Maytag DG606 Prematurely shuts down despite incomplete drying

[d-jones]

These are the parts that make up that assembly.

 

311538 - carbon brush holder

311539 - carbon brush spring

311540 - carbon brush cover

311542 - carbon brush

 

Your carbon brush cover is likely still fine (it's the copper bit you see there), but everything else will need to be replaced. The brush holder can be found at the link below, which is great since it's the only part you would have a hard time making. I have no source for the spring or the little brush, but those can be fabricated without too much trouble. The parts assemble as shown in this drawing.

https://www.a-1appliance.com/lookup/50901/286473#

 

[wmjpate]

Thanks For the info

I actually had found that detail but not the physical carbon brush holder which is all I really need. Found the brush and spring in the bottom pan as I began the cleanup process. You guys are a great source for finding unique items. I was actually going to try to modify the below brush and assembly if the brush was spaced 3/8" from the anchor point as is the original holder. Was waiting to hear from the vendor to determine the dimensions to see if it might work.

Thank you so much.

Pardon Our Interruption...

 

[wmjpate]

Ugh, I now need a new burner tube

I now need a new Burner Tube - Part # 1245820 Mfg Part # Y302544
3-2544 as the baffles at the discharge end have deteriorated and are mostly gone. Oh well. Didn't expect this having replaced it about 10 years ago.

 

[d-jones]

Two of those burners are currently listed on eBay. It’s great that you were able to find the spring and brush. It certainly simplifies things for you.

 

[washdaddy]

member's collection photo's

If you get the chance you should check out the member's photos of their collections. You would be surprised at some of the collections they have. Several members have converted entire basements to oversized laundry rooms because of their love of vintage W/D's and other appliances as well.

This group of people are extremely helpful and willing to assist with problems and situations concerning those wonderful machines.

BTW welcome to the club. You've come across a great group of people from all over the world

 

[jons1077]

Maranoman

Nice collection! I’d love to grab a goldenrod DE806 to match my 1970 806 washer if you ever decide to part with one.

 

[wmjpate]

Thank you so much for the parts links. Some progress images.

I really appreciated a tip to look at e-bay, D-Jones. That's my typical first place to look but after the recommendation to follow your link to A-1 appliance to find the brush holder I didn't continue back to e-bay where I had been searching. I owe you a beer, as I snagged one last night for $25. I actually think they would have taken less. In hindsight I may go back and get a spare..... that assumes I get the unit running as desired.

I'm not going to pretty this unit up too much but am treating the rust with and replacing parts that need attention. Im hitting the rust with Locktite rust neutralizer after removing as much of the surface rust as possible. I'm painting sparingly as I want to make it a functional unit once again!

Bill

 

[wmjpate]

HOH Gas Control unit Orifice size? Bizzare Thermocouple ?

I had previously asked about increasing the orifice size of the gas control unit. Interestingly as I began investigating this issue I discovered the orifice was blocked significantly, maybe 50% or more. I first cleaned it using my fingers to rotate the bit, a 5/64 bit which offered resistance but not much. With this I tried a 3/32 bit which too seemed to easily move the accumulation from the orifice fairly easily. When I tried the 7/64 bit, I found resistance and didn't proceed further. Does anyone know the technical orifice size for this HOH unit? I'm happy I at least investigated this but as usual it brings more questions.

Also I guess in 50 years I've never had to address a bad thermocouple on this unit because I was fully shocked to see the bizarre unit design being used. Certainly not anything that would be considered "standard". Can anyone fill me in about this unit and it's availability or any retrofit capability to use a more traditional design?
You guys got the answers, and I've got the questions.
Thank you,
Bill

 

[maytag85]

I actually plan on doing something similar to my Maytag DG306 sometime soon and plan on painting the heck out of the base, rear panel, and many other parts so it won’t rust anymore. Even considering painting the entire inside of the cabinet with POR15 to rust proof it even more and plan on putting a coat of grey paint over that as well. Might be overkill but it’s worth it if it prevents it from rusting any further.

 

[wmjpate]

insulated burner tube retrofit & burner orifice size?

As it was explained to me that the HOH DG606 had its gas burner governored down to only allow 18,500 BTUs. I retrofit the burner tube and the dr um insulator with specialized Titanium Fiberglass Thermo Header Wrap Insulation that is designed to withstand 1,800 degrees of continuous heat exposure. I did see evidence of the felt being damaged which I fixed and then applied this material over the top of the felt.

I'm still looking for anyone who can give me an answer as to what the orifice size is on the original production gas control unit. Ultimately I'd like to bore it to provide 25,000 BTUs. As it stands It appears that the original diameter may be 3/32 after cleaning it out. As always, thank you. Bill

 

[lowefficiency]

I'm not quite sure that insulating the burner tube is a good choice?

Most header and exhaust wraps are heat cured, and will smoke (and smell awful) for a fair amount of time while this happens. And by insulating the burner tube, internal temperatures will rise, perhaps higher than the designers intended for the air, the burner tube itself, and the felt seals. Having loose fiberglass fibers in the intake air path could be problematic as well.

 

[d-jones]

I would be very cautious about enlarging that orifice. You'll notice that after traveling through the combustion cone the heated air enters a mixing chamber. That mixing chamber has a number of openings designed to allow non heated air to mix with the heated air on its way to the drum cover, which reduces the overall temperature of the air entering the drum. That was done deliberately by the folks at Maytag and I'm going to assume they had a good reason. As John (combo52) is fond of pointing out, the gas version of the Halo of Heat dryer is a somewhat wonky compromise design. Unlike the electric HoH dryers where the air is heated over the entire 360 degrees of the drums front end as it passes over the heating coil, on the gas versions the bulk of the heated air never makes it all the way across the drum before it enters it, so the heating is not as uniform. Since there's no way to increase air flow to match an increase in heat due to a larger orifice, it seems to me that overheating could become a real problem, especially as lint builds up on the filter. I won't tell anyone not to experiment, but if you're determined to make changes, just be sure to carefully consider the effects of those changes and stay safe.

 

[wmjpate]

Thanks for the feedback on increasing the BTUs

Thank you all. As expressed, I was just investigating. Your discussions are compelling reasons not to attempt anything but to clean out the orifice to its original design, which is what I have completed. Additionally, I saw the felt damaged on the drum below the burner tube, so I added some protection there to protect my fixes. Still waiting for parts. They sent a electric coil vs the carbon brush holder. Oh well. So I still waiting to install the remaining burner tube and brush holder parts.

 

[wmjpate]

Standing Pilot won't stay lit .... figures, right!

Got everything back together and mechanically functioning but in the back of my mind had concerns about the standing pilot which came to fruition. It will start but not keep lit even after 2 min. Is there a way to test it w/o removing it and/or is there a way to adjust the pilot flame? This component wasn't touched but for cleaning the burner control. Figures, right? I really don't want to have to pull the cabinet apart again. UGH!

Bill

 

[rp2813]

It sounds like that bizzare thermocouple could be the problem.  If the pilot stayed lit before, something may have been disturbed, or maybe the pilot flame needs adjusting. 

 

The experts here will have to advise on whether a retrofit with a standard thermocouple is possible, and if you can accomplish it via the access cover on the front panel.  It's been so long since we had our DG806 I can't remember what access is like down there.

 

[combo52]

Pilot Won'T stay Lit On A MT HOH Dryer

Hi, Your dryer does NOT have a thermocouple, MT only used a TC system on the first HOH dryers in the late 50s before going to the system your dryer has and most other manufactures used that did not have electric ignition.

 

Your dryer uses a Mercury pilot safety, the bulb at the end of the tiny SS tube has mercury in it and it is heated by the pilot flame. On the other end of the tube there is a small SS diaphragm that expands and extends a pin that holds a valve open so gas can flow whenever the solenoid is energized.

 

These MPSs get weak, this was a very common problem back in the day, I am sure I changed a few hundred of them.

 

John

 

[wmjpate]

Fini! Finished! Done! Success! Thank you all for your help!

I completed the project and my DG606 fired up, albeit not without a struggle. It took some sage advice from D-Jones to finish the task, "buy the DG606 manual on the web site!"and other significant contributions like where to find the brush holder: It was a whole other story about the vendor getting it to me.

Anyway, the final problem was a stogey thermocouple and pilot that kept shutting down when initially being lit. OF COURSE AFTER PUTTING THE CABINET BACK TOGETHER FULLY! Pulled the new burner tube out and attached pilot assembly and as recommended by the manual, clean pilot orifice, which as the primary burner orifice was partially restricted. As small copper wire, the same gauge I used for cleaning carburetors, did the trick. Reassembled the burner tube and fired it up and all is good so far.

As a point of note. the burner tube # 3-2544 appears to no longer be available so I snagged a YP33002793 (image below) that I retrofitted with a mounting bracket and redrilled a hole in the pilot assembly that would marry in line to the new burner tube.

Also, getting back to the vendor story, instead of sending me the miniscule carbon brush holder (pn: Y311538), their last one as I tried to buy 2 @ $.80 and $7 shipping, they sent me a Maytag Heavy duty Dryer Heating element (pic below) pn: WPY313538 which they told me to sell as it wasn't worth shipping back to them. All for an $.80 part.

To all, thank you. Your recommendations, concerns and advice were taken into consideration and certainly made this rebuild dooable.

 

[maytag85]

Old thread

But are there any updates on this dryer? I wonder how well it works with 25,000 btus of heat.