Self Clean drain pumps on Washing machines

[andyr12345]

Hello Andy, Have you heard of these self clean drain pumps on washing machines - I dont know which Hotpoint it was that I have had in the past but I am pretty sure one of the 'features' in its marketing blurb was that it had an auto-clean drain pump (presumably you did not need to empty out the drain filter regularly and that the pump cleaned itself?) 

Just wondering do you know how that would have worked and wonder why not all washing machines then come these days with self cleaning drain pumps then? 

 

[Whitegoodshelp (Andy)]

Hi Andy. I've heard the term "self cleaning pump" many times, I don't think they are anything new. If you have a look at this link you can see that they don't look any different to any other pump - Self-cleaning pumps.

I don't know whether they use the term self-cleaning when they are fitted on a washing machine that has no pump filter? But never noticed anything that could be described as self-cleaning about them. My suspicion is that they are not supposed to jam easily, and may eject many obstructions but as far as I'm aware there's nothing special about them at all.

[Whitegoodshelp (Andy)]

I don't know of any pump that can deal with a bra underwire, or could get rid of and therefore clean itself of a 1 pound coin that got jammed inside. If no filter was fitted, then anything like a coin would constantly bash into the revolving pump impeller, the impeller would toss the coin back out, but the coin would just get sucked back in over and over again.  The pump could never get rid of it.

 

 

[andyr12345]

5 hours ago, Whitegoodshelp (Andy) said:

I don't know whether they use the term self-cleaning when they are fitted on a washing machine that has no pump filter? 

I think one of my Hotpoint's with a 'self cleaning' pump that had no access to a pump filter behind the kick plate at the bottom of the washing machine still did have a pump filter , I seem to recall having to tip the machine back and taking the sump hose off and there being the usual ping pong plastic white ball but also in the sump hose was a removeable white plastic filter with holes in it and had fluff and cotton on it and I had to clean it out and pop it back in

[Whitegoodshelp (Andy)]

Aye that was a ridiculous idea Hotpoint had, and as far as I know the only ones who ever did. A pump filter that customers don't even know exists, and most people have no access to - that regularly clogs up with lint and cotton from towels etc. 

[andyr12345]

31 minutes ago, Whitegoodshelp (Andy) said:

Aye that was a ridiculous idea Hotpoint had, and as far as I know the only ones who ever did. A pump filter that customers don't even know exists, and most people have no access to - that regularly clogs up with lint and cotton from towels etc. 

that weren't silly though in some respects here 2 reasons why my thinking: 

1.) if you put a "end user serviceable" filter on the front of the machine it ruins the aesthetics of the look of the machine (i for one think washing machines look better without the filter showing at the bottom of the machine or 'hidden away' behind a removeable plastic kick plate fascia) 

and 2.) well if you hide away the pump filter where most end users cannot get to it easily most, when the machine no longer drains properly, will have to call out an engineer to fix it ... and if its out of warranty - well 😉