I guess it is time for a new washing machine

[Seymore4Head]

The spin cycle stops. I can open the lid and close it again and the spin starts but will only run for a few seconds and stops.

I assume this is the motor going bad.

Any less expensive solutions?

[DerbyDad03]

Re-balance the load.

[Sterling Archer]

Seymore4Head expressed precisely :

Exact make and model of washer?

[21blackswan]

how old is it?

marc

[gfretwell]

If it gets that far through the cycle OK, I bet the motor is OK. If it is an old machine without the microprocessor, I would start with the lid switch. On the old ones, you can just bypass it to test. It might be the timer but opening and closing the lid would not do anything to the timer contacts that just banging on the top would not do.

[In Trump We Trust]

Laundromat?

[notbob]

Yer neighbor or friend ....if you have any. ;)

nb

[Seymore4Head]

The wash was a set of king size sheets and 3 xtra large towels. I just took out the towels (they were really heavy) I let the sheets spin by themselves. When I put the sheets in the dryer I put the wet and heavy towels back in and started the spin. After a few seconds the washer stopped again.

I took the time to wrap the towels around evenly and tried again. This time after a few seconds I heard a click (centrifugal switch) after roughly the same time as the spin ran before and the machine kept spinning.

So 3 xtra large towels unevenly distributed are making the machine balk.

BTW the machine is a 15 year old Maytag.

[DerbyDad03]

That's why I said "re-balance the load".

Most machines, even a 15 YO one, are designed so as not to beat themselves to death by trying to spin an uneven load. There are sensors inside that shut it down if the tub wobbles too much.

[Seymore4Head]

Yeah. Thanks for the tip. It worked.

It is a bit strange that I have been doing towels for 15 years and never had to balance them before.

[gfretwell]

Make sure one of the springs did not pop off the tub.