The vanes in the drum of the washer have broken. I need to replace them, but am having trouble removing them. They have tabs that appear to slide into slots and then the vane is slid into position. However, the old ones don’t seem to want to budge. Do I need to disassemble the drum to get these bad boys out, or is there a simple approach that I am missing? If I need to take the machine apart, is there a manual or guide somewhere that will lead me through the process?
Thanks.
Well, ironic that the one on the seam is giving you trouble.
I think we are all curious to know if you can get the new ones installed without having to take out the spin basket. Frigidaire says to put one screw in each vane when you put in the replacements, and to go to the other side of the vane if the hole is stripped.
Good luck, and let us know how it turns out.
Success!!!
I got the replacements today, and each vane kit included the vane plus the stainless steel screw to hold it in place, and… replacement instructions!!! 
For removal, use a small screwdriver to push open the locking tabs that are located at the center of the base by inserting the screwdriver through the center hole in the top of the vane. The vane then slides (with some effort) to the front of the washer where its tabs can then be popped (with some effort) out of the slots. Ah, but to have known this yesterday… However, a saws-all is not just for breakfast anymore;) , and proves to be quite useful in removing damaged parts, when used with tender care and lots of caution.
My first attempt at reinstallation encountered those pesky locking tabs hindering my efforts to get the vane tabs correctly into their respective slots. The solution to this problem was to simply bend the locking tabs (part of the basket) down to or below the surface level of the basket. A quick spin of the basket confirmed that they did not come into apparent contact with anything. The vanes, themselves, needed to be squeezed at their base where each pair of tabs are in order to allow the tabs to seat properly within their slots. The vane is then pushed back into position. I needed to rig up a bit of a prying bar to get them started, taking care not to damage the rim of the basket in the process, but once they started to slide, they slid into position quite handily. A quick check that the screw holes lined up and a minor tweaking adjustment and everything was "go". The stainless steel screw and its associated predrilled holes require self-tapping, so some elbow grease is needed to get them started. Although a phillips driver would work, a number 2 square head drive will help ensure that the screw heads aren’t stripped in this process. I only had one hole that didn’t want to tap, but pulling the vane back out and reversing it did the trick, as the secondary hole, on the opposing side worked fine.
If I were to do it again, I would only replace one vane at a time. Having all of the vanes removed made it difficult to keep the basket from spinning while trying to get the new vanes in place.
Thanks again for the help. Not sure I would have tackled this otherwise.
Great, glad it worked out and thanks for the detailed response. Now if you just keep those cell phones and iPods out of the wash everything should be ok.
Again, thanks for sharing. I doubt if this issue will come up much but your description will be a big help if it does.
Upon first inspection my washer had NO screws holding in the vane that was broken so I skipped the step removing the screw and the new vane did NOT have a replacement screw. You will find it is in so tight it does not need a screw.
In one of the holes on TOP of the vane, not the screw hole, twist and turn a Philips screwdriver into one of the holes toward the front of the vane leaving room to tap it with a rubber mallet. Do not insert the screw driver far enough to scratch the tub. Hold the top of the screwdriver and tap the screw driver with the rubber mallet toward the front of the machine. It took only a few taps to slide it forward enough that it just lifts out.
You can pull all you want by hand but my guess is you will most likely not break it loose.
Installing the new vane is quite easy. Insert the vane into the larger part of the openings, make sure it is all the way down against the tub so the tabs are as close as possible and tap LIGHTLY with the rubber mallet. (NO screwdriver in this step). Be sure to hold the vane down while tapping it into place to ensure the tabs are tightly secured.
If you choose then you can secure it with a screw. (If provided)
5 Minute project.
Part was $11.00
This was on the Frigidaire Affinity front load model.
By the way out of the 6 Frigidaire appliances I have the only that has not needed repair within three years is the microwave.
I had no luck removing our vane in spite of all the helpful posts. The mystery of how to release the locking tabs eluded me. I finally cut the vane off with a Dremel tool, and am attaching two pictures in hope they’ll help in the future. One pic of the tabs in the up position, and one of them flattened out in preparation for installing the new vane.
I don’t believe I would have been able to flatten the tabs using a screwdriver as suggested. The limited angle of attack allowed by inserting the screwdriver in the top hole and the force required to do so, working blind, would have been very difficult.
With the Dremel the vane was off in under two minutes. That’s the way to go in my book.