Duet Tub Bearing Replacement

[john63]

I did a quick search on the LG's and Samsungs, I like the idea of the direct drive motors they use. Although, if the bearings were to go out, that would make the repairs that much more complicated. Their warranty's arent quite as good as SpeedQueen, but still worlds better than Whirlpool. What features do they have that you would recommend them first?

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Bearing failures on LG & Samsung front load washers are rare.
I had ONE bearing failure on an LG washer that was (7) years old.
This LG was the pre-TRUE BALANCE model (balance ring on drum) and was installed on a wood floor which caused excessive shaking/vibration.

For the Samsung also--a single bearing failure. This one was a pre-VRT model and was also installed on a wood floor. The amount of shaking/vibration in this case was fairly severe. The customer was never happy with it for this reason. She bought a new VRT model Samsung and the difference is profound--no shakes at all.

If Speed Queen front loaders had a similar balance feature--I would recommend them for wood floor laundry room use. Speed Queen tub bearings are *very* robust.
A few customers with the SQ front loaders were complaining of shakes/vibration and walking even though the washer is on a concrete floor. This was attributed to overloading the tub (packing too much laundry) and I have found that this tends to occur because of the smaller tub capacity.

Having serviced front loading washers since the 80s--I have had the priviledge of working with some absolutely horrible designs.
LG is the easiest to service--followed closely by Samsung.

The warranty team (service  management) has been very accomodating towards customers. This may seem par-for-the-course in the appliance business but it is NOT.

The negatives for both brands would be:

Possible difficulty finding an authorized service center in your area.

If a service center is available--technicians may not be knowledgeable enough to resolve problems.

Possible difficulty obtaining replacement parts.

[john63]

We sell speed queen at our store.  I haven't worked on one yet, but the Mechanics of this machine are identical to the Amana platform washer or the SAV model Maytag.  If they have the same or similar seal compared to the older Amana's I would see them being an ok machine.  If the seals are similar to the fiasco with the triple lip seal.  I would never buy one.

I heartily agree. The non-compete years were a joke.

The difference between the Maytag/Amana--which was a heavily watered-down version of the Speed Queen and todays SQ laundry is profound.

Gone are the plastic transmission gears/water tank seal leaks and a host of other cheapified manufacturing issues.

[sledneck27]

I did a quick search on the LG's and Samsungs, I like the idea of the direct drive motors they use. Although, if the bearings were to go out, that would make the repairs that much more complicated. Their warranty's arent quite as good as SpeedQueen, but still worlds better than Whirlpool. What features do they have that you would recommend them first?

******************


Bearing failures on LG & Samsung front load washers are rare.
I had ONE bearing failure on an LG washer that was (7) years old.
This LG was the pre-TRUE BALANCE model (balance ring on drum) and was installed on a wood floor which caused excessive shaking/vibration.

For the Samsung also--a single bearing failure. This one was a pre-VRT model and was also installed on a wood floor. The amount of shaking/vibration in this case was fairly severe. The customer was never happy with it for this reason. She bought a new VRT model Samsung and the difference is profound--no shakes at all.

If Speed Queen front loaders had a similar balance feature--I would recommend them for wood floor laundry room use. Speed Queen tub bearings are *very* robust.
A few customers with the SQ front loaders were complaining of shakes/vibration and walking even though the washer is on a concrete floor. This was attributed to overloading the tub (packing too much laundry) and I have found that this tends to occur because of the smaller tub capacity.

Having serviced front loading washers since the 80s--I have had the priviledge of working with some absolutely horrible designs.
LG is the easiest to service--followed closely by Samsung.

The warranty team (service  management) has been very accomodating towards customers. This may seem par-for-the-course in the appliance business but it is NOT.

The negatives for both brands would be:

Possible difficulty finding an authorized service center in your area.

If a service center is available--technicians may not be knowledgeable enough to resolve problems.

Possible difficulty obtaining replacement parts.

Thank you for the advice, I'm going to look into those lines a little closer.

[mohawke]

I must admit that reading your post had given me the courage to try to
replace the bearings myself. Now i need a few details on this. I have
managed to remove the two bearings, and am wondering if the rubber
"thing" located at the end of the hole in the tub needs to be removed
as well, or better yet, are there any more parts that need to be
removed besides the bearings? About the bearing seals, could you
describe what and where these are located, and where I could buy them
just in case I might need them? Also, of the two part numbers you gave,
which one is the front bearing? I have no mechanical background, and a
step-by-step procedure on replacing the bearings would be greatly
appreciated. Thank you.

[Georges Applianc]

Replacing the bearing is no that bad of a job but the non-availablity of a new seal is the problem.

[Georges Applianc]

Replacing the bearings is not that bad but the problem is Whirlpool will not let you purchase a new seal.

[sledneck27]

Hey guys, just recieved a PM from someone that found this thread and recently did his own repairs to his Duet. So, I logged on after being absent for a while and found that I was PM'ed over a year ago by another individual seeking assistance with this very repair. He only posted once, and dissappeared. I apologize dude!!! I missed your PM, hopefully it worked out for you!!!

[sledneck27]

BTW, George, Whirlpool may not sell the seal, but a bearing store should be able to sell you a suitable replacement, it just wont have the outer rubber flange.

[sledneck27]

Hey, I just got an email from another owner of a faulty Duet willing to repair it himself. So, I thought I'd just top this post up.

[ApplianceGuru]

Sledneck, you must be an auto mechanic, to delve into this on your own.  I used to do automotive, and these types of repairs are a daily occurrence.  As a matter of fact, I just ground a wheel bearing off one of my Explorer's spindles, and replaced it last month.

So, did the repair using the old seal work out for you?  I don't touch this job because usually the seal is the cause of the bad bearings, and last I looked, Whirlpool won't sell anyone the seal, with out the outer tub.  Also, the shaft gets messed up and grooved, so most times you also need to replace the shaft too ensure there aren't any future problems.  This gets the price WAY up there.

The seal should never leak water into the bearings in the first place.  A bad seal is what usually takes the bearings out.  I would never do this job, as a professional service, without access to a new seal.

[tgoods]

Replacement seals.

[sledneck27]

Sledneck, you must be an auto mechanic, to delve into this on your own.  I used to do automotive, and these types of repairs are a daily occurrence.  As a matter of fact, I just ground a wheel bearing off one of my Explorer's spindles, and replaced it last month.

So, did the repair using the old seal work out for you?  I don't touch this job because usually the seal is the cause of the bad bearings, and last I looked, Whirlpool won't sell anyone the seal, with out the outer tub.  Also, the shaft gets messed up and grooved, so most times you also need to replace the shaft too ensure there aren't any future problems.  This gets the price WAY up there.

The seal should never leak water into the bearings in the first place.  A bad seal is what usually takes the bearings out.  I would never do this job, as a professional service, without access to a new seal.

Close, I am a mechanic, just not automotive. I started out as an aerospace ground support equipment mechanic, and now I work on aircraft. As far as I can tell the repairs I made are holding up, even with re-using the seal. In fact, I think I may have passed the point where my repairs have held up longer than the factory originals? I used much higher quality bearings, and I made sure that I packed the cavity between the front bearing and seal with grease. Initially I was concerned with grease potentially getting on my clothes, but it hasnt been an issue. The seal really is the problem with the design, its a cheap single flange from what I remember. Hair wrapped around the drum spindle and unseated my seal, allowing water to flow into the bearing cavity. The seal wasnt damaged at all and still fit nicely on the spindle. The store I bought the bearings from found a suitable replacement, but didnt have it on hand, and I couldnt wait, so I had to reuse the old one.

[sledneck27]

Replacement seals.

That pricing is absurd. I paid $20 total for the front and rear bearings, the suitable replacement seal wouldve only been about $10.

[tgoods]

The seal might be a little overpriced but it's still a lot cheaper than a rear tub.  Of course, you can just buy the bearings somewhere else for cheaper.  If you can find the seal anywhere else for a lower price, let me know.

[sledneck27]

The seal might be a little overpriced but it's still a lot cheaper than a rear tub.  Of course, you can just buy the bearings somewhere else for cheaper.  If you can find the seal anywhere else for a lower price, let me know.

If the seal is an OEM part, I understand the price, especially if you can only buy it from an authorized repair facility. The place I bought the bearings from was able to measure and match the seal perfectly(they just didnt have it in stock), the only difference wouldve been the absence of the exterior flange that extended outward and matched the tub bearing housing bevel. I'm not 100% sure why that outer flange is on there, it appeared to me though, to be an easy way to visually ensure the seal was seated properly.

[sledneck27]

So, it's been nearly 6 years since I've made the bearing repair, and the machine finally has a new problem. My water fill solenoid appears to be leaking. Nice!!! I can't believe how long the bearings have lasted. It's worth the price to tear into these machines when they have problems everyone!!!!!

[Thorning]

I am not familar with repairs to washing machines as compared to dryers but I have a Speed Queen washer and a Speed Queen gas dryer both were bought new a few years ago. I do however work on a lot of  dryers and an occasional washer. From my experience on dryers the Speed Queen models are very reliable but not cheap to repair but many last 20,30 ,or 40 years before they need any significant repair. I recently bought a Speed Queen gas dryer that was 39 years old and still in pretty good shape. The HE Maytags and other front load units such as Whirlpool are great at saving water but cost a small fortune to repair and the repair parts are expensive. (Some of them must be gold plated ! )

[sledneck27]

Hello boys!!!! Well, it's been just over a decade since I made my initial repair post here, and I still have the Duet. My repairs have lasted far longer than I ever anticipated, and there is no indication they won't last another decade. The only other repair I had to make to this machine was the fill valve, about four and a half years ago. I initially wanted to replace my Duet's with Speed Queen's before the washer failed again. Well, I'm finally going to get my Speed Queen washer/dryer set. I'm moving to a brand new home and leaving the Duet's behind, and getting the TC5/DC5 pair for the new residence.   

[Thorning]

I have Speed  Queen units in my house and there is no problem with size for me but a family would likely not like having to do more loads that the other brands. The top loads do use more water however than Front loads but I like them.