How To Wire A Washing Machine Plug

It’s rare to need to fit a plug these days. This is why many people may not know how to. You may need to fit a new plug onto a washing machine if the pre-fitted moulded one has had to be cut off. This may be necessary in order to thread the cable through a hole in a cupboard, for example.

The most common mistake in wiring a plug, is making each wire the same length. Because all pins are not equidistant, this makes the brown wire, which has the shortest distance to reach, far too long. This in turn causes the current carrying wires to be clamped in the cord grip (instead of the main outer cable). The photo shows how the main outer cable needs to be clamped under the cord grip, and never the wires.

The reason it’s important to clamp the outer cable with the cable grip – and not the thin wires – is so that wires cannot be pulled out. This is even more important on things like vacuum cleaners and irons, where the mains lead is constantly being moved and pulled during use because it causes breaks in the copper cable inside and can allow wires to be pulled out. It’s less critical on a white goods appliance but even so, the plug should be fitted properly.

How to fit the plug

Try to wire the plug as shown in the picture above. Once you have cut away the outer cable to expose the live, neutral and earth wires you will find they are all the same length. Hold the cable in position over the cord grip, so that the main outer cord would be clamped properly when pushed under the grip. Then cut each wire to length. Cut the length about 5mm longer than you think just to make sure you have enough length.

You will notice that with most 13 amp plugs, each wire is a different length. After stripping back approximately 6 or 7 millimetres of insulation on each wire, push the outer cable under the cord clamp (or between the cord grip, depending on type of plug) and wire the plug. Make sure all screws are tight. This advice is the same for wiring a plug on any appliance.

Where do the different coloured wires go?

• BROWN to LIVE (L) terminal
• BLUE to NEUTRAL (N)
• GREEN/YELLOW to EARTH (E) terminal.