Hotpoint Wm52 Drum Bearings

[Curious]

The bearings are getting a little noisey when spinning at full speed. I've replaced bearings before on a previous Hotpoint machine and seem to remember having difficulty in removing the old bearings etc. Are there any instructions available on replacing the bearings and also are any special tools required to carry out the job?

[Whitegoodshelp (Andy)]

There are special tools for removig the drum bearings in the Hotpoint 95*, 99* and WM* (not WMA) washing machines. However they are way too expensive to buy for a DIY bearing replacement. These tools make it easier, and in the case of a collapsed front drum bearing they can make the difference between being able to remove the outer race from the tub and not but many washing machine engineers don't even bother using them.

If the front drum bearing hasn't collapsed, you can do the job using brute force by knocking the bearings out (and the new ones in) with a large flat punch. If your punch isn't good and flat, or you are careless, it could slip and damage the new bearings so be careful when knocking them in)

Replacing drum bearings in a Hotpoint washing machine is a very big job. It's not a normal DIY job unless you are experienced, willing to chance it or just like a challenge.

My honest opinion is that you should think carefully before trying to do this job because there are things that can go wrong and you could waste a lot of time and money. However, some keen DIYers seem to manage it without too much trouble.

You should also replace the drum spider as Hotpoint recommend (I've tried replacing only the drum bearings and they didn't seem to last very long). Drum bearing kits can be bought that come with the drum spider and fixing bolts as well as the 2 drum bearings and the bearing seal. They are relatively inexpensive.

Here's how to order hotpoint drum bearings, or the hotpoint drum spider and seals etc. Just go to this site - 4Washerhelp spares - navigate to the Hotpoint washing machine section and find the bearings.

The drum pulley nut needs undoing but it's very tight because it's stuck in with loctite. It's a normal left haded thread (ant-clockwise to undo) What you need to do is to jam the pulley with something and then use a hammer to knock the spanner until the nut comes loose. You'll need a big spanner really.

When you have the nut off -

Stand to the side and hold the drum still with your left hand and with your right hand use a hammer to carefully tap each of the pulley arms in an anti-clockwise direction. Turn the drum to bring each arm round. Don't over hit them as they could break. You are just loosening the loctite that is holding the pulley on too.

Then wedge the pulley at the back again and "undo" the pulley by turning the drum anti-clockwise.

Pitfalls

The main pitfall is if the front drum bearing has collapsed. If it has (and if there's a lot of play in the drum it may have - but the play could be caused by the drum shaft cracking or being corroded) then it could be extremely hard to get the front bearing out.

This is because without the rest of the front bearing present, you only have the outer race pressed into the tub which needs knocking out but due to it being recessed, there's only a mm or so to get a punch behind and the punch keeps riding over when you hit it. I've had a few over the years that I simply gave up on when they were so badly collapsed and rusted. This usually happens when the drum bearings have been noisy for a long time and ignored or the seal protecting them has gone so badly that water has flooded into the drum bearings.

Related link - Hotpoint washing machine spare parts