It has been this kind of month

Last night, as K was doing some laundry about 8PM, suddenly the washing machine stopped, in mid cycle. Our washing machine is less than 3 years old. It just stopped, with lots of water in the machine, for a front loader.

So first thing today, about 7AM I moved the washing machine forward so that I could get access to the back. The back panel was pulled and everything looked fine, but when the washer was turned on, just a mild 60hz humming.

The humming was coming from the water pump. It was nicely in area of the washing machine that could easily be serviced. I lowered the hose into a bucket and let the water siphon out. Once that was done, one of my pumps was used to drain the remaining liquid. (My demo pump had just returned the previous day, so I was lucky there). 2 hoses, 3 bolts and 1 electrical connector later and the washing machine pump was in my hand. Reaching through the outlet, it was found the pump would not turn. A few screws later (both mine and the pump) and the pump was disassembled.

The culprit was found. It seems one of the under wires from an under-wire bra got from the washing machine tub, through the drain and into the pump, jamming the impeller.

The pump was reassembled and project abandoned until lunch time, when the washing machine was placed in proper working order. A test load was done, All is well with the washing machine.

What was I doing last night when the washing machine decided to try out for the choir? At the time, I was fixing the passenger side window on my car. It had recently fallen, rather unexpectedly. A part called the window regulator, the mechanism that holds the glass and controls the up/down of the window broke, and the part arrived yesterday. So the passenger side door was apart while the offending part was broken.

Both of these items required handling thin sheet metal parts. Why do I mention that? I left much skin, blood and sweat in doing these repairs. If you were to look at my hands and arms right now, it would appear to be those of someone with an emotional disorder. No stitches though.

This is the kind of thing that is happening a bunch lately. It is distracting me from finishing a bathroom/closet/MBR remodeling project. I should be laying ceramic tile for the shower. It has been that kind of month.