ALW540RAC Amana Washer - Instructions

I read what the others had done and thought it was the lower bearing so I originally tore it down and replaced just the lower bearing.

Unfortunately, after 2 + hours of doing that and putting it back together, it still didn't fix the problem. So I read more reviews and others claimed to use this kit and that it fixed the problem. So I ordered the kit.

BTW, Parts Select rocks!!!! They get me the part within about 2 days every time.. Great Service! Thanks guys!

Anyhow, part came in, knowing how to tear this thing down now, I was able to get to where I needed to be within about 45 minutes.

2 things that were difficult.

The first was removing the plate at the bottom of the tub. This is the aluminum plate that looks somewhat like a spoked wheel. Maytag has a tool for this. Without it, you must go at it with a small punch on one of the spokes and carefully tap the seal until it turns. You may have to try it from different angles to loosen it up but it will eventually give way..

Once you get that off, the second little piece of joy is actually removing the seal from the bottom of the tub. Here again, Maytag offers a tool to remove this. Without it, and with years of this rubberized fitting mounted in this plastic tub and corrded with water and crap... you will need to create a bearing puller.

I did so with a 2X4 board straddled across the bottom of the tub. I used an 8 inch lag bolt, drilled a hole through the 2X4 and placed the lag bolt throuigh the board and through the center of the bearing. I attached a large washer and nut to the bottom side of the bearing and then began to tighten the bolt on the other side of the board. By tightening the bolt, the board created alot of tension but not enough still to seperate it from the tub. With the tension on the bearing, I turned the tub over and tapped it with piece of wood the size of the bearing and a rubber mallet. It popped right off. The rest was just reassembly.

Don't forget to remove the sticker backing on the felt gasket to hold the gasket in place while you screw the tub back together...

The good news... Super quiet! So, about 3 hours.... (I had to come up with the idea to remove the bearing and build it) and it's all done..

Yeah.... Fun Saturday.

I found about 2-3 baby socks stuck in the pump and couldnt remove them so I had to replace the part. Unfortunately I found this website AFTER I took the bad pump off. So I ended up removing the lower front panel and then flipping the washer upside down and removing the bottom of the washer and taking the pump off because I couldnt see any other way to get it off. The new pump arrived very quickly and I put it back on and put the bottom panel back on and flipped the washer back right side up. I certainly made it more difficult then it had to be but it was still fairly easy. Now I see all I needed to do was remove the motor to get the pump off. Oh well.

Laid washer on its side and had to remove the motor,replaced the pulley and belt replaced the motor and put all parts back together washer spins and runs like it did when it was new.we did not need the screw or nut but did not know when ordering parts

Remove the front of the washer. Remove the pump and motor assembly using the 1/2 inch socket. Remove the pump from the motor and hoses from the pump. Replace the bad idler pulley and place new belt on pulley. Reassemble the pump to the motor and install the assembly back into the washing machine. Reasemble the hoses and put belt on driven pulley for the drum. Reinstall the front cover.

checked for unbalanced load. still banging. removed lower front panel by removing 2 screws. then removed front top panel- 2 more screws. turned unit on spin cycle to see what was going on. this is dangerous as many moving parts are exposed, so keep everything clear. banging was the tensioner slamming back and forth. unpluged washer from outlet and felt along the belt to find part of the 'v' shaped balt had come part, leaving a gap in the "v". ordered part.when i got the part, i removed 4 larger bolts that held the motor, pully, and pump. i unplugged the wires for the motor, and removed the belt from the bsket side pulley assembly by slipping it off and under the shaft. i removed the torx screws that held the pump on the motor and removed the belt. PAY ATTENTION to how the belt was in between the pully and pump assembly or you will have to remove and redo it. reassemble the pump over the belt, pully, motor, and put the belt on the drum side pully before bolting it to the washing machine. it is fairly heavy and tight, so you might need help. this was not hard and you do not need to take apart the washer except for the two front panels and the motor assembly. i just pulled the unit away from the wall and tipped it back to access the inside. take your time and pay attention, and make sure it is not plugged into the wall and you should be fine.

Hardest thing was moving washing machine away from wall. Two screws on panel. One screw for hose.

I had no problem replacing the triple lip seal and bearing. I cracked the plastic tub, which after 10 years was very britle and cracked in two places ON THE SIDE. To remove the bearing I had to improvise a bearing removal tool using a puller I had on hand and a 1 lb metal coffee can. It worked great! You need to use some type of pulling device to remove the bearing without damaging the tub.

Followed video on PartsSelect website, they made it real easy.

I had previously done a partial tear down on the machine to see if I thought I could do the repair. The dealer try's to scare you with warnings about special tools etc. Looked OK and after reading other comments on this site, I thought I would try. The only comment that I would add to what has already said is that you should have the recommended sealer or an equivalent sealer. I used weatherstrip adhesive that I had on hand. Hope that it holds up! Like it says in the directions, the seal will lift up if there is too much sealer under the lip of the seal. Just hold down the seal with a weight until the adhesive sets up and then it will stay. I've fixed cars for 30 years and this was an easy repair comparable to replacing wheel bearings.

I used my three jaw slide hammer to remove the pump from the motor. How are other people getting it off? Pump made alot of rubbing noise after installation. I tried pushing it on farther and also prying it back off a little with no luck. It's really cheap looking and I was scared of breaking it. The thing wasn't leaking so I called it good....

Screw broke lose in agitator from drive bell stripped (plastic) for transmission gear. Received new Drive Bell and had to lightly cut out old from Agitator housing with saws all, cleaned years of soap build up on steel spline with wire grinder, lubed the Drive Bell inter and pounded on to spline gear with rubber mallet, I thought a bit too much force but what the heck I landed to the same bearing point as before. Work Out Great.

This washer was "professionally" repaired six months ago....that being said, I found two of the three Torx screws holding the pump to the motor to be lying inside the cabinet. This allowed the pump to move and wallow out the seal. Replaced the pump and replaced the screws correctly. No leaks, no problems. Pump is an exact replacement from PartSelect and ease of installation was no problem. Would suggest if you are going to replace the pump, order the three screws and replace them too.

Water inlet valve was different than the one shown on web photo. The hose supplied was the wrong size so I had to use the original old hose. Wire harness had to be modified since the electrodes were on opposite sides of the valve. Overall I was disappointed with the part and the service.

After receiving the new hose we replaced the hose and tested the washer by running a rinse cycle. The new hose fixed the problem.

Turn water off at the inlet valve of hose you are replacing. Disconnect inlet hose the washer and let water drain out in a bucket. Then remove old hose. Replace new hose to inlet valve then washer . Use pliers to tighten both ends. Turn on water to check leaks at both ends of hose.