Washer and dryer repair

Washer will not drain or spin

Front-load machines keep a coin trap behind a small door on the lower front. Socks and coins there stop the pump, and the tub sits full. A kinked drain hose does the same thing. If the motor hums and the tub stays still, older top-load washers often have a broken belt. A lid that does not click shut leaves the lid switch open, and the spin cycle never starts. An unbalanced load will also refuse to spin. Redistribute the clothes once before treating it as a failed part.

Leaks

Water at the front of a front-loader is often the door boot, torn or packed with debris at the fold. Water at the back is usually a cracked inlet hose or a tub-to-pump hose. Replace rubber inlet hoses that are bulging. A steel-braided hose fails less often at the coupling.

Dryer runs, clothes stay damp

Clean the lint screen, then check the duct. A short test: unplug the duct from the back of the dryer and run one damp towel on a timed cycle, with a window open. If that towel dries and a normal load does not, the duct or the outside hood is blocked. Crushed vinyl duct and a flap that sticks shut are common. A blocked vent also trips the thermal fuse on electric dryers, after which the drum turns and the heater stays dead. Gas dryers that tumble with no heat often have a weak igniter. If you smell gas while the dryer is off, leave the house and call the gas utility.

Noises

One thump per revolution is often a roller or a sneaker in the drum gap. A squeal that starts as the spin climbs is an idler or a glazed belt. Write down whether the noise is on wash, on spin, or both. That single detail changes the part.

Related note: dryer cycles that run long.