Appliance Spares
A rumble on spin that gets louder week by week is the sound of tub bearings on the way out. This kit replaces the lip seal and both bearings in one job and returns the machine to quiet spins for years.
What you will need
- The lip seal and bearings kit (both bearings and the seal fit together as a set — replace all three, never just one)
- Socket set and a spanner
- A towel for residual water and a container for screws
- 60-90 clear minutes
Step by step
- Confirm the diagnosis first. Spin the drum by hand with the machine off: a dry rumble or grinding, water stains under the machine, or a drum with visible wobble on spin all point at the bearings. A machine that is loud on spin but silent by hand may have a different fault — run your model through the Part Finder before opening anything.
- Unplug, isolate water, and pull the machine out. You need clear access to the top and back. Lay a towel where you will set panels down.
- Remove the top deck and console. On WH-series top loaders the console screws sit at the rear; ease the deck forward and support it rather than letting cables take the weight. Photograph every connector before you unplug it.
- Lift out the agitator and bowl. Undo the centre fastener, lift the agitator, then release the bowl retainers and lift the inner bowl clear. Stubborn bowls respond to a firm straight lift — rocking side to side just wedges them.
- Press out the old bearings and seal. With the bowl assembly clear you can reach the bearing housing. Note the orientation of the old lip seal before removing it — the new one seats the same way. Clean the housing thoroughly; grit under a new bearing shortens its life dramatically.
- Fit the new bearings and lip seal. Seat each bearing square to the housing and drive it home on the outer race only — pressure on the inner race damages a bearing before it ever turns. Seat the lip seal to the same depth and orientation as the original.
- Reassemble in reverse and run a test cycle. Refit bowl, agitator, deck and console, reconnect water and power, then run a short cycle empty. It should fill, agitate and spin with no rumble and no water under the machine.
Questions along the way
How do I know it is the bearings and not the drive?
Bearings announce themselves with a rumble that tracks drum speed and worsens over weeks. Drive faults tend to arrive suddenly — a machine that will not agitate or spin at all. The hand-spin test with the machine off is the honest tell: noise by hand is mechanical, silence by hand deserves a closer look before you buy parts.
Can I replace just the noisy bearing?
Both bearings and the seal live in the same wet, loaded environment and wear together. If one has failed the other is close behind, and the labour is identical — the kit exists because doing all three at once is the repair that lasts.
Where is the model number?
On the model sticker — under the lid or on the rear console of these top loaders. Check yours starts with WH7560 or WH8560 before ordering; the Part Finder confirms fitment from the full model number.
