The short answer
Noise and vibration on the Criterion CLTW washer are load and levelling problems far more often than component failures. A single-model family makes that easy to work through: the machine has one drive arrangement and one set of feet, so a banging spin is almost always a load that has gathered on one side, a machine that is not sitting flat, or a floor that flexes under it.
What you observe
- Banging that starts as the spin speeds up — An unbalanced load, or feet that are not sharing the weight.
- The machine walks across the floor during the spin — Levelling and floor, almost always.
- Grinding only while the machine drains — Debris in the pump: a coin, a wire or a shirt stay.
- A squeal or rumble that rises with drum speed — The drive or the bearings, and the one group here that is service work.
- NEAR MISS — a rhythmic knock while filling — That is water hammer in the house plumbing, not the machine.
Causes, most likely first on this family
- Load distribution — First, and by a distance: a towel or a sheet that has gathered on one side of the drum produces a force the suspension was never meant to absorb.
- Levelling and feet — Second. All four feet must carry weight; a machine that rocks diagonally will bang on every spin however the load is arranged.
- Objects in the pump or the filter — Third, and identified by noise tied to draining rather than to spinning.
- Floor flex or a plinth — Fourth, and common where a machine stands on a suspended floor: the machine is fine and the structure is amplifying it.
- Drive, suspension or bearings — Last, and the only group that needs a technician. It arrives gradually and gets worse rather than varying load to load.
Check in this order, and why
- Stop the machine and redistribute the load by hand — If the spin then completes quietly, the diagnosis is finished at no cost.
- Rock the machine diagonally with the drum empty — Any movement means a foot is not carrying weight, and that is adjustable by hand.
- Run a drain with an empty drum and listen — Noise here rather than during the spin points at the pump or the filter.
- Listen to an empty spin for a rising squeal or rumble — Left until last because it is the only test that points at parts inside the cabinet.
Before you open anything
Safety
Unplug the washer or switch off its breaker before removing any panel; a capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off, and the motor and its control restart on their own when power returns. Shut the hot and cold taps before opening anything behind the machine, never defeat the lid or door interlock to watch a cycle run, and get a second person before walking a loaded machine out.
Models in the CLTW family
Reference| Model number | Family key |
|---|---|
| CLTW44A2BG | criterion:washer:cltw |
When to call a technician
Levelling, redistributing a load and clearing the filter are owner work. Call a technician for a rumble or squeal that rises with drum speed on an empty machine, for a bang that continues with the drum empty and the machine level, and for any noise that arrives with water where it should not be. Call at once if the drum can be moved by hand far more than it used to.
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