how loud these older guys are!

Any idea what that noise could be? I am not familiar with these machines at all unfortunately. I did notice that it doesn't like switching between speeds very much while it's agitating. If you stop it first then change the speed it's fine...not sure if that's normal. When it stops spinning it also makes a pretty loud clunk clink noise...again I don't know if that's normal either.

Any info would be greatly appreciated!

I seriously love these. I can't believe I found such a nice pair.

I'm posting some pics too.

Joe

 

[appnut]

The clicking is the clutch.  DO NOT SWITCH SPEEDS WITHOUT STOPPING THE MACHINE FIRST.  Sounds like it's already had this done to it over the year and hence the "clicking".  They are both MOL in general but fairly high up for the standard capacity. 

 

[barcoboy]

Hey joeypete, congrats on your Filter Flo set!

The loud clunk sound at the end of the spin is definitely normal, as this is the brake engaging to stop the tub. If you let the machine fill with the lid open, after the fill has completed, push your finger down on the lid switch, and watch the tub for the first few seconds of agitation. It will move back and forth somewhat, and then you'll hear a similar clunk (not quite as loud), and the tub will be locked in place for the rest of agitation.

Definitely a good idea to raise the lid to stop the machine before changing speeds. When set on the slow speed, a clicking sound when the motor first starts in either agitation or spin is normal, but it should get faster and quieter, and then stop within a few seconds. The other normal sound that maybe you are hearing is the clutch... they have a tendency to chatter as they warm up, and can get quite loud as they wear.

The best way to know if your machine is acting normal or not is watch some videos of other Filter Flos on Youtube and see if they make the same sounds as yours does, and if you still aren't sure, post a video here and we'll have a listen.

 

[joeypete]

Gotcha!! Good to know. Is the noise something I should be concerned about? I don't know what it would entail to fix it honestly. I was going to open the back while it's running to see if maybe I could see something causing the noise.

 

[barcoboy]

None of the sounds that I described should be any cause for alarm, including the clutch chatter. I've had my Filter Flo since I bought my house 15+ years ago... the clutch chattered then, and it still chatters now. My younger brother had one that the chatter was louder than the motor itself, and it still ran fine until the pump dripped onto the motor and shorted it out.

I tried to find a video of one with a chattering clutch on Youtube, but all the videos I tried have nice and quiet clutches. Does anyone know of a Filter Flo video with clutch chatter?

 

[yogitunes]

the chattering noise during slow speeds is normal, its just that little foot tapping against the solenoid while the clutch is spinning......

these should be NO noise/chatter during normal speeds.......if there is, there is possibility something is loose inside the clutch, simple design, yet a little tricky at first to open one up....it could something as simple as that U-clamp inside that has come loose....

opening the back is not a bad idea, for one thing, look at the pump, there should be a small hole under the pump, just above the pulley, if the pump is clean, your good to go, if there is a black streak from this port, your pump will need replacing eventually....again, simple repair...

keep us posted.....

 

[joeypete]

Thank you so much for the help!!! Actually it makes less noise on Gentle, than on Normal. It seriously sounds like something is loose..just like a tambourine lol. It's really annoying...I think I'll have to figure it out. I live in a condo so hard to cover up the noise. My Kenmore was whisper quiet compared to the Filter Flo

 

[delaneymeegan]

Super find

The motor it's self is not two speed on a GE FF. In order to get a slower speed, a little (FRAGILE) leg is raised in the clutch area, that stops a part of the clutch from spinning at full speed. That little leg comes up as soon as the motor kicks in and before that other part can start spinning very fast. If you switch to slow speed when the motor is already up to speed, it's like a child running onto a freeway. The clutch is spinning really fast and all of a sudden..... it could damage either the clutch leg or the speed control leg. The later of which usually gets bent to the side.

One the flip side, if you are washing in the gentle speed and wanted to wash at normal speed, simply changing the switch would lower the leg and the clutch would spin at full speed without damaging the machine.

In other words: you can switch to normal speed when the machine is running, but you can't switch into delicate.

As for fixing the speed control: If that were all you were doing to the motor, it isn't the worst, but it isn't easy. It involves pulling the machine out, removing water connections, removing the back, tipping the machine, disconnecting the pump, unplugging the motor, unscrewing and dropping the motor out, then fixing the speed controller, then putting it all back together.

Best of luck with your new toy. GE FF washers are one of my favs.

 

[joeypete]

Thanks Delaney! I think to start I'll pull the back off to see if i can notice anything in particular where the noise is coming from. I can def hear it more towards the back of the machine, than the front. Everything works, it's just loud is all. I only do laundry 1 day a week so I guess I can deal with it if not lol

 

[joeypete]

Good Repair Site

I found a great online repair manual...I'm sure others have seen it but thought I'd share. It goes through detail about these and other older machines. Very helpful to understand how they work. I've worked on many older engines, in particular the Olds 307 V8...I can probably figure out a washing machine lol. I'm not so scared anymore

http://www.appliancerepair.net/washing-machine-repair-5.html

 

[gansky1]

Very nice set, congrats. GE was one of the few that made equally as good performing Extra-Large capacity washers as their standard or large capacity machines. I have both hooked up now and it's surprising the amount of clothes that smaller tub will hold.

I sounds like you have some investigation to do with the washer clicking sounds, I'm sure you'll find it as other have advised and the manual will be invaluable to you. They are easy enough machines to work on and you'll have little trouble finding most of the common parts if you need them.

 

[joeypete]

Thanks Gan! My biggest concern about the size was being able to wash my comforter. I think it will be a tight squeeze as it's a level 2 down alternative...and it a bit thicker than the one I washed last night. But that's the largest thing I wash (and usually it's only a few times a year) so I'm not too worried. It does hold quite a bit though and having the reset on the water level is nice so you can add more water if needed. I liked that feature on my Hydrowave too.

Now to find a replacement mini basket. They seem hard to find!

I cleaned out the dryer just now...it was surprisingly clean. I really don't think this set got much use. I'll move my "old" one out and then take a look at the washer. It sounds like something is loose so I'll watch as it agitates to see if I can tell where the noise is coming from...maybe it's part of the pulley system? Dunno.

 

[joeypete]

Noise

Well I pulled the back off and listened....I couldn't see anything that was loose so I turned the machine off (and unplugged it). While I was checking the pulleys the suspension moved and I heard that clinking noise! Sure enough, if I jiggled the assembly I can hear metal hitting something. I'm going to pop the top and see if i can see it. It sounds like it's coming from the front area kinda where the water fill is.

 

[joeypete]

I did it!!

I found where the noise was coming from. It was the front left lower clamp (I think where those rubber grommets go) It was clanking on the connector plate so I took some cardboard and wrapped it in rubber rug mat and wedged it in between. Had to test it because it had to be thick enough so it would come loose during wash/spin. The noise is gone. Now I can actually hear the sounds of the motor lol. While I was looking I popped the cover and cleaned underneath. Lots of hair and dirt. Grossssssss. Glad I did. That is my biggest beef with using an older washer...it needs to be clean.

 

[askolover]

I can still hear

Mother's and Grandmother's old FF washers in my mind.  That familiar rattle from the cinder block while it spins...sounds like a train...and then that loud bam as the brake engages to stop it.  Fun times!

 

[yogitunes]

Hooray!.....you got him fixed.....

yeah, those units can create quite a noise, had a few come through that were worn out, or even the rubber missing......but seems like you figured a way to rig another type of dampener in place to hold it steady.....

I used rubber coasters before, I think it was one layer on the bottom and two on the top, cut to fit, and that clamp fit tight over top.....

way to go!.....

now.....put a cable tie over the lid switch.....

 

[yogitunes]

Fill Flume....

either flip it over on itself, or circumcise him, to allow water to spray over the clothes....I usually just trim a bit off to re-direct the water...

 

[yogitunes]

and if you feel ambitious, remove the restrictor from the water valve

 

[joeypete]

haha, yes he is much less noisy now! ;-) I was wondering about the fill tube. You can even see any water go into the tub...it all goes into the outer tub. Is that the way it was designed? It mentions a spray rinse but I can imagine much water gets sprayed with it that way.

Now I'm tackling the dryer. I had to adjust the back legs to have it tilt forward because it was making an awful racket. If I tilted it a bit forward it stopped. My laundry closet is a pain to put in the dryer vent. I might just get one of those bucket things to have it vent in there. Or the flexible tubing. Mine is the semi rigid which was a dumb choice for close quarters! It's too tight and the metal tubing keeps popping off. I had to use an extra long piece for my last dryer and I didn't like that