7MWTW1710YM1 Whirlpool Washer - Instructions

I noticed the agitator didn't "lock up" in one direction to properly agitate the load (which in turn "agitated" my girlfriend. I took the agitator apart to find the dog ears were worn. I ordered some new ones at a cost of about $12 delivered fed-ex and had the new dog ears installed in about 15 minutes saving me a bag of money from the repair man.

first remove the cap on agitator(softner),then pull out inside cap (small cover inside),loose bolt in center (you need a 7/16 socket with a long extension) after that pull up the whole assamble out of the washer tub,hold bottom part and pull up agitator ,turn up side down to take out the cogs and holder, replace with new ones and go back on the instructions.

I took a socket and removed the agitator bolt and cover which exposed the cogs. I cold see the cogs were stripped. I changed them and everything works fine.

After reading on line how others did it, it was simple. I lifted out the softener dispenser. Under that there was a plastic cap. You just lift it out - theres no fasteners holding it. It just fits snugly in place by means of an o-ring. Under that there is one bolt holding the agitator to the spindle. Loosen that and remove the whole agitator. The agitator then comes apart in the middle. Just pull the two halves apart. The only tool you will need is one socket with a long extention and a ratchet. Once apart you will see the 4 plastic cogs that spin the agitator. The teeth were worn off of mine. I simply replaced the four cogs that come as a set. None of the other parts were worn to the point of needing replacement. I now have a fully functioning washing machine that was repaired for less than thirteen dollars!

FIRST I printed the directions from an online DIY stie, then removed a single bolt from the center of the agitator. I dismantled the agitator, replaced the dogs, and used to printed page to help me reassemble the agitator. I then replaced the bolt. It's VERY easy, but you need the pictures to be sure you've put everything back in the correct place.

Could be done in place, but it's easier to pull the full agitator assembly out first, and work at a table. Remove the fabric softener dispenser, then the plastic cap below (with rubber o-ring)- both pull out by hand. Reverse the now visible bolt with an extended 7/16" socket and pull the cog housing up and out, gripping with gentle pressure with pliers ( locking plastic tabs make this piece impossible to remove by hand). Once the housing is removed it's easy to separate the two halves with your fingernails and replace the cogs. I was able to reassemble everything and push it back down into the drum in about two minutes. Piece of cake- I highly recommend anyone with a tool box do this himself.

Removed the agitator assembly with a socket wrench and extension, replaced cogs, reinstalled assembly...took about 10 minutes because I dropped the assembly once, and had to reassemble it. An absolute "piece of cake."

Pulled up and removed the fabric softner dispenser. Then I pulled up and removed the cap barrier to have access to the screw. Removed the screw and pulled up the cloths mover. Tunrned the cloths mover over to remove the bearing cam to remove the broken agitator cogs and replaced them with the new ones. I held the bearing cam with my right hand and held the cloths mover with my left hand turning it slowly with my left hand and lightly pushing down with my right hand until the cloths mover made contact with the grooves of the shaft and it sunk down on the shaft. Replaced the screw and washer then the cap barrier , next the fabric softner dispenser. Took 10 min. to complete the job. Now my washer runs like new ! Plus, I have a happy wife!

Pulled cap off top of agitator, loosened bolt down in center of assembly and pulled collar up with pliers.
Removed old dog ears and replaced. Need to be extra careful on direction of dog ears.

Very simple; even a cave man could do it!

I removed the fabric softner dispenser,removed the inner cover,removed the 1/2" bolt holding the upper agitator to the lower agitator and pulled the upper agitator up and out.Remover the cog holder from inside the upper agitator and replaced the old cogs with the new.They simply set loosely in the holder.I then reversed the process of putting the agitator back and bolting it in,inserted the small cover and dispenser.The entire job took about 5 minutes at most.

The dogs (directional cogs) cause the upper portion of the agitator to turn in one direction only. The clothes don't get clean unless this happens.

The material the dogs are made of wears out in a few months of use.

I buy 4 packages of them at once, every few years.

Pull off the inner cap, unscrew the bolt, remove the old cogs, put in the new ones, reverse the disassembly process and away we go.

Took off softner dispenser, took off bolt cover. Used 7/16 socket with long extension and unscrewed bolt. Pulled up on agitator and out it came. Took out directional cogs and replaced with new. Reversed procedure and I was done. Saved a lot of money by not calling a mobile repair man on this one!

Removed fabric softener dispenser. Inserted screwdriver into slot on side of cover that is on agitator and pried off. Used socket extension to unscrew bolt inside agitator. Lifted out and slid off plastic ring holding agitator cogs . Replaced cogs in the same direction they came out. Since these instructions were here on site at the time I ordered the parts, it made the job very simple and fast...the order came very fast too.

Removed top portion of agitator to expose the nut which held it to the shaft and removed the nut with a socket and ratchet. Removed the entire agitator and carefully took apart the plastic part which held the old directional agitator cogs (4 of them) and removed them and replaced with the new ones which I had ordered. I then reassembled the agitator and dropped it in place and fastened & tightened the one nut which I had removed earlier. The entire process probably took about 10 minutes and we immediately tried the washing machine and observed that the top portion of the agitator was turning exactly as it was supposed to and I am extremely pleased that I was able to make the repairs myself. This was a very pleasant process and I would highly recommend your business to my friends and relatives. Thank you very much for your efficient help.

Sincerely,

Ken Lancaster

I removed the center cap from the agitator, which then exposed an inner cap with rubber seal. These were both easily removed with no tools... just a slight pull. Then the center screw was exposed. I removed that "one" screw and pulled the upper agitator assembly off. The old dog ears literally fell right out. I simply ensured that I placed the new dog ears in the same direction as the old, which is not hard to remember because the little housing piece that holds them is molded in the angle of the ears. Putting it back in took the most time because the new ears can easily fall out. In order to overcome this I had to assemble the pieces that had been removed and carefully put them back in place. At that point I had to manage to get the screw back into position and tighten it up. I put the inner cap with seal back in place and then the agitator cap... Done! It's an old machine but works great with a simple repair. The dog ears were so inexpensive that I purchased two sets. Great site!