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Our washing machine developed a massive leak that caused a flood. We flipped the machine, and traced it back to two holes in a black rubber hose that appears to be attached to the output of the pump. How do I remove the clip that's securing the hose though?

My initial thought was to squeeze it, since it appears that a lip on the front is what's securing it. It doesn't squeeze though, and trying to squeeze it would reduce the diameter, and that doesn't seem possible since it's securing a hard plastic tube which likely won't compress.

I'm wondering if you need to snap the lip off and put a new clip on, then bend the lip down into place?

The clip:

enter image description here

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    Pry it off, replace with a spiral hose clamp.
    – Hot Licks
    Jan 25, 2021 at 13:03

3 Answers 3

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The existing clip has been crimped on with a crimping tool from the factory. To remove the clamp grip the end of the strap just below the notches and lift it up and back. The notches should bend up as you lift. If they don't pry them up with a slotted screwdriver.

replace with a common hose clamp of nominal size.

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    slotted screwdriver = small pry bar, as usual.
    – computercarguy
    Jan 25, 2021 at 16:57
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They're called ear clamps, they start out life looking like this:

enter image description here

To attach them, the band with the holes is hooked up as tightly as ossible so those "fingers" poke through the holes, and then a tool like this:

enter image description here

Is used to squeeze the lump in the clip and reduce the circumference, squeezing the clip together. It ends up looking more like the sketched black outline:

enter image description here

At a push they can be re-used: bend the small "fingers" straight (on your lip it looks like you'll only need to do the longest one; the others don't hook over the band) by pushing a small flat bladed screwdriver in (red arrow actions) and levering upwards, then separate the clip by pushing the screwdriver in between the bands (blue arrow actions) and lever upwards again. Use pliers to pull the clip band up off the fingers:

enter image description here

Once you've got it off you'll need to use pliers to carefully bend the lump back to close to what it looked like as new (so the clip circumference is bigger), but it'll make your life easier to leave the fingers straight.

For refitting, fit the clip, then bend the fingers down, then use nail-puller style pliers (pictured above) to squash the lump again, reducing the circumference

You can really only do this a limited number of times as the clip will be weakened every time it is bent, but for this application (low pressure water hose) reusing it a couple of times will be possible

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    Don't reuse these clips unless you are on a desert island.
    – D Duck
    Jan 24, 2021 at 15:51
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    Mmmm, yeah it's hardly a high stress application.. And 10pm on a Saturday with a burning need to get the machine up and running when there's nowhere within 50 miles to sell a new one is pretty much a desert island ;)
    – Caius Jard
    Jan 24, 2021 at 15:56
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    Still. Try not to do it. It will work on Saturday night and next week, but when you've forgotten about it, it will let go. And the technical debt that you built up will have to be repaid somehow.
    – D Duck
    Jan 24, 2021 at 16:01
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    I'd love to know how you can guarantee this to the extent that you've emphasized will. I have one of these clips holding the driver side CV boot on on my car, reused in the exact fashion as described here and it's still holding on, some 5 years and 70,000 miles later..
    – Caius Jard
    Jan 24, 2021 at 16:08
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    You haven't forgotten about it yet.
    – D Duck
    Jan 24, 2021 at 16:23
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We managed to contact a family friend. They told us that these aren't reusable and have to be broken to be removed.

We snapped the lip off with pliers to remove it and it came right off.

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