Miele 1213 Vibration - got to fix or it's going back - 2nd floor

16 years ago

Ok, I've seen lots of posts about vibration problems with Bosch and other brands. We have just completed our laundry room (it was stripped to the studs and sits on 1" plywood, securely attached to the beams). It is on the 2nd floor, however, of a 40 year old house.

For our lovely new laundry room, we were talked in to the Miele 1213 washer, and matching 1413 dryer, so that we could put a folding shelf across the top for my 5' 2" wife. This is the "large" size, not the super capacity Miele, so that the shelf could be at a reasonable height.

Our problem: When the spin cycle starts it feels like the space shuttle is launching right next to us.

It is sitting on ceramic tile on type of a plywood subfloor. It has been leveled by our contractor. It doesn't walk. The only suggestion that we've heard or seen was to get some type of attachment to secure/bolt the legs to the floor.

Any suggestions regarding the installation of this particular machine? Has anyone had this type of problem, and how did they solve it?

If we have to send it back (or use it in another location), any suggestions for a front loader that may be full size, but doesn't spin at quite the high rpms that the Miele does?

One other major negative for us is that this machine doesn't do a king size comforter. Miele customer service has since told us that that machine will only handle a queen size comforter.

If we have to reuse this machine, it will be in a stacked mode in a bathroom near the pool. This will be on the first floor, but still has a short basement below. Will we still have the same problems?

Thanks

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Comments (4)

sparky823
16 years ago
Look into the Samsung VRT. Several on here have them with no vibration, one person even said hers is in a mobile home and they spin 1300rpm's.

The Epic and the Duet are also supposed to be better for 2nd floor applications.

Maybe yours just needs to be leveled again and be sure each foot is equally weighted.
housekeeping
16 years ago
Sometimes a new machine needs a couple of rounds of leveling and foot balancing. With due respect for your contractor, he may have just checked it with a level, but not done the extra check to make sure each foot is equally loaded, and the lock nuts are (still) secure on each foot.

Also a tile floor offers significant opportunity for slight but vibration-making differences of thickness, particularly at corners and edges, and for many types of tiles, in the field, too. These small hills and valleys on the tile can create a situation where each foot appears evenly balanced but in fact is not, and your are actually only weighted on two or three. It's very important to check each foot individually not just run a level across the top of the machine. Once you have the feet all correct mark the floor with tape so you can get the feet exactly back in place after you clean or move the machine for other purposes.

Because feet leveling and balancing is a fidgety job, I like to do the washer installation first so I'm not bumping into the dryer. Lord only knows how people manage this in closet installations or under granite counters. I have enough trouble and my machianes are placed two feet from the nearest wall.

Some people have reported here that they have used vibration-dampening mats to quell the worst of it. However I think it's really important to try to get the machine correctly balanced rather than try and correct it externally. I think it will cause excess wear, in the long run, to have the machine out-of-balance but synthetically dampened. I would only use the mats after I was very sure the problem was structural not just incomplete leveling and balancing.

Try to separate the sound impression of the full-cry spin from the vibrational quality in your mind. The sound is normal, excess vibration is not.

After you have run a few dozen cycles, check the balancing again as I find new foot-nuts tend to loosen up sometimes, Don't know why.

Regarding the K/S comforter ... does it actually fit in the machine? If it does you might try a test wash. If it's down-filled it may be a problem, but sometimes other ones do fit. I have the smaller 5K Mieles and I wash heavy q/s down-filled comforters regularly. I have posted special down comforter-washing instructions here, which you can probably fid if you search for them.

HTH,

Molly
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stormgrabberjr
Original Author
16 years ago
Thanks Molly and Sparky, I'll have him double check the loading. How do you determine that each leg is equally loaded? It is definitely level on the top and is not walking.

The vibration is still very bad after 20+ loads. Right now (after consulting w/ the Engineer), we are reinforcing (shearing) the wall directly under this, and doubling up the 2x12's that run underneath (and adding new blocking) to hopefully reduce the harmonics from the spinning.

Miele did not give any of your suggestions. Our local dealer called Miele and basically were given the answer to not place a Miele FL on the second floor. We also asked about the next size up (thinking that it would be heavier and therefore less vibration) and Miele tech support said that the vibration would be worse.

Thanks
luvmylg
16 years ago
One thing I did w/my LG and it is also in the user's guide; (my interpretation) is basically when you have a normal load is to adjust according to the vibration i.e. if you are facing the machine and the vibration seems to be from the left corner to the right rear corner (diagonally) make sure it is level from the front and during spin adjust the rear right rear foot (in either direction) until the vibration subsides.
In my application the machine was level in all directions, yet on the "extra high" and sometimes lightly loaded "high" speed there was slight vibration (enough to get on my nerves). I loaded it up with normal load and did the "rinse & spin" cycle and my vibration was from left front to rear right and although it was perfectly level, once I adjusted that right rear foot you cannot even hear it spin upstairs. We would not even know it was finished if it was not for the chime! It varies on different machines, fortunately I knew it was not supposed to sound like this because we had a lower end LG prior to this set and it was quiet as a church mouse.
One thing I found out is that there is more to leveling these machines than just leveling them. Good luck!