Casing

Unlike what appearances may suggest, the washing machine's casing is actually made from multiple distinct parts. The metal plates on the base and back are attached to the rest of the casing via screws and gaps in which extrusions on these parts slot into, and the casing itself is attached to a frame in the same manner.

The majority of the washing machine casing is made from the same material, that being galvanized steel so as to make it both durable and resistant to rust. However, the top of the machine is different, being made from medium density fiberboard coated with a protective layer to prevent it from degrading.

Main Shell

The main shell of the washing machine serves a few purposes. First, the casing is what holds all the internal mechanisms in the position they are supposed to be in. For example, the drum shell is held suspended in the middle of the casing with the use of springs and suspensions, which are all attached to the casing to hold it stable while it spins. Additionally, the main shell of the washing machine also serves as protection from the outside environment, as repeated impacts could damage the individual parts. In order to achieve this goal of protecting the internal mechanisms, the shell is made from galvanized steel, which is hard, strong, and resists rusting, not to mention it is cheaper than stainless steel.

The manufacturing process in which this part of the washing machine is most probably cutting and cold pressing from sheets, judging by the extrusions and holes that can be seen on the surface, as well as the lack of other giveaway markings.

Galvanized Steel

The metal parts of the casing are made of galvanized steel that has been powder coated white. Hot dip galvanizing has been performed, where the metal is dipped in a bath of molten zinc, as opposed to electrogalvanizing where the process involves electroplating Zinc on steel. This type of galvanizing creates a coat of Zinc 5-10x thicker that can last 34 to 170 years. Galvanized steel allows resistance to rust and , to a certain extent, chemical corrosion.

A video on the process of steel being galvanized can be seen below.

Top

The top of the washing machine, similarly to the rest of the casing, serves the purpose of protecting the mechanisms inside the washing machine. However, unlike the rest of the casing, this part is made from medium density fiberboard, a type of wood made synthetically out of wood fibers, as the name suggests. There are two reasons behind this. Primarily, MDF is a rather cheap material, and its downsides of being somewhat lacking in strength are not important, as it does not hold any of the weight of the internal mechanisms. Secondly, MDF is also fairly impact resistant, which is likely taken into consideration because people are likely to place household items such as detergent on top of it.

This part of the washing machine shell is definitively made by being cut from a larger piece of MDF, being covered with a layer of protective material so as to counteract the MDF's weakness to water. It is held in place with a galvanized steel frame without screws, simply being held in place between two individual pieces.

MDF (Medium Density Fiberboard)

MDF is best known for being cheap , yet fairly strong, stiff and easy to find in useable shapes and sizes. A square of MDF is glued to the top of the washing machine to keep the top from concaving and providing structural support. It also provides some weight that keeps the top from moving too much when the machine is in use.

However, MDF does expand with water and slowly releases urea formaldehyde which is a toxic substance which may cause irritation to the eyes and lungs with exposure, and therefore a protective layer is glued on on it to prevent this.

A video on the manufacturing process of medium density fiberboard can be seen below.

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