To Arbilab
I think it all comes down to capacity. The problem is, washers are rated in North America typically by cu.ft of the tub, not by the wash capacity. In Europe, they rate machines by wash capacity, usually 5 kg or 8 kg.
Capacity in Cubic Feet = Capacity in Kilograms / 3.5 (According to Samsung)
1 Kilogram = 2.204 lbs.
Doing a bit of google-fu, The Duet 9600 is a 4.0 cu.ft washer. That would make it a 14 Kg washer, or about 31 lbs, theoretically.
The problem is, if the washer is "Stuffed and Packed" with laundry, this rating can be exceeded, causing premature bearing wear. This is especially true if the high spin speed is always used all the time on all loads.
I have a sneaking suspicion that if owners of these machines are complaining about bearing wear this early in their life, they're either overloading them or Whirlpool is under-engineering the bearings in these machines to only really handle about 1/2 that rated load.
I'm going to try not to go into propaganda mode, but the below will give you good reason to understand why this is happening...
I've attached a link to a PDF showing the difference between a Whirlpool Duet machine and a Huebsch (aka Speed Queen) FL machine. You'll notice the size of the Trunnion shaft is about 90 percent larger.. and that's on a machine with a smaller 3.3 cu.ft tub. A 3.3 cu.ft tub has a rated capacity of about 11.5 kg, or about 25 lbs.
So, my question is, why is a machine which would be rated for about 6 lbs less worth of laundry have a Trunnion shaft which is nearly 90 percent larger? This is where all the wear and tear happens on those heavy unbalanced loads.
To answer your question Arbilab, it's not the industrial world which should be ashamed, it is the bean counters that should be put to shame, who have influenced the engineers at Whirlpool to cut corners to make a product with a short life when it is used normally.
To MattL, can you get some information as to how the washer was used? IE. Were lots of heavy items (ie. Denim) routinely washed in this machine? Was the machine ever "Stuffed and Packed"? My fear is that even if you do replace the bearings, you'll need to replace them again in another three years.
My advice, perhaps after the bearing replacement, the user should consider keeping the loads of the machine to about 1/2 to 3/4 of the maximum rated capacity of the machine and keep the spin speeds to around 600-1000 RPM except for clothing which needs extra extraction. (ie. Towels) Clothing should be placed loosely in the drum and when the drum is full, take one medium sized item out to allow the clothing to tumble.
Oh.. and a little bit of advice, whatever you do, do not attempt to clean the trunnion shaft with sandpaper or any other kind of abrasive material. If the shaft looks scored, it'll have to be replaced completely. You'll have to check with the service depot, but it is my understanding that if the trunnion shaft requires replacement, you'll have to order an entirely new inner drum assembly.
(Again, I don't service these machines myself so I could be blowing smoke out of my butt, take what I say with a grain of salt. Someone please correct me?)
I've seen youtube videos of people doing it myself, it doesn't look too difficult but it does look quite time consuming. Since you will have the outer drum completely apart, I'd recommend checking to see if the spider looks damaged or cracked. If it is, you'll certainly need a new inner drum assembly. I doubt that this will be the case, but it never hurts to check.
I apologize if it sounds like I'm dissing your machine, but like Arbilab said, it's abnormal that a machine that young should require a bearing replacement. This is something which I would expect would need to be done after ten years of use.
http://home.huebsch.com/adv_pdf/aa07-502.pdf
