Antivibration washing machine mat

November 12, 2023 11:14 AM

Hello, I am looking for an anti-vibration mat for under our washing machine. Our friend in the downstairs apartment is pretty much bounced around her room when our washing machine is running. There is virtually no insulation between up and downstairs. We can actually hear her yawn down there.

I have looked around but not found much in Google or any of the typical home-improvement stores. I have tried the individual rubber pads that go under each foot of the machine, but they do almost nothing. Bonus question(s): if I have to go with a new washing machine, do you have any experience with those with vibration control? Do they actually work? what brands should I stay away from? Thank you in advance.

posted by manageyourexpectations to Home & Garden (14 answers total)

I have a couple of layers of ordinary close cell foam yoga matting under my stationary bike, but your situation is a lot more extreme. However close cell foam pads are inexpensive enough you could try them.

They do wear out, so that could be an issue that might make them a good short term choice while you look for other more durable options.
posted by Jane the Brown at 11:40 AM on November 12, 2023

Best answer: An anti-fatigue mat might do the trick. They're not cheap, but they're designed to absorb some shock and they're relatively durable. And it looks like straight-up anti-vibration washer/dryer mats are a thing. They're not super cheap, but decent rubber mats are just straight-up not cheap. (They're heavy and expensive to ship - you might try a local big-box hardware store, too.)
posted by restless_nomad at 12:11 PM on November 12, 2023 [1 favorite]

Put a 50 pound weight on top of the washing machine. I used a 5 gallon bucket of rocks, but a bag of gravel or sand works well. This will be annoying if you have a top -loader: in that case, once you prove it works, you could use sheet metal screws and mount some heavy-duty bags to the sides and fill with gravel.

However, nothing is going to work well if you can hear her yawning. The Laundry Alternative has some options.
posted by flimflam at 12:43 PM on November 12, 2023 [2 favorites]

To talk about your bonus question:

1. My sister has a Miele washer and its anti-vibration control is amazing. I have stayed in the bedroom below the room their Miele is in, and I have never had a problem with noise. I would 100% recommend Miele if you can afford it (and can get used to doing smaller loads of laundry much more often).

2. We, on the other hand, have an LG and its vibration control is mostly good, but I even on its best day I would not want to live downstairs from it. As it starts its spin cycle it repeatedly spins the tub up and then slows it back down to a stop. Every time it does this, it will pass through a specific RPM range that's basically the opposite of what it can balance, so it will WHUMP WHUMP WHUMP whump whump whump on the way up and WHUMP WHUMP WHUMP whump whump whump on the way back down. Eventually it will do this enough times that it's satisfied that it's safe to spin all the way up, and then it will go to MAXIMUM SPEED. At MAXIMUM SPEED it stays balanced and is surprisingly quiet, but the problem is that it's done the whumping routine like a dozen times before it gets to that point. Also its drain pump is super loud (and tends to fail – I've replaced it four times in ten years). I'm not sure I'd recommend an LG to anyone else, but OTOH it's not like it's hard to replace that pump. I can do it without a guide, because I've done it FOUR TIMES.

3. My sister-in-law has a Samsung. It seems to be better about the whumping than our LG is, but I think it's louder at the maximum speed of its spin cycle than our LG is. She hasn't had it long enough for me to know if it has an achilles heel like our LG does with its drain pump or if Samsung's long term support is as bad as it's rumored to be.
posted by fedward at 1:23 PM on November 12, 2023 [3 favorites]

Years ago I did my whole basement floor using this stuff and so both the washing machine and dryer sit on it. It might help with your problem (???) and you'll need much less.
posted by forthright at 1:36 PM on November 12, 2023

Best answer: Rubber stall mats are really thick and come in large sizes.
posted by evilmomlady at 3:14 PM on November 12, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: The first thing to check is that the machine is absolutely level, the slightest wobble will be accentuated by the regular motion.
You want the connection to the floor to be as stiff as possible to increase the resonant frequency.
posted by Lanark at 4:14 PM on November 12, 2023 [4 favorites]

Best answer: In reply to your second question: we have a Bosch which is amazingly quiet. You need to look at the Series 6 or 8 machines (which are generally made in Germany), the lower lines are nothing special. Miele might be even better but at least where we are they are more expensive.
posted by riddley at 4:41 PM on November 12, 2023

As far as mats go, rather than getting a random rubber mat (which, tbf, may work fine!) I would personally get a Sorbothane mat first. They work better for my applications (which are not washing machines, please note!). Amazon sells a variety of them.

...the link above is for washers, but they also sell sheets, pads, half-spheres, and so on.
posted by aramaic at 6:17 PM on November 12, 2023 [2 favorites]

Best answer: Just in case, there is something about the foam gym/romper room puzzle pads that my cat feels required to pee on. It is very unpleasant, so if you have a cat or two you might want to test out before moving the heavy machine.
posted by drowsy at 7:46 PM on November 12, 2023

Rubber stall mats are really thick and come in large sizes.
Another vote for this. The things are designed to have horses standing above them which means that have to be tough, waterproof and have give on them. Because they are often priced to cover a big area they can work out less expensive than other (pretty much equivalent) solutions priced for other purposes. Because they are made from thick rubber, they have excellent noise isolation properties (I have one in my home office which lies above a bedroom - works well for making sure any movement upstairs does not disturb those below).
posted by rongorongo at 12:17 AM on November 13, 2023

Floor, rubber stall mat, concrete pavers, rubber stall mat, washing machine, done.
posted by flabdablet at 3:06 AM on November 13, 2023

Seconding that levelling the washing machine makes a really big difference.

We have a Miele that is really very quiet. It was also about twice the price of a standard brand washing machine including the discount because it was the floor model.
posted by plonkee at 5:28 AM on November 13, 2023

And just to be sure, verify that the washers shipping bolts have been removed. If it was recently transported, it's possible they were never removed. See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9ToIKKCDW4 for example.

If they aren't removed, the washer will shake a ton.
posted by alikins at 11:03 PM on November 14, 2023