poughera

Just to clarify the problem that I have and the current analysis from Samsung. The holes in the clothes are being caused as many people describe by being forced through the holes in the drum. The damage is caused, not by the proximity of the outer tub to the drum, but by the sharp burred edges of the holes in the drum. Recently whilst the engineer was changing a faulty detergent chute and the machine was in bits, I could touch the outer edge of the drum and found the outer edges of many of the holes to be razor sharp. It is therefore highly likely that these sharp edges are snagging on the material, which when pulled back out during the wash, or as you remove the clothes at the end, cause fibres to be cut leading to the holes. I do not think that this is anything to do with drum size, but believe it is down to the size of the holes and the depth that the holes are sunk into the surface of the drum coupled with poor machining or finishing of the holes. As I have said before, I am not sure how long stainless steel drums have been around, but older drums of a different construction did not suffer from this. Higher spin speeds make the whole situation more likely to occur as the material is forced further into the holes with the force. One more area that I have found confusing is the lack of standard wash symbols on many modern machines. All machines used to have the 40, 60, 90 style temperature guides along with program variations for the - and -- symbols, whereas a lot of newer machines have settings such as Cotton, Synthetic, Coloured, delicates and Wool settings. Unless you take time to check what setting you are supposed to use by cross referencing with a chart it is possible to choose a program based on the material in use. I.e. Cotton for a shirt made out of cotton, makes sense? not if it is marked with a 40 -- symbol which means wool wash or a 40 - which means synthetic wash. Add to that the fact that most machines also allow speed and temperature to be set independantly makes for a more confusing operation rather than just matching the symbol on the clothes to the symbol on the machine. Your thoughts welcome. AP

Thank you for a comprehensive and unbiased professional opinion. I am now sending pictures of the damaged clothes to Samsung after much persuading. I am not hopeful, but it is possible that they will side with me. Currys have been very understanding and very much on my side, but will not do anything without support from the manufacturer. Having looked at many alternate machines over the last few days, it is evident that some steel drums do have quite sharp edges around the holes which could snag on material. I guess its down to quality control, and good design to make sure that the holes are kept to an optimum size and the holes are punched deep enough to keep material out of harms way combined with a better process to minimise metal burrs around the edges. I seem to remember older machines having enamalled drums, or some similar coating that smoothes the edges of the holes. Stainless steel looks nice and clean, but maybe it needs more care in manufacture to make it good. Maybe a lightweight synthetic drum such as cardon fibre woudl work, or maybe its too expensive? Thanks AP

Samsung have now replied and confirmed that they are unwilling to provide a resolution to this as the machine in their opinion is not faulty. It appears to be working to their specification and intent. i.e. if you spin certain clothes too fast they will get holes in them. I have escalated this to the store that I bought it from who are very sympathetic as they have never heard such a load of rubbish or had anyone else with a similar problem. So either I am uniquely stupid, other people are perfectly happy with holes in their clothes or the machine has a fault. Take your pick!! AP

My machine is a regular 6KG load, the holes in the clothes are too small to be caused by getting stuck in the drum clearance. The engineer and the Samsung helpdesk said that 'their machine spins for longer and faster and everyone should realise that if you spin fabric too fast it will get holes in it' I am please to hear that I am not alone in thinking that it should not. I am awaiting a call from Samsung Monday ( 16th July) as it has been escalated to their senior customer support desk at my request. But I do not hold a great deal of hope. I can only hope that the Store will side with me and allow a change of product. Thanks for the replies so far. Still love to hear any similar experiences. AP

I bought a Samsung Washing machine from a large retailer on November 6th so is around 9 months old. We have noticed a number of small holes appearing in clothes over the last few months. We eventually figured out it is the washing machine by checking every item before it gets washed, but originally blamed the kids or the cat or anything else. The manufacturer say the machine is perfect, but spins so fast that it pushes the material through the holes and onto the sharp edges on the outer edge of the drum causing the damage. I accept that this is a valid explanation of what is happening, but wanted to see if anyone else had had a similar experience as I do not believe it is acceptable performance for a washing machine. I have also checked for anything sharp in the drum. The machine has also been inspected by a repair company on behalf of the manufacturer who says it does not have any inherent flaws ( other than the fact that it appears to damage clothes) According to the manufacturer if an item is spun too fast for the fabric, then damage will occur. My argument is my old washer spun at 1200 as did the last one before it and the new one. I have never seen this happen before. I do not know anyone else with similar problems. Most of the damage is to Cotton T shirt type fabric which has a mixture of washing labels, so there is no consistency there. I have read many manufacturer sites, instruction books and web forums without a single similar mention of possible pin hole damage if spun too fast. Many Manufacturers seem to sell on the benefit of a higher spin speed. What is the point of 1600 rpm if 1200 rpm, eats your clothes? Is it acceptable for a machine to make holes in clothes like this. I can accept that using a 90 degree wash on wool would ruin the material, but should a fast spin cause this type of damage? Please let me know of other experiences or your professional opinion. I am awaiting an response from the shop who so far have been very helpful but they are awaiting a detailed response from the Manufacturer. Many thanks AP