Samsung DC31-00054A Washer Drain Pump OEM Part

Good news: this pump is the correct part for the Samsung front loader WF438AAR. Bad news: the instructional video was inaccurate in every possible way. On this washer, the pump is located at the front of the machine, not the back. Removing the rear cover doesn't help. What you must do is take off the top, then the electronic control panel, then the door (which means removing the rubber seal, lock and switch), and then the entire front cover of the machine. After that, you will see the Drain Pump, at the front left corner. Unfortunately, the pump is not held in place by the assembly shown in the video. It's a completely different set of parts that you'll just have to work your way through. The plastic cover surrounding the pump is difficult. It's fragile, and does not want to let the old pump out, or let the new pump in. Suggestion: cut the black plastic flanges that hold the old pump together, so you can slide it out in two pieces. Then slide in the new pump (leave it in one piece, of course) really carefully. It's not easy. I had to tap it repeatedly, carefully, to get the pump to fully seat over the two plastic flanges at the bottom of the cover. It finally seated, but even working carefully, I chipped a little plastic off the end. The plastic cover is fragile to the point of being flimsy. My little chips were Inconsequential, but a structural break in the cover would require ordering a new one, and then waiting for it to arrive. That would have been a nightmare. The entire integrated assembly you'll be working on (the drain pump is about half of a larger, integrated part) is held to the floor of the washer by a rubber gasket. You can't see it. But it's about one square inch of rubber at the bottom center of the assembly. To get that assembly up and out, so you can access the screws securing the drain pump, you'll need to push the entire assembly smoothly back to the rear of the washer before you start working on it. It'll slide about an inch or so back, and then lift up and out. You have to take apart so much of the machine, and move / stress so many harnesses and wires, that I thought a working washer was an unlikely outcome. But it all worked, and the machine works great. FYI, when my pump failed, I got no error codes other than repeated "unbalanced load" during a spin cycle that couldn't seem to get started. I could hear enough water sloshing around as it tried to spin that I figured the drain pump must be failing. Ours was about 10 years old.

Removed and replaced the drain pump. The instructional video is out of date for the front load Samsung washer, but the process is the same. You have to remove the top, then remove the soap dispenser, but not all the plumbing for it; just get it out of the way. After that, remove the control panel and disconnect the two connectors. Since you will need to remove the front cover and door assembly, you will need to remove the spring retainer that holds the front rubber seal. Now that you have access to the door latch and closed door pin, remove those screws to ensure you can pull the door away. Also, you will need to remove the two screws that holds the plastic drain area and pull that small housing off. Don't forget the two bottom screws on the bottom of the front panel, as well. Once those are all removed, you can remove the four screws at the top holding the front panel on and lean it back and lift it out. Now that you have access to the drain pump, just remember to fully drain the system from there by squeezing the hoses attached and then it's a matter of disconnecting the power plug, disconnecting hoses, and there are two bolts holding the drain pump to the floor of the machine. Slide it backwards to where the rubber grommet is free in the channel and you can pull out the pump. Reconnect the new pump to the rest of the housing and put it all back together in the exact reverse order, and you are golden. You can do it; just take your time and don't be in a hurry. It takes about 30-45 minutes total. Moving the washer to an area where I could work on it was the bigger task!

Located the drain pump and removed it from the washer assembly. Removed all parts on the pump itself, removed the impeller and discovered the magnet surrounding the shaft was cracked and not allowing good electrical contact for operation.

Local repairman evaluated problem, I ordered the required part and he came back and completed the repair

"ND" no drain error occurred, upon further inspection.. The brushless DC pump motor was flooded and the rotor was cracked on both sides. Had a new motor overnighted, and it showed up the next day! After repair was complete, the washer works correctly.. Thank you!