Kitchen Large Electric Appliances - Old Kenmore/Whirlpool Spin Cycle Problem

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HeadlessHorsemn
01-10-06, 02:11 PM
OK, promise me you won't laugh... we have a Kenmore 110.82074120 (circa 1983) that stopped spinning our clothes yesterday. It agitates and pumps water out just fine. No clunks, bangs, leaks, squeals or smells. I've Googled this problem and after six hours, what I've cobbled together in information is that the Wig-Wag solenoid unit is the likely culprit. No broken, corroded wires or parts. Well, a little rust, but not bad.

The plungers, rivets and both cam bars appear to be in perfect working order. Plungers and feet seem to be moving back and forth OK. I can't tell if the solenoid on the spin side of the Wig-Wag is working right because I really don't know what I'm supposed to see - it moves back and forth OK, that's all I can say for sure. I removed the old Wig-Wag unit and inspected all related moving parts. From appearances, everything "looks" fine.

Here's the thing... I know enough about solenoids to know what they are supposed to do and that a continuity test on each coil should come up clean (no continuity)... but what I do not know is what the reading should be when I put an Ohmeter on these puppies. I read somewhere that 20-30 Ohms is the correct reading, but for a 110VAC circuit, that number seems WAY too low.

I would guess it should be at least ten times that much, like 200-300 Ohms or more, maybe. Does anyone know for SURE what my Ohmeter reading should be? One coil says 10 Ohms and the other coil says 560 Ohms. My guess is that 560 Ohms is OK because the washer agitates fine, but then again, maybe 560 Ohms is really too much... I just don't know for sure.

Anyone?

Anyway, so, it looks like I'm maybe in the market for a Wig-Wag, but it sure would be nice to know how these coils are supposed to Ohm out before I go buy a new one. Sears won't let me test one in a sealed bag at their parts depot. Any help would be greatly appreciated.


bambiblaster
01-10-06, 04:46 PM
Quickest way to check is switch the red and yellow wires if it spins when supposed to agitate wig-wag is bad... if not then most common problem is the wire to the spin solinoid is bad should get 110 to left solinoid and the right... :coffee:

HeadlessHorsemn
01-11-06, 12:50 PM
WigWag was definitely bad. Thanks for the tip. Wife is happy. As an aside, new WigWag solenoids should both be around 550 Ohms, or if you prefer .550 KOhms.