Maytag A170 Skips Drain Cycle

[frank1492]

A107 More

Thanks to everyone who has tried to help me. Your great education has given me vast knowledge about my MT that will enable me to more easily diagnose problems in the future!
Special kudos to those who mentioned extension cords and faulty wall outlets and other possible supply issues. And special kudos to me *NOT* for being so stupid as to not check line voltage at the very beginning!
I used both a hair dryer and a utility heater to provide loads at every outlet in my house. I used a Kill-A-Watt to measure voltages with and without loads. In every case the no-load voltage was close to 115 v. With either load, the voltage dropped to 95-105.
Thankfully this suggested the problem
was not in any branch circuit. To double check I tested the voltages at the line in from the meter. Same exact readings. I suspect a bad neutral outside, as this has happened before.
So I deserve at least 50 lashes with an extension cord. I'm truly sorry for all the time and effort you guys put in when I should have known better, but I really do appreciate it!
To make up, I will soon post info on my custom designed GE Sink with its cabinetry and stainless steel surfaces. I believe my grandfather bought it c. 1937 and it is still in use, but with a new disposal and washer motor assembly. I posted it here many years ago but can't find it so will post again.
If anyone thinks I have missed anything in my diagnosis, please inform.
Thanks again,
Frank

 

[arbilab]

Congrats Frank.  A lot of this diagnosis stuff is correlating what has gone before.  Bad neutral isn't the first suspect in most cases, unless it's happened to your house before.  Wonder is, your fridge will still start at 95V.

 

Last time, was it the utility?  Or the house wiring?  I know 'what' it is, but not why/how.

 

[tomturbomatic]

Don't apologize. We had fun weighing in. Hope you will be spinning soon.

 

[frank1492]

A107 Afterthoughts

Thanks again. National Grid came last evening. It *was* a bad neutral. He got 95 v at the meter. Yes, don't know why the fridge started. I have a copper line with an aluminum neutral, Not a good combo.
The earlier incident was on Cape Cod. An electric gate would run and then stop. It was very old but still with control electronics. I took those out and built an electro-mechanical unit. After all that, when it was still intermittent, I accidentally stumbled on the voltage drop
. Yup, bad neutral corroded at the pole. Salt air was supposed to have contibuted.
You would think I would have suspected the neutral sooner in the washer case, but it seemed like a "lightening can't strike twice" case. Will I have another bad neutral in my lifetime???
I actually have not tried the washer yet. I suppose there could be a second issue but I'm hopeful. Will try shortly. Yes, hopefully I'll be "spinning away."
BTW, the Cape house is for summers. The washer is at my winter house, far from salt air.

 

[DADoES]

 
Just to say ... recommend do not run the machine on an extension cord (except maybe a heavy-duty type).  I tried that a couple times with an older Maytag in my garage and the motor kept cutting on/off during spin with insufficient power.

 

[frank1492]

A107

I never would use an extension cord. But thanks for the tip!

 

[frank1492]

A107- Finally tried washer and have coupla questions

I'm sorry this is coming so late- have been tied up with other matters.
I finally tried a regular, large load with no clothes. I noted the following:
(1) The fill did not seem to stop in a timely manner so I advanced the dial manually to agitate and then to spin/drain. With the power supply fixed, I'm happy to report that lights remained fully bright with no motor overload or shutdown.
(2) Someone said the tub in spin/drain should be fully up to speed in 1 second. I doubted that at the time and it was nowhere close- many seconds (did not count exactly.)
What is it that shuts off the fill flow- time, volume or weight? Was it the absence of the clothes that caused the problem? And the time for the tub to reach full rotation on spin/drain. How many seconds or do I need a new belt.
Thank you so much once again for your help. I do want to follow the rules. Since this is an old thread and maybe forgotten, am I allowed to post a follow-up thread if I don't receive a reply here? Thank you.

 

[rp2813]

I have a later model with the larger tub so this may not be a true like-for-like comparison, but with a full load my machine doesn't quite reach top spin speed by the time the spray rinse begins.  After the spray rinse is over, it reaches full speed pretty quick.  I've heard from others that their experience is the same. 

 

With a standard tub however, and presuming there's no difference in timer increments between the two tub sizes, your machine may reach full speed before the spray rinse starts.

 

I can't imagine that any spin-drain machine made by any manufacturer could possibly reach full spin speed in one second flat.  Where did you get that information from?  The White House?

 

[DADoES]

 
Full spin RPM is surely not attained in 1 second, LOL ... not even on an empty basket.  Acceleration time when running a load of course varies per the volume of water to be drained, size of load and type of fabric, etc.

Fill level is controlled by a pressure switch that responds to the depth of water in the tub ... via an air tube that comes up the (out)side of the tub, attaching to the pressure switch in the console.

 

[frank1492]

Final Report on A107

Hello all,
I am finally happy to report that my A107 is spinning away perfectly. I have done a couple of loads and everything is flawless! Again thanks so much to all of you! I am so reluctant to replace this 80's machine as the new ones last so poorly with service calls every coupla years, and especially the more expensive ones. Also, like today's cars, I assume they are very hard for servicing by the homeowner.
The "one second" spin comment came from another contributor. Possibly I misunderstood something. And, no (LOL), it did not come from the White House!!
Ah, the spray rinse. I observed that today for the first time, didn't know it did that. I know it started considerably after the spin was up to full speed.

 

[combo52]

One Second Start

Someone might have meant that the motor should be at full speed in one second, the motor on a MT [ or about any washer for that matter ] should start instantly and stay at full speed as the water pumps out and the tub gains speed.

 

John L.