|
|
Fixed my clothes dryer today
01-12-2011, 10:54 PM
|
#1
|
Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: May 2008
Posts: 350
|
Fixed my clothes dryer today
Did a complete tune up and cleaning. I have a GE and boy was it easy after watching this. I don't think I'll ever need a new one. Please don't forget the great how-to videos out there before you start any project.
|
|
|
|
Join the #1 Early Retirement and Financial Independence Forum Today - It's Totally Free!
Are you planning to be financially independent as early as possible so you can live life on your own terms? Discuss successful investing strategies, asset allocation models, tax strategies and other related topics in our online forum community. Our members range from young folks just starting their journey to financial independence, military retirees and even multimillionaires. No matter where you fit in you'll find that Early-Retirement.org is a great community to join. Best of all it's totally FREE!
You are currently viewing our boards as a guest so you have limited access to our community. Please take the time to register and you will gain a lot of great new features including; the ability to participate in discussions, network with our members, see fewer ads, upload photographs, create a retirement blog, send private messages and so much, much more!
|
01-13-2011, 01:16 PM
|
#2
|
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 2,395
|
I always like hearing successful DIY stories
DIY has been my life, and it allowed me to early E-R quite unexpectedly. I have passed the DIY basic skills and mindset on to the next generation... I feel real good about that!
I also like to hear stories of repairs, installations etc. that people paid somebody to do, if they mention the dollar amounts, because I am far removed from what it costs to have someone do things, and would like to know.
I'm also considering buying a self-surgery kit. The kit is available in: Hard rubber, glass, or obsidian...
__________________
-- Telly, the D-I-Y guy --
Two fools dancing on the hands of time
|
|
|
01-13-2011, 03:03 PM
|
#3
|
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Oct 2003
Posts: 1,324
|
Dryers are pretty simple to work on, usually, especially if you have 3 hands and steel mesh skin. The sheet metal sharpeners are very good at their job.
I've kept my 30 yr old Maytag gas dryer chugging along with minimally invasive procedures a couple of times. Really a new belt, occasional idler pulley, maybe a set of rollers and a glow plug igniter (gas heater) are about it.
Last problem was extra-long drying cycles, slightly different sound. Turned out that the squirrel cage blower had given way around the motor shaft and was spinning at low rpms relative to the motor (just enough friction left to spin the blower, but not enough oomp to circulate the hot air). Could tell the flame looked backed up but couldn't find a restriction and the dang blower was spinning enough to make it look OK at a casual glance. Took it apart and got a visual on the problem, and it was a simple fix.
__________________
We are, as I have said, one equation short. – Keynes
|
|
|
01-13-2011, 03:19 PM
|
#4
|
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 10,252
|
I changed out the motor in our dryer a few years ago. I found all the fabric softening patina from dryer sheets on all the internal parts to be quite amazing.
|
|
|
01-13-2011, 04:43 PM
|
#5
|
Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: May 2008
Posts: 350
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Telly
I always like hearing successful DIY stories
DIY has been my life, and it allowed me to early E-R quite unexpectedly. I have passed the DIY basic skills and mindset on to the next generation... I feel real good about that!
I also like to hear stories of repairs, installations etc. that people paid somebody to do, if they mention the dollar amounts, because I am far removed from what it costs to have someone do things, and would like to know.
I'm also considering buying a self-surgery kit. The kit is available in: Hard rubber, glass, or obsidian...
|
Exactly how I feel except I'm gonna try drilling my teeth first before I try surgery.
|
|
|
01-13-2011, 04:44 PM
|
#6
|
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: New Orleans
Posts: 47,500
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by LOL!
I changed out the motor in our dryer a few years ago. I found all the fabric softening patina from dryer sheets on all the internal parts to be quite amazing.
|
Aha! Another reason not to use dryer sheets.
I have never had a dryer break, but then I move so much that usually I haven't had one for very long. My present GE gas dryer is about nine years old, which is probably the longest I have ever had a dryer, and has never broken.
__________________
Already we are boldly launched upon the deep; but soon we shall be lost in its unshored, harbourless immensities. - - H. Melville, 1851.
Happily retired since 2009, at age 61. Best years of my life by far!
|
|
|
01-13-2011, 05:05 PM
|
#7
|
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Jun 2006
Posts: 2,083
|
You guys use dryers?!?
__________________
"We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.
(Ancient Indian Proverb)"
|
|
|
01-13-2011, 05:24 PM
|
#8
|
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: East Nowhere, 43N Latitude, NY
Posts: 9,037
|
Nice job!
I will tackle a lawnmower, a chainsaw, a lawn tractor, and even a weedwacker repair, but I draw the line at washers and dryers.
They are not logical, Captain.
__________________
"All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them." - Walt Disney
|
|
|
01-13-2011, 05:42 PM
|
#9
|
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jul 2008
Posts: 35,712
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pete
Did a complete tune up and cleaning...
|
We are still using the 30-yr old Kenmore dryer that we bought when we got married in 1980.
I have never done any tune up. If it works, leave it alone. Oh yeah, I had to change the belt once or twice, and something else that I have forgotten over the years. No How-To videos in those days either.
__________________
"Old age is the most unexpected of all things that happen to a man" -- Leon Trotsky (1879-1940)
"Those Who Can Make You Believe Absurdities Can Make You Commit Atrocities" - Voltaire (1694-1778)
|
|
|
01-13-2011, 06:06 PM
|
#10
|
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 14,328
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zathras
You guys use dryers?!?
|
Thanks for filling in for Khan.
|
|
|
01-13-2011, 06:25 PM
|
#11
|
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Waimanalo, HI
Posts: 1,881
|
I was rather pleased with myself for fixing our last dryer twice, though I wouldn't tackle something as complicated as replacing a belt. Once, ours got clogged with sand (we're near a beach), and when I'd brushed that out, it started right up again. Then the next time it stopped, I sprayed on some WD-40, and that worked fine. But last Fall, it stopped heating up, so we bought a new one.
__________________
Greg (retired in 2010 at age 68, state pension)
|
|
|
01-13-2011, 06:33 PM
|
#12
|
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jul 2008
Posts: 35,712
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by GregLee
...last Fall, it stopped heating up, so we bought a new one.
|
Yeah, that reminded me that I replaced the heating element in mine a few years ago.
__________________
"Old age is the most unexpected of all things that happen to a man" -- Leon Trotsky (1879-1940)
"Those Who Can Make You Believe Absurdities Can Make You Commit Atrocities" - Voltaire (1694-1778)
|
|
|
01-13-2011, 07:33 PM
|
#13
|
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Laurel, MD
Posts: 8,327
|
Actually had a similar experience this weekend. The web is a fabulous resource for DIY. I have not found an ideal site for diagnostics, but I had ruled out everything except the motor on our 22 yo Kenmore gas dryer. Checking prices and inventory on the web was a snap. I found a great site called www.repairclinic.com with professional looking how-to videos which are also on youtube. When I ran into a snag, I googled "whirlpool blower wheel" and found a workaround. I reordered the motor and the additonal part I needed Sunday night and it was delivered UPS on Tuesday and I had it all done in a couple of hours.
__________________
...with no reasonable expectation for ER, I'm just here auditing the AP class.Retired 8/1/15.
|
|
|
01-14-2011, 07:33 AM
|
#14
|
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 14,328
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by jazz4cash
Actually had a similar experience this weekend. The web is a fabulous resource for DIY. I have not found an ideal site for diagnostics, but I had ruled out everything except the motor on our 22 yo Kenmore gas dryer. Checking prices and inventory on the web was a snap. I found a great site called www.repairclinic.com with professional looking how-to videos which are also on youtube. When I ran into a snag, I googled "whirlpool blower wheel" and found a workaround. I reordered the motor and the additonal part I needed Sunday night and it was delivered UPS on Tuesday and I had it all done in a couple of hours.
|
Thanks for the link. This site is quite useful, as well. Repair techs seem to frequent their forum.
Fixitnow.com Samurai Appliance Repair Man: Do-It-Yourself Appliance Repair Help for all Brands and Models!
|
|
|
01-14-2011, 07:54 AM
|
#15
|
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: East Nowhere, 43N Latitude, NY
Posts: 9,037
|
__________________
"All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them." - Walt Disney
|
|
|
01-14-2011, 08:56 AM
|
#16
|
Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: May 2008
Posts: 350
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zathras
You guys use dryers?!?
|
I would love to stop but I have no place to hang clothes. Too many trees in the back yard and neighbors in front who would complain.
|
|
|
01-14-2011, 09:06 AM
|
#17
|
Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: May 2008
Posts: 350
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by NW-Bound
I have never done any tune up. If it works, leave it alone.
|
I generally follow this rule too, but if a dryer gets clogged it might not be working at its best. It could also be a fire hazard. I opened mine up to repair a squeak and found a clump of lint blocking the tube just beyond the lint screen. I get much more air flow now.
|
|
|
01-14-2011, 09:09 AM
|
#18
|
Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Oahu
Posts: 26,860
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by freebird5825
|
Did I mention he's a Navy veteran?
I've saved thousands of dollars on that site. The last repair was an $8 relay in a $350 microwave oven that's part of a matched wall-oven set. The other handymen on the site walked me through the troubleshooting process to figure out the problem. I had to practically field-strip the microwave down to the chassis to find the part and replace it, but bringing that sucker back to life was worth the love offering and the beer-fund donation.
His best tip, though, was for electric dryers. He pointed out that when a dryer runs but does not heat, one cause may be a partially-tripped ganged circuit breaker. The breakers are supposed to trip together but don't always do so, and if only one leg trips then it's possible to have 120v going to the dryer motor without the 240v to the heater coil. The "fix" is to open and then re-shut the breaker.
Next project: fixing the ice-dispenser door on our Fridgezilla.
__________________
*
Co-author (with my daughter) of “Raising Your Money-Savvy Family For Next Generation Financial Independence.”
Author of the book written on E-R.org: "The Military Guide to Financial Independence and Retirement."
I don't spend much time here— please send a PM.
|
|
|
01-14-2011, 11:56 AM
|
#19
|
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Oct 2003
Posts: 1,324
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pete
I would love to stop but I have no place to hang clothes. Too many trees in the back yard and neighbors in front who would complain.
|
For most of my clothes, I use a wooden rack in the spare room. Just open the window and put the rack nearby and its usually done by the next day (sooner when the Santanas are blowing). The rack sort of accordions closed for easy storage in a corner. Wife prefers the dryer.
__________________
We are, as I have said, one equation short. – Keynes
|
|
|
01-14-2011, 12:34 PM
|
#20
|
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Cooksburg,PA
Posts: 1,874
|
Always looking for repair tips.
Coverted my dryer from gas to propane a couple of years ago. Then converted it back again when we converted the house over to natural gas.
I was surprised at the flimsy belt used to turn the drum.
Free to canoe
|
|
|
|
|
Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
|
|
Posting Rules
|
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
HTML code is Off
|
|
|
|
» Recent Threads
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
» Quick Links
|
|
|