Solarpunk

I used to work as an appliance repair woman. It's totally doable for the average person. The only specialty tool you may need is a very large pair of snapring/spring pliers. The gasket that seals the front of the machine to the drum uses a large wire loop connected with a 2-3" long spring on the ends to secure it. If the drum is not spinning smoothly then either the spindle bearings have failed or the spider/flange that attaches the drum to the spindle has broken. Either one are fairly simple to replace. What model washing machine do you have?

0. look for disassembly videos of your specific washer/model number. You might even find videos with the same symptoms.

1. Taake it apart and take lots of pictures of everything as you take it apart so you can put it back together.

2. Look for signs of a damaged part.

3. Use Google image search or identify product markings/part numbers/model numbers and see if you can buy the part. 3.5) Post pictures asking to identify the part if all else fails.

4. Assume and plan that if you take it apart, you might need to buy a replacement washer. Plan accordingly.

If you can get the part, assuming you can follow instructions, you should be able to repair it but getting repair parts for certain brands is becoming a nightmare even for some repair companies. (Not to mention that repair guides are disappearing and they are not designing them to be repaired but wear out at a target date)

We also have a !diy@slrpnk.net and !fixing@slrpnk.net communities.

I don't know the answer, just commenting for engagement, I hope someone more knowledgeable can chime in with something helpful to get you going in the right direction!

You might also see if there's an active DIY or repair comm to crosspost to :)

To my knowledge, the “spider” that holds the drum in place is the weak point on a washing machine, and this is typical symptom list. As far as I know, they’re not economically viable to replace. But give it a google and see!