I am the stay at home dad. That means all the domestic duties pretty much fall onto my shoulders, which is fine. I am, however, not a very “handy” kind of guy. I have a few tools, but fixing things is usually beyond me.
A few years ago we had an issue with our washer – an error code cropped up. Researching a bit online we saw that it was most likely the blocked waste pipe. It took several hours for Laura and I to figure out how to fix this, but we did it. We also subsequently purchased a pan to place underneath the washer for those little drips and spillages which would damage the hardwood floor.
A couple of days ago the same error message cropped up again for the washing machine. Laura said to call the appliance repair guy (we have a service we usually use for the major appliances when something needs done like reattaching the handle to the oven) but I said I wanted to try and do it myself.
What was I thinking?
I was thinking of saving some money, that’s what.
First thing was to search the internet again on what to do. I vaguely remembered what we did last time, which included scooting the washer out and looking around the back end of it only to (an hour) later realize we needed to access the front of the machine. After re-familiarizing myself with the concepts, since I didn’t find anything about our specific model of washing machine, I set off.
First thing to do was elevate the front end. I grabbed a couple of bricks from the back yard and placed them under the front end of the machine.
Then I located the screws underneath. This was the best picture I could get. I needed to find the right adapter for my screwdriver, which turned out to be a 1/4 inch hex, which was easy enough to deal with, except the one screw in the center was stripped so it took a while to get out.
Taking the screws out the bottom front panel dropped out and I had access to the section underneath the washing drum. This is where the waste pipe access is located.
Opening up the waste pipe access I saw what it was causing the blockage triggering the error code. This is definitely something I need to do every so often.
Looking down the waste pipe I could see it has been a while so I cleaned that as best I could as well.
It was a simple matter of reversing the process, screwing in the “catch” for the waste pipe, bolting in the front panel, lowering the washing machine, etc. This is a relatively simple procedure – though it took me nearly a couple of hours, partly due to my relearning how to do it and also partly due to a toddler “helping” me. Next time should be a lot quicker, and really, if you know what you are doing it should take maybe 15 or 20 minutes, maybe less.