Out with the Neptune, In with the Miele?

[sudsmaster]

Or so I thought.

I was doing a load of perm press in the Neptune 7500 this evening. Everything seemed normal until I noticed a funny scrunching noise at the start of every other tumble.

Then I noticed a trickle of water on the floor on the front left of the washer. More water to the left of the dryer (floor must not be real level). Got out the mini shop vac, sucked up the water, and then thought. Hmmm. Maybe I can finally justify pulling the Neptune pair apart and putting one of the 220 volt Mieles in its place (probably 1918). As I pondered this, I shut off the water taps and notice water dripping from the cold water handle. These are kind of odd taps in that they are built into the wall, with the spigots hanging inside the wall space about 2 feet below the handles. A sort of odd arrangement.

I put the Neptune into service mode and stopped the cycle (it was in the middle of the wash portion). Set it to drain, which it did ok without any significant splashing outside the washer. Set it to spin and it did that without complaint.

About five years ago I had to service the hot water tap - same problem, water dripping out of the handle. Now the cold had finally failed.

Drat, probably not the Neptune after all.

Pulled the washer out of the closet, and saw that water had dripped from the faucet handle onto the plastic surround on the rear access panel. It cants outward on the top to accomodate the tilt of the drum/big pulley.

Opened up the panel and saw that a fair amount of tap water had trickled into the washer and was pooling in the depressions formed in the sheet metal. Water didn't feel slippery so I knew it wasn't the latest wash water. The faucet must have been dripping for hours (I did the first wash of the day around noon) before I noticed it.

I'm guessing some of the dripping water was splashing onto the pulley/belt and causeing that funny scrunching sound. I'll know more once I fix the faucet and put the washer through its paces again.

Have to put off fixing the tap until tomorrow when the hardware stores are open just in case I don't have the right gaskets/o-rings in stock here. Don't want to shut off the house water cause the dishwasher is going, and don't want to wind up with a leaky faucet that can't be reassembled (worst case) and not be able to do the usual morning ablutions. One wouldn't want that at all.

So.... doing the perm press load in the Miele in the shop. It's a bit of a full load but the Miele seems to be handling it ok.

And so it goes.

The Neptune that refuses to die!

 

[MrX]

I would suggest that you unplug your machine, remove the back panel and allow it to dry out. If the machine's in a warm area like a kitchen / laundry room put the heating on in the room if that's possible i.e. turn on a radiator / turn up a thermostat or, plug in a portable heater for a while.

Otherwise, dry it off with a warm (not hot) hairdryer.

Do not put a fan heater / other heat source near the washer as it can cause a build up of heat and do significant damage.

Once you're happy the machine's dried out, close it up and connect it up again.

I'd suggest running the machine on a very hot wash (i.e. boil wash) if possible as it will help to evaporate any water by heating up the inside of the cabinet.

Getting the inside of a washer significantly wet can lead to rust problems / electrical problems, so it's very advisable that the machine's well dried out. This will be more of an issue if the machine's in a cold area such as a basement or unheated laundry room.

Check that no water has worked its way into the motor via the belt. NB: it is absolutely vital that the washer is UNPLUGGED before attempting to go anywhere near the motor. You can get a deadly electric shock from the motor/capacitor or a serious injury (including loss of finger) if you have your finger in the wrong place when the belt moves.

Also, if you ever remove the belt and need to refit it you should wear heavy work gloves. It's very inadvisable to attempt this without protection as the pulley surfaces are often sharp and you can get quite a nasty finger injury very easily. FL machines' belts usually have very little slack and can be quite springy.

Call out a plumber and see if you can set the machine up in such a way that there's no longer any risk of a leak flowing into the washer. Ideally, move the taps !

If your machine is wrecked, the Miele will definitely be a very long lasting and durable replacement. In fact, Miele use the same enamel coating on the inside of the case that they use on the outside. As a result the machine is exceptionally resistant to rust or corrosion.

NB: I note that the new 'mega mieles' in the USA with the huge drums are using galvanised steel inside for some of the components that would be fully enameled in the 'traditional' models. So, I am not entirely convinced that they're quite as tough. But, they're still very good machines.

 

[sudsmaster]

AR Neptune Owner Alert

The shop vac got out 99% of the water inside the machine. The machine back panel was left off overnight and what the shop vac left evaporated by morning. I replaced a washer and two o-rings in the faucet and it no longer drips when open. Additionally, the machine is now running another wash cycle with no problems.

Thanks for your concern, though.

I agree about the build quality of the new 110 volt 4 cu ft Mieles. Good quality, but not as good as the older all-porcelain inside and out machines. It's too bad they could just build a larger version of the older machines, but it probably would have been cost-prohibitive, and the larger footprint would rule out much of the European market anyway.

 

[spankomatic]

My grandmother had a 1959 Maytag. She use to always turn the faucets on before she started the machine. Then turn the faucets back off when she was done with the laundry. My Mother never did this at our house so I asked her why? She said because the Maytag owners manuel said to. To prevent leaks or burst hoses when not at home. I think she was the only one that actually did this. She took very good care of her Maytag. She even use to keep a blanket over it so it would not get scratched.

Jim

 

[sudsmaster]

Yes, like your grandma I shut off the water at the faucet after each washday is over. So the o-rings get more of a workout than if I just left the faucets on all the time.

Luckily I discovered that standard o-rings from my Harbor Freight O-ring collection work just fine in these faucets. So no need to go running to the hardware store to match o-rings each time the faucets need servicing.

It's still a sort of major thing. Have to pull off one of the bifold doors and its lower bracket in order to pull the washer out of the laundry closet to get at the hoses etc. And then shimmy the Neptune out into the open. If it were just a faucet replacement I could have done it with the washer in place, but then I wouldn't have been able to hoover the dripped water out of the back of the machine.

I am considering just leaving the bifold doors off the closet. One drawback to that is that they help to dampen the sound of the washer/dryer when they are closed. But the left door opens up into a restricted path between the cooktop peninsula and the laundry closet. It's kind of a PITA.

If I were to redesign this house I'd put the washers into their own laundry room, or out on the enclosed patio. But admit that in the middle of winter it's nice to have them close by the living quarters.

 

[redcarpetdrew]

Scrunching noise...

Time for a belt. The old Dayco belts were problematic. The new belts (12001978) are Hutchinson's. Worst case, the plastic drive pully on the tumbler can make that noise, too but most likely it's just a belt. The MAH7500 is a fine washer. The on-board diagnostics make it my favorite. If I had to change out my MAH4000's, it'd be for a 7500 set.

RCD

 

[sudsmaster]

Must have been some water dripping on the upper (big) pulley that caused the scrunch sound. Since I vacuume out the water and fixed the faucet leak, no more scrunching.

I do have a couple of spare belts, however, just in case. They are very easy to replace. I got a lot of practice when the internal support spider cracked - thought it was a bad belt, so changed it out several times. Extended warranty fixed it for free - major job, too. No more belt problems since then.

I agree, the 7500 is a very good machine - once all the failures were fixed. I got an early model so that probably explains why so many things failed (motor, motor controller, support spider, main controller board). In this case I'm really glad I got the extended warranty. $120 for seven years - a good deal too. Maytag wants me to renew for something like $290 for three years, $90 for one year. No thanks!

 

[fltcoils]

harbor freight has the traditional nitril rubber orings, and the EPDM ones too. But on my last trip I saw they had the flourocarbon/viton orings. These certainly have longer life in aircraft than nitril. I'm thinking of trying them in the faucets at home.

I'm tired of the city chlorine eating away my nitril orings and causing them to take a set and fail.

 

[sudsmaster]

I haven't seen anything but the nitril o-rings at Harbor Freight, but then I haven't looked recently.

The more resistant grades are probably better for use with petroleum products as well.

 

[irishwashguy]

WOW!

I don't think that I have ever done the turning the hose thing ever in my life, altohgh, it sounds like a good idea. Do you have a shot of the iside of the machine?