Repair a hole in a washing machine drum

by / Wednesday, 29 August 2018 / Published in Drum & Bearings

When you forget to empty your pockets before starting a wash and leave coins, screws nails etc in your clothes don't be surprised that you here a loud bang and your washing machine springs a leak. this video Tutorial will show you how to repair a hole or a crack in a washing machine drum without having to buy a new machine.

This tutorial will show you how to repair a washing machine drum with a hole or crack.

Before doing any work on the appliance, disconnect it from the electric supply!

I’ve seen many cases of coins being punched right through during spin. They make a hole in the plastic causing a flood. However, if you just end up with a small hole or hairline crack you can sometimes repair the plastic outer drum.

Washing machine outer drums used to be made of metal, almost all washing machine manufacturers have long since changed over to cheaper plastic. Now they can no longer rust, but there is a big disadvantage. Coins Nail Screws and other bits (which are extremely common obstructions inside washers) can now easily damage or destroy the outer tub.

Use a soldering iron repair a hole or seal a cracked drum

Soldering iron can repair a hairline crack or a hole in the drum I’ve successfully repaired many of them with a soldering iron. You have to be careful not to put too much pressure on though. The point on a standard soldering iron is pretty small so gently melt the plastic and move it where you need. You can potentially go through a drum with it like a knife through butter. Get the soldering iron nice and hot, and then gently go over the crack to melt the surrounding plastic and seal it up or with a hole you will need some more plastic of the drum. I try to bring some of the plastic from each side of the crack over to melt into the crack.

Be careful about the fumes

Large hole or cracks in can be repaired

 

Find a piece of plastic that fits the Washing machine hole

Melt plastic with soldering iron

Bounding new plastic to old

Move the plastic evenly around hole

Remember, if there is a crack in the outer drum it is likely to have been caused by a coin, nail or screw or some other obstruction. Obstructions get inside the machine through things being left inside pockets and work their way between the door seal and drum. If you have a cracked drum you need to find the obstruction before even thinking of a repair see videos below to help with this. Check in the sump hose and pump filter. Also, lean the machine over from side to side and front to back. If there is something inside the drum you can usually hear it slide about. These videos will help you below

Clean up Washing machine surface before using epoxy putty with sander

Washing machine hole repair kit

Mix epoxy putty for 1 minute

Place epoxy putty all around the Washing machine hole or crack

in 45 min the epoxy putty will be as hard as steel

After sealing using the epoxy putty to seal up a crack or hole I’ve usually added a skin of sealant to really shore up the repair. Washing machine engineers use a special flexible and heat resistant sealant called Debor washing machine sealant. Rough up the surroundings with sandpaper and apply a large patch as I've done in the video.

Debor glue for hoses and seals and great for sealing the edges of the repair

applying debor glue to the edge

fitting leg back on

Check for leaks on Washing machine

Repair done no leaks




5 Responses to “Repair a hole in a washing machine drum”

  1. Florian Martins says : Reply

    Thank you very much Paul for that tutorial !!!!

  2. John says : Reply

    Hello Paul

    I have a statesman condenser dryer. I recently cleaned it all out as it was full of fluff at the rear behind the pullout condenser plates. It run a lot better with the drying results. After three weeks it now switches to the cooling mode ( 10minutes to go ) after about 3 minutes of running. When I put it on a 90 minute cycle. I do hear a click from the machine just as it goes to ten minutes on the screen. I have checked all the sensors / filters ar dean and they not obstructed. Any suggestion ?? Cheers john

  3. Kent Parkhurst says : Reply

    My friend bought a brand new Kenmore 41362 front load washing machine that was professionally installed 2 years ago with no problems until it started leaking a few days ago. She is handicapped so she bought a home warranty to fix her appliances if there was a problem with them. A repairman came out saying there was a hole in the outer tub causing the leak due to wear and tear. The insurance company had a second repair company come out and said the hole was due to something other then the normal wear and tear and was not covered by the insurance warranty company. As a repairman would you consider a hole in the washer normal wear and tear or not? She is handicapped and has not moved the washer? She only does her laundry

  4. Cindee salopek says : Reply

    There is a small hole in my washer drum that is ruining my clothes! How can I cover it? It is jagged and snagged a few good tops before I realized what caused it.

  5. Connie Benjamin says : Reply

    I am trying to purchase the aqua epoxy putty stick and the Debor adhesive from you, but for some reason, when l click on the link, l get an error message. Where can l buy these products? Can l purchase them from you? I live in the Massachusetts, USA. Would there be a similar product in the States? Thank you.

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