GE front load washer belt falls off

[Jcoom]

[GE front load washer model WSXH208A1.] I just replaced the belt and when it goes into spin mode the belt keeps falling off.

Any help?

[Dan O.]

If the belt wasn't running true (aka 'plumb') I might expect that to happen. Either the motor or the tub pulley might be out of alignment with each other.

Is there any play in the tub shaft the big pulley is attached to?

Was the washer particularly noisy on spin previously?

Any signs of leaking out the rear of the tub the shaft goes through?

A common problem on that design of front load washer (built by Frigidaire for GE BTW) is the tub seals leaking resulting in bearing failure of the outer tub. When that occurs the washer is VERY loud on spin and the inner tub shaft develops play between it and the bearing of the outer tub. That play could result in slight 'tilting' of the pulley allowing the belt to slip off.

JMO

Dan O.
www.Appliance411.com
The Appliance Information Site
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[biguggy]

The adequacy of the bearing arrangement in most designs is, to my mind, questionable. Add to that the fact that I have yet to find a front load washing machine readily available in North America that does not use an aluminium alloy spider.

Aluminium, and its alloys are corroded when immersed in an aqueous solution with a pH value above about 8.0 or below about 4.0 (nitric acid is a well known exception). All detergents have to be above about 8.0 or they would not work. The Material Safety Data Sheets put out by Proctor and Gamble state that the pH for one of the liquid ‘Tides’ is 8.0 and for one of the ‘Tide’ powdered detergents as 11.0. Bleach, (sodium hypochlorite) is also very corrosive to aluminium. I should add that for corrosion of the spider to take place these levels are considerably above the levels found in a washing machine during the wash/rinse phases of the cycle.
Sodium carbonate (washing soda) and sodium percarbonate found in some laundry aids (Affresh and Oxi-Clean [powder]) are also corrosive to aluminium, as is borax, provided the required concentrations are reached.

I believe the mechanics of the corrosion are as follows.
Even after the fastest spin small quantities of 'water' will remain on the shaft and towards the centre of the spider. Any recesses in the spider close to the centre will aggravate this situation. This water will contain ‘contaminants’ from the laundry aids used, the soil from the laundry, the chemicals in the 'tap water' used, and the results of the interactions between all of them. Should sufficient of these ‘contaminants’ be present the pH of the mixture can, as evaporation takes place, rise to a level where corrosion will take place.

The only front load washers readily available in North America that I am aware of that do not have recesses close to the centre are Miele and Speed Queen. However there are numerous complaints on the internet about foul odours from these machines, in their favour is the fact that spider, and bearing failures are virtually impossible to find.

Now the main product of corrosion from these spiders is aluminium oxide, which is barely soluble in water, very hard and very abrasive, in fact it is usually the ‘grit’ found in ‘sandpaper’. Although a large proportion of the aluminium oxide produced by the corrosion of the spiders will adhere, quite strongly, to the donor, in this case the spider, some will be carried into suspension in the water and will thus act as a very good grinding paste on the lips of the seal, which will, naturally in the course of time, fail, allowing water and the abrasive aluminium oxide into the bearings.