A slow filling clothes washer is a very common
problem and usually fixing it requires very little time and effort. Washing
clothes isn’t usually an exciting chore to begin with and waiting for the tub
to fill up can be a frustrating experience. The 2 most common causes are either
built up residue (scale) on the fill valve screen or a faulty valve. Here’s the
easiest way to figure out what the problem is and how to fix it.
Turn on the fill cycle and listen carefully. If you
can hear a “buzz” or “hum” coming from the machine but the water is filling too
slowly than rest assured you have discovered the problem.
Your first step is to close the water valves on the
rear of the washer and disconnect them from the machine. Sometimes there are
filters built into the end of the hoses. If your machine has these filters this
would be a great time to remove and clean them. You can use a small knife to
simply scrape the filters and then replace them.
While you’re there you might as well flush the hoses
at the nearest sink just to be sure there’s no debris blocking the flow of
water. Replace the washers at each end of the hoses before replacing them as
well to ensure against future leakage. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound
of cure.
Test the
washer by opening the water valves again and filling the washer. If it fills
quickly than your problem is solved. If not then it’s time to replace the
valve. This is quite simple to do if you’re the least bit “handy” and a screw
driver and pliers is all you will need.
If you don’t hear anything when attempting to fill
the machine and no water is making its way into the tub than you might have a
more serious problem. The first thing you should do in this case is to remove
the fill valve and have it tested. If the valve is working properly than your
problem is something more serious such as an electrical problem or a bad timer.
This is when you will need to call a professional but 99% of the time the above
mentioned fixes are all that will be required. At the very least you will know that service is required and won’t
be wasting your money to fix something that you could easily have done
yourself.
Some of the better washing machines may be either a
belt drive or direct drive machine and sometimes getting to the inner
components may take a little extra work as compared to a more standard design.
The procedure to test these machines is the same as above but you might need to
remove an additional cover plate or part of the metal shell of the machine to
get to them. If you’re not sure take a moment to refer to your owner’s manual
to become familiar with the design.
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