How to Replace Hot and Cold Water Pipes for a Washer
Tools
These are some common tools used to work on this device. You might not need every tool for every procedure.
Background and Identification
A washing machine—also called a laundry machine, clothes washer, or washer—is a household appliance designed to wash laundry. Laundry includes articles like clothing and sheets. The name “washing machine” is typically applied to appliances that use water to clean laundry. Alternate forms of cleaning laundry include dry cleaning, which uses other cleaning fluids, and ultrasonic cleaning. Both dry cleaning and ultrasonic cleaning are generally performed by professionals.
Most automatic washing machines operate by filling, washing, emptying, spinning, and heating a load of laundry. Users can include detergent, fabric softeners, and bleach in loads of laundry. Laundry detergent is sold in liquid, powder, or pod form.
A clothes dryer—also called a tumble dryer or drying machine—is a household appliance designed to remove moisture from laundry. Typically, the clothes dryer is used for laundry that has recently been cleaned in a washing machine.
Most automatic clothes dryers include a rotating drum (tumbler). Heated air is circulated through the tumbler and evaporates the residual moisture from the laundry. The drying process is assisted by the tumbler’s rotation, which maintains air space between articles.
Washing machines are sold in front-loading and top-loading models, while dryers are typically sold as front-loading machines.
As of 2010, nearly five billion people worldwide still hand-washed their laundry.