Why does my appliance vibrate and walk across the floor?

Almost always one of four things — transit bolts, feet, floor or load — and the order to check them in, because getting it wrong wastes an afternoon on the hardest one first.

Difficulty: beginner
Time: 30 min
Read: 6 min

Short answer

Check the transit bolts first on any machine installed in the last few months: a washing machine with them still fitted vibrates violently and will damage itself. Then level it properly with all four feet firmly on the floor and the lock nuts tightened. Then look at the floor. Then look at how you are loading it. Bearings come last, and they sound different.

A washing machine on spin generates enormous forces, and everything about its installation is designed to keep those forces in the machine rather than in the floor. Only four things really absorb them: the transit bolts being out so the drum can move on its suspension, all four feet in solid contact so the cabinet cannot rock, a floor stiff enough not to flex, and a load distributed evenly enough not to put the drum out of balance. Tumble dryers and dishwashers walk for the same reasons in milder form. The order below is the order of both likelihood and effort.

What you'll need

An adjustable spanner for the feet lock nuts
A spirit level
The transit bolt spanner supplied with the machine (optional)
A sheet of plywood, for a flexing floor (optional)

Step by step

Check the transit bolts if the machine is newly installed.Washing machines ship with bolts through the back panel that clamp the drum to the cabinet for transport, and they must be removed before first use. Left in, the drum cannot move on its springs and the whole machine shakes violently. If it has ever been moved house, check them again — some people refit them and forget.
Level it properly, with all four feet in contact.A spirit level front to back and side to side, on the top of the machine. Adjust the feet until it is level and, critically, until pressing down on each corner produces no movement at all. Three feet on the floor and one hovering is the most common cause of walking, and it will pass a level check while still rocking.
Tighten the lock nuts on every foot.Each adjustable foot has a lock nut that must be tightened up against the base once the height is set. Without it the foot unscrews itself during spin cycles and the machine goes out of level again within weeks. This is the step people skip.
Push each top corner in turn to test for rock.With the machine level, push down firmly on each of the four top corners. Any clunk, movement or rock means a foot is not in contact. Readjust until all four corners are solid. This is a better test than the spirit level alone.
Assess the floor.A suspended timber floor flexes, and a machine on one can shake the whole room while being perfectly level itself. Sprung, uneven or vinyl-over-boards floors all make it worse. A sheet of thick plywood cut to size under the machine spreads the load and often transforms it. Anti-vibration pads under the feet help on hard floors.
Check whether it is jammed against something.A machine touching a cabinet side, a skirting board, a pipe or the machine next to it transmits vibration into the kitchen rather than absorbing it. Leave a small gap on every side, and check the hoses at the back are not pressed hard against a wall.
Look at how it is loaded.A single heavy item — a towel, a duvet, a pair of jeans — balls up on one side of the drum and puts it violently out of balance. So does a very small load, and an overloaded drum that cannot tumble. Wash bulky items with a few smaller ones, and stop the machine and redistribute if you hear an unbalanced spin start.
Distinguish vibration from bearing noise.Walking and shaking is an installation problem. A rumbling or roaring that rises and falls with spin speed, or a grinding, is worn drum bearings — a different fault, usually terminal on a sealed drum, and not fixed by anything above. If in doubt, spin the empty drum by hand and feel for roughness or play.
Check the suspension if everything else is right.Washing machines hang the drum on springs and dampers. A broken spring or a worn damper lets the drum swing far more than it should, and the symptom is severe movement on spin with the machine correctly installed. Both are replaceable parts on many machines and are worth pricing before condemning it.
Recheck the level after a few weeks.Machines settle, feet loosen and floors move. If it starts walking again after a period of being fine, the first thing to check is the feet and their lock nuts rather than anything more serious.

Tips

The corner-push test finds problems the spirit level misses. A machine can be level and still be resting on three feet.
Keep the transit bolts somewhere you will find them. They are needed again if the machine is ever moved, and moving a washing machine without them can damage the suspension.
Anti-vibration pads under the feet are inexpensive and genuinely help on tiled and laminate floors, but they are not a substitute for correct levelling.
If a machine walks only on the fast spin, try a slower spin speed as a temporary measure while you sort the installation. Clothes come out wetter but the machine stays put.

Common mistakes

Running a new washing machine with the transit bolts still fitted — The drum cannot move on its suspension, so every force goes into the cabinet and the floor. It shakes violently and it can damage the machine within a few cycles.
Levelling by eye and skipping the lock nuts — Unlocked feet unscrew themselves during spin cycles, and the machine drifts back out of level within weeks. The lock nut is what makes the adjustment permanent.
Washing a single duvet or towel on its own — It balls up on one side of the drum and produces a violent out-of-balance spin. Add a few smaller items so the load can distribute.
Wedging something under one corner to stop it rocking — It shifts, it does not spread the load, and it puts the machine out of level. Adjust the foot instead — that is what it is for.

If it doesn't work

Violent shaking on a machine installed within the last few months

Cause: Transit bolts still fitted — Fix: Switch off, pull it out and check the back panel. Remove the bolts and fit the blanking caps supplied.

Rocks when pushed at one corner

Cause: One foot not in contact with the floor — Fix: Adjust that foot down until it is solid, recheck the level, then tighten all four lock nuts.

Level, feet locked, still walks on a timber floor

Cause: Floor flexing under the load — Fix: Fit a thick plywood board under the machine to spread the load across more joists, and add anti-vibration pads.

Rumbling or roaring that rises with spin speed

Cause: Worn drum bearings — Fix: This is not a levelling problem. Get it diagnosed — on a sealed drum it is usually terminal, and that is a repair-or-replace decision.

Questions people ask

Why does my washing machine move across the floor when it spins?

In order of likelihood: transit bolts still fitted on a recently installed machine, one or more feet not in solid contact with the floor, feet whose lock nuts were never tightened, a flexing timber floor, or an unbalanced load. Work through them in that order — the first two account for most cases.

What happens if you do not remove the transit bolts?

The drum is clamped to the cabinet and cannot move on its suspension, so the forces of the spin cycle go straight into the machine's structure and the floor. It shakes violently and can damage the drum, the suspension and the cabinet within a few cycles.

How do I know if it is the bearings rather than the installation?

Bearing wear sounds like a rumble or a roar that rises and falls with spin speed, or a grinding, and it is present even when the machine is correctly levelled and loaded. Installation problems produce banging, knocking and movement rather than a continuous noise. With the machine off, spin the empty drum by hand and feel for roughness or play at the rear.