someone said it is not broken, just giving off accummulated crud! said to use AFFRESH to wash the tub.
does this sound plausable?
thanks

Your machine is a typical Whirlpool-built, direct-drive unit.

It was manufactured in the 5th week of 2004 per the serial number ... coming up on 10 years old.

There's nothing of cork or felt material that would disintegrate into the tub. The diagnosis you were given of accumulated smutz likely is correct.

What are your laundry habits? Cold water? Liquid detergent? Softener?

thanks you VERY much
wow 10 years old!

this piece is a bit over an inch long. (now in a plastic bag.)
is there any kind of lining? washer? etc in this model?
thanks for your help

how do i find the cu foot capacity of this model?

This might well be gunk from inside your washer. See this video. You can see very similar stuff laying on the inside of the outer basket at 4:40:

Alex

Here is a link that might be useful: YouTube

The debris in your picture is not from a deteriorated part of the machine. It's either a piece of cloth or foam or some such that somehow got under the inner drum ... or it's mold/scrud/residue accumulated on the tub and drum. You can continue attacking it with Affresh or other products and hope it'll eventually clear up ... or you can disassemble the machine for direct access to deal with it.

Regards to capacity rating of the machine, full-size units of that design were typically rated 3.0 to 3.2 cu ft.

It looks like some kind of foam with self stick adhesive tape on one side. Could have come off an insole to pair of tennis shoes? Lots of possibilities

thanks guys

this was under the washer - now replaced