How to tell if your washer is out of balance?

Determining whether a residential washing machine is out of balance involves observing physical movement, listening to unusual operational noises, and watching for error codes on the digital display. Key signs of an unbalanced load include the washing machine rocking, shaking, or "walking" across the laundry room floor during spin cycles, loud thumping or banging noises as the inner basket slams against the outer tub, or the digital control console flashing an "UE" or "Ub" imbalance error code. You can troubleshoot balance easily by pausing the cycle to inspect the laundry distribution. You can verify that your corrective action is successful when redistributing clumped garments evenly inside the drum or adjusting the leveling feet allows the machine to spin smoothly without vibrating violently.