All about washing machines

Why is the washing machine drum shocking

Why is the washing machine drum shockingTo operate household appliances is necessary observing the basic safety rules. Devices connected to the network can shock the user, and such a shock is extremely unpleasant and very dangerous for humans. If the drum of the washing machine is shocking even at the slightest touch to it, urgently need to eliminate this problem. We'll figure it out, as a result of which the automatic machine can “tingle” the fingers of the housewives, how to find a way out of this situation and prevent breakdowns of the washing current.

No connection to the "earth"

Even the most modern household appliances are manufactured taking into account the fact that a small amount of electric flow will be transmitted through the housing of the device to the common house ground. The first and most common reason why a washing machine is an electric shock to a person is the lack of grounding of the home electrical network. When grounding is not failed, a small charge will accumulate on the walls of the washer, and it will be the hostess who will feel it when touching the machine. Electric shocks will be more strongly felt when you touch the drum with wet hands.the machine is not grounded

You can solve this problem if you make the grounding of the electrical wiring in the home. Usually in the electrical panels of high-rise buildings there are grounding terminals. However, in some Khrushchevs they may not exist, then you will have to ground the washing machine directly. You can deal with the problem in another way, we will analyze the second method below.

If the machine is installed in the kitchen, in the hallway or in the corridor, that is, rooms with little humidity, electric shocks may not be felt at all. But when the washer is in the bathroom, it will not be possible to avoid “tingling” of hands, the transfer of a charge of current to the body will be felt exactly.

Damage to the wiring or breakdown of the heater

If the ground is connected, most likely, the washer is strongly shocked by any internal breakdown that has occurred in the system. Very often, the accumulation of charge on the housing occurs due to damage to the wiring inside the unit or failure of the heating element.

To diagnose internal parts, it is necessary to disconnect the rear wall of the housing, having previously unscrewed the bolts holding it. After removing the cover, inspect the machine wiring for defects, kinks, damage. If you do not find anything suspicious, proceed to the verification of the heater.

The heater for different models of washing machines is located completely in polar places. On devices of the brands Ariston, Samsung, Indesit - in the back, in the washes Bosch, AEG, Siemens - in the front.

In order to simplify the search for the heater, we recommend that you find the element connection diagram in the user manual.

damage to the wiring or breakdown of the heaterTo check the health of the heater you will need a multimeter. Disconnect the wires from the heater, set the tester to the resistance determination mode, set the selector of the measuring device to 200 Ohms, attach the multimeter probes to the contacts of the heating element. If the tester displays a value from 20 to 30 Ohms, we can conclude that the heater is working. A value of 1 or 0 will indicate its malfunction. A unit will signal an open circuit inside the element, zero will indicate a short-circuit in the heater.

After carrying out manipulations to check the condition of the part, it is necessary to test it for breakdown. After all, even the ideal value of the resistance value, shown by a multimeter, does not mean that the current from the heater does not pass to the washing machine body. Between the tubes and the walls of the heater there is a dielectric that can go into the system.

You can also check the heating element for breakdown using a tester.Having chosen the operation mode of the buzzer, attach one probe of the multimeter to the TENA terminal, lean the second probe against its body. If the device does not make any sounds - the heater is working, if the tester starts to squeak - there is a breakdown. Repair of the heating element is not carried out, a new, functioning part is simply installed in the place of the old heating element.

If there is no breakdown, but is there a breakdown?

To maximally prevent the possibility of electric shock when using the washing machine, additional manipulations should be made with the house electrical network. You can protect yourself by the following methods:

  1. Connect a residual current circuit breaker with a rated load current in the protection zone of 10 to 30 mA. The RCD will operate even with the smallest leakage of current, turning off the power to the device on the electrical panel. If the wiring in the apartment is old, two-wire, instead of a modern three-wire, installing the device may cause some inconvenience. The machine will often click unnecessarily, and you will have to regularly turn on the power on the electrical panel.
  2. Create a system for balancing the potentials of household appliances.
  3. Make sure the integrity of the "earth". In certain cases, the washer is shocking when the “ground” is connected. The cause of this may be a damaged ground wire. It is worth finding in which place it makes a break, check the conductor and restore it.

In the case when the “tingling” of fingers is felt even when touching the faucet in the bathroom, it is necessary to quickly turn off the electricity in the room and find the wiring fault.

It is strictly forbidden to understand why the automatic machine beats current at high voltage.

Wrong methods to fix the problem.

If you decide to cope with the problem yourself, you need to understand what actions it is not advisable to perform. When “studying” the forums, along with competent advice, one can come across the wrong recommendations of “woe-masters”. So, do not take into account and use the following methods of troubleshooting:potential equalization

  • If there is no grounding, you can simply insert the plug into the outlet by turning the plug over, and also cover the floors in the visit with a rubber mat. This method, of course, can stop single strokes, but it will not solve the problem. Ultimately, an electric shock can still occur.
  • Stop the mains filter of the washing machine. This element is designed just to redirect the electric charge to the machine body. The townsfolk believe that turning it off will completely protect against electric shock when touching the equipment. This opinion is erroneous, the risk will decrease only slightly.
  • Connect the ground conductor from the machine to the pipe or heating battery. Such actions are very dangerous and can lead to severe electric shock. Experts categorically do not recommend using this method.
  • Remove the isolated PE cable from the shield. Remember, it is impossible to bring out a separate grounding conductor and plug the equipment into a socket without a “ground”. The correct solution would be to remove the three-wire wire from the distributor and connect a special, safe outlet to the cable.

Finding out the reason why the washing drum periodically shock you, you can eliminate such a dangerous nuisance. It is important to carry out repairs consciously, observing all safety regulations.

   

Reader Comments

  • Share your opinion - leave a comment

Add a comment

Read also

Error codes for washing machines