Many machines nowadays are engineered such that the manufacturer's procedure for bearing repair involves replacing the entire outer tub (or perhaps in some cases of frontloaders, the back half of it). The only reason I can figure is forced obsolescence by way of high repair cost. Rather than designing the machines so that bearings can be easily replaced and thus carrying the (smaller) parts related to bearings and seals as stock-items, they do it this way with the (bulky) tub priced so high as to discourage it from being done.

He may have given you that price for an assembly and/or he just didn't want to do the job at all ...

LG WM0532 Service Manual

LG WM0532 parts at SearsPartsDirect

... was he an authorized LG repairman ?

Well looking at the exploded view diagram in the manual that Regus posted above it certainly appears that the bearings are not part of the drum assembly (it looks like K121 is the bearings and K122 and K125 are the inner and outer seals). I just went through this with our Maytag Neptune and in the case of the Neptune the bearing is pressed into the drum, so bearing replacement requires replacing the whole drum and it is nearly a grand to have someone do that. But it doesn't look like it's the same way with the LG.

Thanks for the replies. I think we've gotten to the bottom of it. Hubby was able to get inside of the washer and remove the bad bearings. They had sludge looking mud inside but basically it was metal against metal. We're going to order just the bearings and hopefully that will do the trick.

Regus - I think your 100% correct that the repairman didn't want to do the repair. He was difficult to nail down on an estimate and then he gave me that over the phone ($700 including labor). He wasn't an authorized LG repairman. Hubby thinks he makes his money just doing house calls but never actually repairs anything ;-)

Hi.. I've got a WM2432HW that is somewhere between 5-6 years old now and it's started getting very loud during the spin cycles to the point where you do not want to be around it or within 50 feet of it. It still works OK but I'm thinking that the bearings are shot. We've not yet called LG to see if they'd fix it under warranty and might do that this week. We've never had any issues before with it -- it's been working fine until now. Did your bearing replacement solve the problem? Any ideas on what caused the failure?

Hi. If anyone whose replaced the bearings could give a guy some advice on the best way to access the bearings, I would be greatly appreciative. I went ahead with ordering the bearings and a new damper from the Sears.com link above (thank you, by the way!) because my rotor at the back of the machine resembled the original poster's - brown material that looked like mud and dirt but smelled metallic - but I'm not sure of the best/ easiest way to access the bearings. I'm hopeful I can just remove the motor from the back, but any advice is definitely welcomed. I have checked with appliance repair centers in the past (for another issue) and was told that they either did not do work on LG machines or quoted more than the cost of a new, top loading direct drive washer. It's a good machine overall; never destroyed any of my wife's unmentionables or my shirts (unlike our old Kenmore Direct Drive machine).

Thanks,

Hi. If anyone whose replaced the bearings could give a guy some advice on the best way to access the bearings, I would be greatly appreciative. I went ahead with ordering the bearings and a new damper from the Sears.com link above (thank you, by the way!) because my rotor at the back of the machine resembled the original poster's - brown material that looked like mud and dirt but smelled metallic - but I'm not sure of the best/ easiest way to access the bearings. I'm hopeful I can just remove the motor from the back, but any advice is definitely welcomed. I have checked with appliance repair centers in the past (for another issue) and was told that they either did not do work on LG machines or quoted more than the cost of a new, top loading direct drive washer. It's a good machine overall; never destroyed any of my wife's unmentionables or my shirts (unlike our old Kenmore Direct Drive machine).

Thanks,

I have an LG WM2432HW bought in 5/07, used only 1-2 times a week (total maybe 150-200 times), not overlaoded, have always used Tide HE detergent in small qualtities...and the bearings are bad!! ARGH!..PS sits next to my 25 year-old Maytag dryer that's had maybe $75 worth of repairs over its lifetime

Since repair costs seem to be prohibitive, I'm wondering how long I can run it without replacing the bearings? Can I still use it if I can tolerate the noise?...will this cause additional damage? ... any rough estimate how long it might last using 1-2 times per week??

Advise appreciated..Thanks!

PS..based my choice to buy the LG from Consumer Reports ratings...first time I've been burned

Got the machine taken apart. Definitely a two-person job. Definitely do it where you don't mind getting a little water (smelly water, at that) onto things. I took mine apart in the garage.

I waited too long to replace the bearings. The first bearing came out with the inner and outer races shorn apart and the ball bearings were not round; the shields were disintegrated. Hence the brown mud-like material that smelled metallic. Yuck. Second bearing housed in the outer tub assembly would not come out. I probably let the issue go for too long with bearings going out. My wife and I noticed the machine becoming progressively louder for probably 6 months before realizing this was an issue we needed to deal with. The damage to the bearings led to damage (scoring) of the arm that runs from the inner tub assembly and is the main horizontal axis on which the wash drum spins. Whether the bearings failed first leading to the scoring or the scoring was present early on (leading to water penetration into the bearing housing), I do not know. I realized at this point that I'd probably need to replace the tub assembly (if parts were available) and I was approaching replacement cost for a good, on-sale (it was Black Friday sales weekend when I tackled this task) top-loading energy efficient washer.

My wife and I decided to scrap the old machine (got $12 at the recycling center... almost paid for my lunch that day!). We bought a GE high-efficiency top-load washer - GTWN4950LWS - and we love it. And it cost (with tax and extended warranty) what I would have paid in repairs, assuming I had purchased a new tub assembly.

LG was an expensive lesson-learned. Still have the dryer (for who knows how long???) and an LG Refrigerator where the water-dispensing switch is broken and kind of rigged together (it started sticking 2 years ago and would run water and not stop until I pulled off the plastic cover and exposed the switch). No more LG for me.

I too have sworn off LG. They just aren't built to last.

MRB

Well everyone thank you for all the information on the LG Front-load washer WM0532HW. I have a 2003 model purchased from best-buy when they first came out and have loved the machine. Since last year the machine has gotten louder, louder and sounds like a tornado is coming (mention of the freight train sound). Well I said screw it, by the time someone comes to check it out, drives out to look at the issue etc I might as well just purchase a new one. The problem is that the machine looks bran new and I am torn to have them take it away. I seem to have the same problems as you above have described. I looked at the cost of parts and decided it would cost around $300 as you confirmed I think you are right in the $600 range. Well I have enjoyed the LG washer and dryer I am tired of loading and unloading the washer on my knees,
I have purchased the new LG Top-load WT5001CW and hope it will be as enjoyable.
Thank you for all you comments and settling my thoughts about trying to fix and part with this one!!!

Ours developed the same symptoms as JdnRuss WM0532HW over the past years. It got to the point that I told my wife that it will bring down our house (it sits on the laundry room second floor) by weakened the floor joints.

Yesterday, it just refused to spin, and came up with LE and UE errors. So, reading these postings, I am grateful what my options are. Having owned the unit since July 2004, I thought it has served us well. So, I went and got a replacement WM2350HWC at Home Depot (thought about going with WM3360HWC) but decided we don't need the Steaming feature. If we have any of those heavily soiled clothings, we would take them to the laundromat instead.

Thanks again for a very informative postings and sharing of information.

For anyone interested there is, in my opinion, a very good write up, with pictures, of one person's attempt to repair an LG front loader at he website below.

I think he was wasting his time trying to isolated the spider from the stainless steel drum.

Here is a link that might be useful: Attempted LG Washer repair

That was an interesting post. Too much hate towards LG and armchair QB'ing for me though. It was really over the top, IMHO. That being said we did own that model, just in black. Lasted from 2004-2011 when a flood of sewer water (3.5 ft) made us get rid of it since we would never feel we were wearing clean clothes. It still ran fine for a couple loads after being flooded about 1/2 way up the door.

Thanks for all the great advice. As I listen to the freight train chugging down the tracks (the washer) in the room next to our bedroom I worry could it blow apart? I have had to have the seal,the pump, and the bellows,(I have had the bellows replaced 4 times and have a box of new ones we ordered when my husband discovered that legos and anything else left in our sons' pockets would rip through the flimsy part and cause major water leakage. When the 3 rd repair man was called he laughed when I said it was only 2 years old and he said "I don't do LG" but when he knew we had the extended Best Buy warranty he changed his tune and started replacing everything. I have had an additional few years BUT this stinks. I like where the soap is added and where the controls are but I too am ready to give up. I wish I could post the sound, I know some of you have heard it. I think the bellows and bearings are a weak link. Unlike the Toyota truck we had that was recalled, and handled very well, 1/2 our purchase price back and they treated us well. Repair men weren't'evenavailable when we had a problem after 2 months with the washer. They hadn't anticipated problems so early they said. We are outside Wash DC, not exactly off the grid. LG is NOT standing by their mistakes.

Is there any video showing how to replace bearings on front load LG washers?

We have an LG front loader that started acting a bit out of balance during the high-speed spins. Taking some of the clothes out seemed to help for a while. But, after a few weeks, the drum vibrations were so bad that the drum was rubbing against the boot and making it smoke. We called LG and they had a local technician come out to see what might be the problem. I asked him to check the bearings. The tech said the bearings were okay but said that either an 'uneven load' or possibly something like a bobby pin or button had been caught between drum and boot causing it to smoke. We continued using the washer trying to balance it but the problem got worse and worse. We called the technician back and he told us it was the bearings that had gone. He quoted roughly $750. We paid less for the washer brand new! I decided to fix the thing myself.
I decided to order:
1 inner bearing
1 outer bearing
1 inner bearing seal
1 spider assembly (this comes with the shaft attached)
1 seal for the two halves of the outer tub
1 mystery seal the technician said I needed...

The technician tried to tell me that I needed to buy both halves of the outer drum and I needed a new steel inner drum and a new boot. I chose to not buy any of those. It turns out that I truly didn't need to replace any of these anyway, so I made a good decision.

I followed the link above which details how to disassemble the washing machine. That worked really well. The part I had problems with was how to remove bearings on an LG front loader. This video helped: http://youtu.be/XaFF2-Rl8Nc

Basically, I tried bashing them out with a rubber mallet and a screwdriver. That was going nowhere, and I was afraid I'd damage the casing that the bearing sits in, so I swapped the screwdriver out for a 6" extension from my 3/8" socket set. The rounded end was much more friendly to surrounding surfaces. I couldn't get enough umph from a rubber mallet, so I used an 8lb sledge and gently pounded the inner bearing out. That worked just fine. I turned the drum over, supported it on a couple car ramps to get the bearing up off the ground, and tried the same technique going the other direction. When that didn't seem to be working, I located a large steel bolt with a head just smaller than the diameter of the casing. I wrapped the head in a piece of shop wipe to keep it from scratching the casing. I put the flat head against the bearing and from inside the tub, hit the shaft of the bolt with my sledge until the bearing popped out.

The reason this machine failed is because the aluminum spider deteriorated extensively. So extreme was the deterioration that all 3 spokes of the spider were cracked completely through except for a 1 inch section of one of the spokes. This is the same as if a car's mag wheel is cracked around ALL of the spokes except for 1" of one. So we narrowly averted catastrophic failure if the drum had broken free at 1000rpm.

I'm ready to begin reassembly now. I'll post again to let you know how it went. (Parts were $150 by the way.)

We have an LG front loader that started acting a bit out of balance during the high-speed spins. Taking some of the clothes out seemed to help for a while. But, after a few weeks, the drum vibrations were so bad that the drum was rubbing against the boot and making it smoke. We called LG and they had a local technician come out to see what might be the problem. I asked him to check the bearings. The tech said the bearings were okay but said that either an 'uneven load' or possibly something like a bobby pin or button had been caught between drum and boot causing it to smoke. We continued using the washer trying to balance it but the problem got worse and worse. We called the technician back and he told us it was the bearings that had gone. He quoted roughly $750. We paid less for the washer brand new! I decided to fix the thing myself.
I decided to order:
1 inner bearing
1 outer bearing
1 inner bearing seal
1 spider assembly (this comes with the shaft attached)
1 seal for the two halves of the outer tub
1 mystery seal the technician said I needed...

The technician tried to tell me that I needed to buy both halves of the outer drum and I needed a new steel inner drum and a new boot. I chose to not buy any of those. It turns out that I truly didn't need to replace any of these anyway, so I made a good decision.

I followed the link above which details how to disassemble the washing machine. That worked really well. The part I had problems with was how to remove bearings on an LG front loader. This video helped: Repairing Front Loader Bearings

Basically, I tried bashing them out with a rubber mallet and a screwdriver. That was going nowhere, and I was afraid I'd damage the casing that the bearing sits in, so I swapped the screwdriver out for a 6" extension from my 3/8" socket set. The rounded end was much more friendly to surrounding surfaces. I couldn't get enough umph from a rubber mallet, so I used an 8lb sledge and gently pounded the inner bearing out. That worked just fine. I turned the drum over, supported it on a couple car ramps to get the bearing up off the ground, and tried the same technique going the other direction. When that didn't seem to be working, I located a large steel bolt with a head just smaller than the diameter of the casing. I wrapped the head in a piece of shop wipe to keep it from scratching the casing. I put the flat head against the bearing and from inside the tub, hit the shaft of the bolt with my sledge until the bearing popped out.

The reason this machine failed is because the aluminum spider deteriorated extensively. So extreme was the deterioration that all 3 spokes of the spider were cracked completely through except for a 1 inch section of one of the spokes. This is the same as if a car's mag wheel is cracked around ALL of the spokes except for 1" of one. So we narrowly averted catastrophic failure if the drum had broken free at 1000rpm.

I'm ready to begin reassembly now. I'll post again to let you know how it went. (Parts were $150 by the way.)

Oh my goodness SmoothPower. You truly did hard work. Ever since the bearings on my old 2000 Neptune stackable washer went out, I've been interested in knowing how bearings function, how to minimize damage/deterioration etc as a consumer (lighter loads, not too much soap all sounds a tad crazy). I came across the link showing corrosion of a Just wanted to share this with you. I bought a SQ this spring. Hope its spider/cylinder design is better. Good luck on your reassemble.

Here is a link that might be useful: LG washer spider

HI I just pulled my washing machine apart, it was a ridiculous process!! but I cant get the bearings out nor the spider arms off which are snapped?? looks like a failed attempt at hopefully just replacing parts?? I did help my neighbour with the same washing machine replace his bearings, it was much simpler, they are the same machine different models, mine was way more complicated to get apart!!!! scrap now.

Get the neighbor to help. Plus check you tube for maybe a video of some easier way or better tools.

Same bearing problem for me in my 4 year old fontloading washer. Cost prohibitive, NO MORE LG PRODUCTS FOR ME. They got my money last time but screwed themselves for the future with the garbage they create!

Not just an LG problem. All of them give bearing problems sooner or later--some are sooner, due most time to detergent usage.

Overdosing of detergent isn't going to cause bearing failure as much as people think. Underdosing is more likely to cause it in harder water situations due to non-sequestered mineral residue drying where the bearing seal and drive shaft meet, which causes wear on the seal when the shaft rotates.

But if you remember, that wasn't what was preached when they all first came out. LG said no more than 2 Tablespoons and also read where some companies would void warranty if they saw that the wrong detergent was used--that they could tell on teardown. I have used some HE detergents over the years that suds like (or more than) normal detergent.

I just done my Lg new bearings taken me 2.5 hours to fix no more rattling bearing cost 90..00AU dollars

Oh my washer

LG wh 1015 FB very happy now

Sparky,

I haven't seem them all, of course, but I doubt any manufacturer stated a specific detergent dosage in their user guides. I have run across where service techs opined to that point. Yes, HE detergents can produce substantial sudsing if overdosed but the suds dissipate quickly upon rinsing. Regards to suds getting into the bearings ... water splashes around the shaft/seal/bearing area on every run no matter how much sudsing is involved and is more likely to penetrate a compromised seal than are suds.

The softener-damaged Samsung that I discussed in a previous thread has been repaired, which was the plan from the start. The bearings are fine. The bearing seal had not been compromised but I replaced it anyway so the new drum support shaft has a fresh seal surface with which to wear-in.

Dadoes, Yes I should have said LG Tech. This guy was named John and did LG service work. I have read many times where he said that LG recommends no more than 2 T detergent per load. Also as you know, water plays a big part in suds. I have read before where you stated your hardness seems like was 9 or more(?) whereas mine is between 3-5 so I have opened mine after 3 rinses to find suds around the door. Clothes may feel ok but I cant stand the suds on the door so I rinse again. Havent had that happen in a while. Worse if I ever use a liquid for some reason. I must have done something right since mine is 16 yrs old and no bearing trouble yet, but may fly apart tomorrow. Who knows.

Thank You for all your knowledge and help and Thanks again for answering questions for me when I was using the KM Calypso.

LG washer WM2016CW reqd replacement of spider...spider is the suppprt arm that holds the tumble stainless drum built in with shaft assy..if u can replace brake pads and spark plug then u can don this washing machine..if it makes a lot of noise or smokes during high speed spin..possible bearing or spider..So I open up then the inner and outer bearing and seal are all in good shape except cracked spider arm...the spider is the one that cracked....the outcome of dirt on spider arm is so bad even we are cleaning every 5 times of use.. but anyways I did replaced shaft seal and gasket for the tumble drum, spider and bolts ..expenses is 95.50 US and heavy cleaning like new..front loading is not really recommended. .better to buy top loading.I am going to explain this later....all of front loading design have the same principle..every brand of washing machine will last for 25 yrs if they can supply parts, so easy to fix and very basic..front loading use less water ..this is one of the reason why the spider arm gets dirty so easy..not like top loading always soak with water...

All the comments have been so helpful. I have LG wm2101hw model - bought it back in 2010. The washer started making a horrible sound when spinning and on Monday it started smoking during the spin! (I thought it caught on fire - fortunately I shut it off and removed the clothes in time and ended on large amount of smoke only!). Reading everyone's comments and instructions on how to fix it (and how much repair costs) I will not even waste my time and order brand new washer.

My LG front load kept throwing the EQ error code for drainage problem. First time tech came he ruled out the drainage problem and could not tell me what was wrong. Just had a second LG tech out and he said it the basket assembly needs replacing and will cost $800.00. LG techs are from Sears. Don’t know if this is true. But we’ve been without a washer for a month now waiting for appointments. Time for a new machine, I will buy the LG again. We gave it very heavy use with 7 kids and 5 dogs over the past 7 years. No other machine has gotten our clothes so clean.

Curious what would be awry with a "basket assembly" that causes an issue with draining. And what exactly does "basket assembly" mean? The inner drum? The outer tub? Both?