Scratches on rear of LG washing machine drum

[aeg03]

Hi All,

I have noticed that at the rear of my wonderful LG front loading washing macine that there are scratch marks. I'm a little OCD about it, especially as my machine is only 3 months old.

I had left a cutlery fork in my pocket recently, but as far as I'm aware, the fork did not escape the pocket. The marks on the drum may well be something has like a zip for example that has rubbed on it during the wash cycle, but I'm not sure. I keep thinking its the fork. Only the back section has these marks, no other part of the drum as making on them.

To any other individual, this is not a problem and they probably wouldn't notice, but I have and its just sparked some questions.

Are LG drums susceptible to scratching more than others at the back? Has anyone else experienced scratch marks on their machine? Particularly the back section of the drum?

I may have recalled seeing this on some other machines that have been in use for a few years and then some machines have no marks at all.

I appreciate the feedback. By the way, is there anything I can get to remove the light scratches on the rear of my LG drum?

I know it sounds stupid really lol.

 

[brucelucenta]

Had mine for 4 years and no scratches.

 

[rolls_rapide]

Scratches

Don't panic, I've got them too on the back wall of the drum of my new Panasonic (5 months old).

The scratches are vaguely circular or arcs of a circle. I think it has been studs on jeans and metal zips on casual jackets - although I do turn garments inside out, there's always the odd "clank" as metal makes contact with metal.

I would advise NOT interfering with the scratches - you might make it worse. Just let the machine operate normally. The friction from laundry and detergent will probably eventually polish them out to a certain degree.

As far as stainless steel goes, there seems to be different types. I remember once I descaled my mums old Candy-fied Hoover Performa 1100. I think I used Oust liquid in the sachet (perhaps lactic acid?). The drum lost its shine and became quite tarnished.

 

[aeg03]

Hello Rolls_Rapide

Thank you for your detailed reply.

You have put my mind at rest You are right, I had a look at one of my jackets and it has a rather big zipper on it and I think that this has been clanking and rubbing against the drum. There are odd straight lines also, but again, the drum actions can make these objects rub in various motions etc. I admit, I do not turn my clothes inside out, maybe its something I should start doing.

I don't understand why I am so particular about it as I have never been like it with any other machine before. I have checked out drums from various manyfacurers and some have different types of backs to their drums, some smooth, some 'frosted'. My parents are getting a new Bosch Serie 4 WAN280806B today and I will be installing it, so I will see what that looks like.

I love the machine and the technology inside it and it washes superbly and the various wash actions utilised by the 6 Motions is certainly fun to watch.

I shall leave the drum alone and will probably after a while not notice this.

Many thanks again for getting back to me

 

[mrboilwash]

12 years ago when my Miele was brand new I`ve had one of those Alpha flight jackets, they were still in fashion back then. I must have underestimated how sharp edged and heavy the zip fastener was and haven`t closed it before washing or maybe it just went open during the wash I don`t remember anymore, but the result were deep ugly scratch marks in a brand new door glass. So I can feel your pain, but some wear and tear is also an inevitable fact that comes with normal use. It`s annoying but I wouldn`t worry too much.

 

[rolls_rapide]

I think also, that the quality of stainless steel is bloody awful these days.

I remember my mum's and gran's stainless steel sinks and draining boards absolutely shining. I also remember the wash tubs of their Hoover twintubs and the drums of their 1980's Hoover automatics shining brilliantly.

My previous Panasonic (Chinese) had a similarly very shiny drum.

My current Panasonic (Slovenian), and my kitchen sink for that matter, are more of a 'grey' colour. They've just not got that quality brilliance.

Looking at the drum of this current machine, there even seems to be a texture to the smooth flat sections of the metal, as if it has been sprayed on, like a coat of paint. Highly polished it is not.

 

[rolls_rapide]

Panasonic Drum texture

I was trying to think of something to compare the texture quality of the polished steel to.

It is like comparing the buttons on a Hoover Logic washing machine (rough, grainy texture) to the buttons on the Hoover Ecologic (smooth, shiny, silky).

Or comparing the rougher texture of a laptop computer's touchpad, to the feel of the gloss plastic of the display screen surround.

It is like these analogies, but less so. Less pronounced, but still noticeable.

 

[aeg03]

Hi there guys,

That's interesting to hear of the experience with the jacket, it seems that experiences like this is more common than we think. That glass scratch on your door looks very much like the gash in the glass that my parents previous AEG OKO Lavamat 72640 that used to sometimes start the spin violently and the drum would hit the glass door, giving it a good thump and left the line in the glass.

Its interesting to hear about the drum texture being different on the same make of machine, but from a different generation. I believe that things are not made as well as they used to be. Though I think I can remember my mums previous old Servis Slimline machine with its spincare drum having lots of scratches on it.

Scratches are to be expected with wear and tear and usage, I think I was beating myself up for leaving the fork in my pocket, such a stupid thing to do, but I just simply forgot that I left it in there and it got a wash LOL.

 

[rolls_rapide]

"spin violently and the drum would hit the glass"

I thought that too when I saw Mrboilwash's photo. My old AEG gashed its door glass when it leapt into spin on one occasion.

 

[mrboilwash]

Never thought of an out of balance situation to blame for the scratches, but it does make sense. It definitely was the jacket but now I`m not so sure about the zipper anymore.
Guess I just denied the thought of the drum hitting the the door because you wouldn`t expect that from a Miele, even less so when it`s brand new. LOL

You should be glad you haven`t hurt yourself with a fork in your pocket. It`s almost a miracle no other clothes have been "harmed" and the washer got away with only a few scratches.

 

[aeg03]

Didn't get to show you the drum until now. The flash really does show up the marks. It looks more just like normal wear and tear and I think now by looking at the drum, the marks have been caused over the 3 months ownership.

I shall now 'chill out' a bit more as the machine functions perfectly.

 

[rolls_rapide]

Looking at that photo...

It looks pretty normal to me.

Is the LG's drum perforated too, on the front wall?

It looks as though there is light shining through between the drum's steel lip and the rubber door seal.

 

[aeg03]

Hi there,

Yes it is perforated on the front as well. The drum is lovely and big for a 7kg machine. It has the same drum as the 8kg machine. It is 58 litres and I notice it takes the same amount of washing as the 9kg Hotpoint washing machine that I had. The drum is bigger than the 8kg Beko model this LG has replaced.

I love this machine and it has been the best machine I have ever owned. Apart from the AEG OKO Lavamat that my parents owned. That machine had a Jetsystem and used to spin the drum 3 times on the rinses to drive the water through the clothes. It allowed the machine to use very little water on rinses, but it would only do that on Cotton 60 degrees.

The LG as you will know does some fantastic drum rhythms and I love the distributions that it carries out every few tumbles, really agitates the detergent and water.

 

[rolls_rapide]

As a matter of interest, have you noticed any pilling/bobbling of cottons with your LG?

Does it rinse well?

Member "Dreamclean" in the USA has been having problems with her LG machine.

 

[superocd]

I have a very similar washer, a Kenmore made by LG,

and not only do I have fine scratches, I have several small dents. It doesn't bother me a whole lot, it's just a little disconcerting that metal is so thin these days.

A Wasocmat, Huebsch/Speed Queen, Milnor and UniMac (and maybe a few others) use a true heavy duty stainless drum. There's a pattern there though, they're all commercial grade and/or light to moderate industrial grade. Our washers would probably start wearing holes in its drum if it were subjected to rigorous, heavy duty use.

I'm happy with my LG manufactured Kenmore and can see the base machine lasting 10 years (I don't know about the control board or the electronics, time will tell). Apparently LG has the best front loader on the market (at least for mainstream brands).

 

[rolls_rapide]

"it's just a little disconcerting that metal is so t

I concur.

A good sneeze is enough to dent modern metal. If they make it any thinner, it'll be tinfoil.

 

[aeg03]

Hi Rolls_Rapid,

Sorry for the late reply. I have not had a problem with piling on this machine or bobbling. That's unusual to hear. If anything, I have had the best performance from this machine VS the Hotpoint Smart WMFUG942UK that was complete rubbish that used to leave the clothes smelling musty and the towels hard. The Beko was great but used to tangle the clothes badly.

The rinse performance is top notch on the LG and I have not had any problems. I love how the LG adapts itself to do 3 rinses for certain loads and 2 rinses for very light/small loads. The 2 rinse cycles hardly uses any water, the 3 rinses uses plenty of water, up to the glass door. I love the LG machine and I am now a fan of their products.

Hi Superocd,

Ive never head of little dents in a drum before, that's unusual to hear.

 

[electradeluxe]

Scratches

My Bosch machine is coming up to 3 years old and I noticed a few weeks back there was a long scratch mark down the back of the drum.
I check every time I hear anything clank against the glass too incase I've left a coin in a pocket, but it's always a zip or metal button
I do try to fasten as many items as I can but I'll never be able to eliminate it it totally

I'm glad you like your LG machine,I had one in my old apartment, that bloody tune at the end of the cycle used to drive me mad!! Ha ha

Neil

 

[aeg03]

Haha Neil,

I love the little tune at the end of the wash cycle, in my opinion, so much better than just a standard beep. But then I like things being different and quirky