Grinding scraping noise after heating element to remove a bra wire

[Tamsin]

Hi I’m hoping someone can help. I had a bra wire stuck in my machine for months scrapping constantly. Finally today I googled how to remove it. I went in through the heating element at the back of my machine and used washing liquid to place it back easily at the seal as I was struggling to get it back in. Now the drum is making an awful grinding scraping noise constantly?? What have I done wrong? Please I would be greatful if any help?

[Whitegoodshelp (Andy)]

The heating element is the last place I would use to get to an obstruction. If it I needs to be located in a bracket and it isn’t then the drum will hit the element when it spins with a heavy load inside. However if the noise is there all the time it’s likely to be something else.

Alternatively there could be another bra wire in the machine if the scraping noise happens when you turn the drum by hand. Sometimes they can get stuck behind the inner drum and be impossible to remove without taking the drum out. 

how to remove something stuck in a washing machine

[Tamsin]

Hi thank you for your response I went through the heating element as i could see the bra wire on the heating element but couldn’t get to it any easier way as far as I found on google and YouTube. After I posted I did check and could see the element was out of place so fixed that but it’s still catching on something but it’s not a constant noise now. Mainly when it starts to spin and slows down. but not at high speed. When I turn the drum it hits just in one point of the turn. It wasn’t doing it before I moved the element. Im not sure what to try next. I watched something about checking the sump hose? Or should I just attempt to try to open it up and look inbetween the drums maybe? I’m a complete learner lol 

[Whitegoodshelp (Andy)]

Hello Tasmin. You can often retrieve something stuck on the heating element by removing the sump hose but if it's too far away then removing the heating element may be the only real alternative. As my article points out there can be problems in getting it back in place, and if you over lubricate it it could even pop back out and flood the kitchen. That has happened to me. Fortunately if it's going to do that it will usually do it fairly soon after being refitted so if yours has not come back out then it should be okay.

Noises that occur when the washing machine starts to spin and then slows down are usually noises related to the suspension, or possibly even the feet or chassis of the washing machine. At these points the tub tends to sway back-and-forth quite a lot, especially if the load is not well balanced. To check if your noises are caused by something like this try moving the washing machine from side to side to see if it recreates the noise. Disconnect the washing machine from the mains, take off the lid, and try moving and bouncing the main outer drum from side to side to see if you can recreate the noise. If you can then it's just a matter of using ears and common sense to locate where it is coming from.

However if the noise is only related to when the drum itself turns then check that it isn't catching on the front of the door seal somewhere. Sometimes the drums are slightly elliptical and at a certain point in rotation it can catch on the door seal. That could happen anywhere around the door seal including out of sight  so check the full circumference. I would avoid trying to strip the drum down for sure. Unfortunately without being able to hear the noise I can't advise whether it is something that needs immediate attention or something that can be ignored.