What is Causing a Grinding Noise in My Whirlpool Washer?

If your washer is making strange sounds, it always means there is a problem. If you are lucky, it will be an incredibly minor problem that you can solve without making any replacement. Unfortunately, when you hear a grinding noise, this usually means something internal is having an issue.

If you have a Whirlpool direct-drive washer, one common problem that can happen is that the coupler breaks. When this happens, it manifests a pretty bad grinding noise when it enters the spin cycle. While the coupler is pretty cheap to replace, reaching it can be quite the task.

Replacing a Coupler in a Whirlpool Washer

After disconnecting the water and power, you will start by removing the control panel on top via the screws on the side and flip it up. Undo the tab that secures the lid switch, them remove the clips that secure the control panel to the top of the appliance.

Now the control panel can be removed, and you can remove the cover of the water. You will want to move to the bottom to remove the pump. Undo the spring clamps on the hoses, then remove the clips on the pump.

Behind the pump, you will find the motor. Disconnect the wire harness from the motor and remove the mounting clips on your motor to remove it. On the motor once you remove it is the coupler. This piece should have three prongs and should not spin. Often you will find that broken couplers spin loosely or have prongs missing. You simply need to remove it and install the new coupler.

After you reassemble your Whirlpool washer, it is important to know that broken couplers are often caused by overloading your washer. When it reaches the spin cycle, overloaded washers are very heavy and very hard on the motor. This means you may want to consider lighter loads in the future.