Even with all of the complex looking digital controls on flashy new models Clothes Dryers are rather basic appliances. This is a good thing because diagnosing problems before you have a service contractor take a look can save you a lot of money.
Even better if you are willing to take the time to order some parts yourself most problems can be fixed with a few basic tools.
Basic Parts Of Your Dryer
All dryers no matter what their design will have a few common parts.
The Housing or shell that contains all the parts
The Drum that holds your clothes.
A Motor to spin the drum and a Drive Belt.
A blower motor to pass air through the drum compartment
Heating Elements to heat the air.
Thermostat to control the Heating Elements
A lint trap to catch lint from drying clothes.
An Access Door with cutoff switch
Electric Timer to control the length of the drying process and turn off the dryer when complete. This can be a manual or digital type control the difference is very small either they work or do not.
These parts make up the basic clothes dryer. In addition there are a few other parts within the dryer that are added for safety. You will find a Inline fuse that will prevent damage to the dryer in case of a fault. You will also find a heat limiting thermostat fuse that will cut off the power to your heating elements if for some reason they stayed on or got too hot.
Diagnosing Problems
As you might expect the parts of your dryer that are likely to break are the ones that get the most use.
First remove the clothes from your dryer if it is full and set your timer to 30 minutes.
Does the Dryer operate at all?
If not you can check the circuit breaker for your dryer and the connection at the outlet.
The second most common problem would be your door switch not working. Door switches can usually be replaced without moving your dryer but you will need to order this part unless you have a good service center near you.
Third is the controller or timer. Depending on your model dryer you could have a digital or analog timer. Either way these devices are not repairable by the average home owner so if you find voltage to this device but it is not operating you will need to replace it.
The final reason a Dryer may fail to operate completely is a blown inline fuse. This type of fuse will melt internally and is not repairable. If you need to replace a fuse there is probably an underlying reason the fuse failed.
Does the dryer motor run and rotate the drum?
Checking if the drum is rotating can be difficult. Most often you can tell because you know your own device but if not put a couple coins in the dryer and listen for the noise they make.
If the motor is making noise but it is not rotating the drum then you most likely need a new drive belt. Drive belts can be purchased at the store that sold you your appliance or at any store that carries your brand and Model. Replacing the belt may require lifting the top lid off of your dryer, pulling the dryer away from the wall and accessing it from behind. Bad belts will often squeal for a while before they break or become too loose to operate.
Many drive motors have their own safety breaker switch. Often they trip the breaker when there are more serious problems but you can try resetting it if your model has one.
Do your clothes get dry in a reasonable amount of time?
Clothes are too wet.
First you should never put heavy dripping wet clothes in your dryer. This is why your washer has a spin cycle. Sometimes a spin cycle in the washer will end prematurely because the washer is out of balance. If you place wet clothes in a dryer you will need to wait an extended amount of time for the clothes to dry. This additional time is always much longer then letting the clothes complete the spin cycle. If you find that a heavy load of clothes went through the cycle but is still wet reset the washer to spin them again before placing them in your Dryer.
Lint Trap and Vent Pipe
We are all in a rush and sometimes forget to clean the lint trap in our dryer. If too much lint builds up in the trap or the vent tube line it will restrict hot dry air from flowing over the clothes during tumbling.
Heating Elements
If the Lint Trap and vent is clean then you may have a problem with your heating elements. The first thing you should do is double check the heat setting and make sure you are not running on a delicate cycle.
Turn the dryer on and set it to 30 minutes. Allow the dryer to run for 3 to 5 minutes open the dryer door. Is heat present inside the dryer? Look to the back wall of the dryer and you will see a hot air supply vent. If the heating elements are working you may see an orange glow similar to your kitchen cooktop coils.
If you do not see a glow and there is no heat you could have a blown thermolink fuse or you could have bad elements. For this repair you will need a voltage tester.
Remove the connectors to the elements and test for voltage if you have voltage to the elements then the thermolink is fine and you can replace the heating elements. Often heating elements will go bad one at a time but you should replace both of them since it probably won’t be long until the other goes bad.
Other Problems
There are a number of other parts that can go bad on your Dryer including fan blower cages, bearings, electrical wiring and parts that just wear out.
Most manufacturers will provide an online schematic listing all the parts in an exploded view and corresponding part numbers for ordering.
The YouRepair Store carries a full line of parts and tools to repair your dryer however you may find some parts are no longer available. Call your manufacturer before you call a service person.
Understanding the part costs and their ease of replacement can save you a lot of money in the long run so take the time to visit websites and get part lists whenever you buy a new appliance.