Moisture Sensing Accuracy and Location of Electronic Sensors In the Dryer Drum

[verizonbear]

Since doing laundry in my Affinity set that came with the house, I have been astounded how accurate the the auto dry cycle is and and pretty much never have anything come out damp . The moisture sensor is part of the lint filter which is at the door and the front of the drum. I've used a Kitchenaid ( Whilpool Duet ) and the sensor is on the back of the drum near the air vent . If I remember correctly, Maytag actually had the moisture sensor on the tumbling vanes.

So in order of Moisture Sensing sensitivity I would say

1. Drum Vane Sensors
2. Front Drum Sensors
3. Back Drum Sensors
4. Thermostatic Exhaust Sensor

Your Thoughts ?

 

[tecnopolis]

Here's a pic of the older style MAYTAG moisture sensor located on the drum vanes you mentioned. But they have since moved to the lower right of the front bulkhead.
I find that no system is perfect when drying a comforter though. Usually has to be taken out and turned over midway through the cycle.

 

[tecnopolis]

.

 

[DADoES]

 
Left side of the transverse-oriented drum, on the air/filter grill.  Sensor performance is excellent, even with blankets, comforters, bedspreads, etc.  I have a couple (identical) sets of very plush bath towels that trip it up (toward dampness) when dried by themselves but fare better with other items.  Everything else comes out consistent and nicely dried.

 

[logixx]

Another vote for drum vane sensors. I never quite understood why those huge drums only have relatively small sensor strips, when the smaller European drums have (had) the sensors in the drum lifters.

I used to use an Electrolux dryer that actually sensed moisture using the entire drum. It was amazing and would even dry one item on its sensor cycle. My current Bosch Axxis has sensor strips near the opeing, which works fine as well.

 

[combo52]

Electronic Moisture Sensor Location

Of all the different dryer designs I have used I have never had a problem with any doing a Great Job of sensing clothing dampness.

Sensors mounted on the moving parts of the dryer [ drum ] are always going to be the most likely to cause some type of problem as they must relay on brushes to stay in contact with the drum.

 

[pulsator]

I'd like to put forward what is in my opinion one of the worst designs of moisture sensor placement: the Electrolux Wave Touch Dryer. They put the sensor strip on the rear of the drum underneath the hot air intake into the drum. It's terrible! When using a sensor dry cycle, I have to run it two or three times before the load actually dries! It blows all the clothing away from the sensor bar and shuts off prematurely! I've checked for any possible problems, cleaned off the sensor bars, etc and it still can't dry things. I gave up months ago and just use the timed dry cycle for everything! Kind of a pain, but at least I can dry stuff...

 

[rinso]

In my Electrolux IQ Dryer, the sensors are located on the back wall of the drum housing. Even average sized loads hardly ever touch them during tumbling, and yes, the dryer is level. The only cycle that does a good job of dryness accuracy is the mixed load cycle. The other cycles leave the load unacceptably damp.

 

[mixfinder]

Maytag

I have used sensor dryers for years and mostly the Maytag 806 with no timer option. It works perfectly but tests the fabrics contacting the sensor. If I put delicates in with heavier items it tends to trip early when it feels the first of the driest clothes. I learned 40 years ago to load the dryer with similarly weighted items and it works like a charm.

 

[glenfieldmathk1]

as far as I am aware my TVF770 Hotpoint dryer, has the sensors at the bottom of the fluff filter (where the moist air goes before going outside), yet the dryer is very accurate and dry's better than my Grandma's old Candy which had sensors directly in contact with the clothes.
Maybe it depends on the brand, and manufacturers that have knowledge.
In America when we went on Holiday the villa had a Whirlpool Dryer - the one we had was loud, and sensor drying didn't work, and it just shrunk everything, very inaccurate!

 

[MrX]

Where are Miele dryer's sensors?

 

[glenfieldmathk1]

Miele have a sensor all the way around the drum I think
This vid should help

 

[aegokocarat]

my candy GOV580C has an exhaust temperature sensor and it guages how dry the load is by the exahusting temperature, its allways spot on and never have i had trouble with it
mums siemens has two sensor strips around the front of the drum
and my friends beko has two sensor strips around the drum too
Tom

 

[redcarpetdrew]

I always wondered if the system itself affected results. By that I mean the sensing circuit. For example, older Maytags among other brands, used (uses still) a sensor system where one bar is wired to the electronic control while the other is wired directly to chassis ground. I've seen this system malfunction when the incoming power has issues such as spikes or feedback from, say, nearby shop equipment or the like or if the dryer is improperly grounded. Usually, this can be improved or solved by just attaching a ground wire from the chassis to a cold water pipe. Others have both sensor bars wired directly to the control. I would suspect the latter to have a possibly slightly higher degree of accuracy...

RCD

 

[Philip0603]

My Miele has both temp and moisture in the exhaust airflow as it is a bit older.

 

[Iowegian]

@redcarpetdrew: We have had 3 Whirlpool and one Amanatag dryer with moisture sensors. They all have worked very well and have prevented clothes from being overdryed.

It is never a good idea to try to locally ground a piece of equipment to a location other than the main building ground. These days, grounding to a water pipe is not good practice, as many houses have the incoming water line made of plastic. Grounding to a piece of copper pipe in the house does not guarantee a good quality ground. That's asking for trouble...grounds need to go back to the panel and to the ground rods and/or mats to be safe.

 

[redcarpetdrew]

The dryer should always be grounded thru a properly wired outlet, first and foremost. I was talking about a secondary ground strap. Maytag actually packaged a loop of aluminum wire with a special connector designed to be secured to the cold water supply line with the washers and dryers in the box until around the late 90's or early 00's. One of the reasons for this was most likely the fact that Maytags were usually found in older homes with two prong ungrounded 110v outlets...

RCD

 

[Iowegian]

@redcarpetdrew:

Maybe I'm misunderstanding, but there really is no such thing as a "secondary ground". The entire system in a building needs to be connected to the same ground, or bad things can happen, to people and to electronic circuits.

 

[redcarpetdrew]

I agree. What I was taught was that sometimes heavy machinery elsewhere in the house or even next door can send some sort of 'feedback' thru the neutral and mess with the electronic control. Maybe it could be dirty power. Maybe it could be an issue with how the dryer is grounded thru the neutral. It could even be the electrical of the house. All I know is I have a dryer that has issues with the electronic shutoff that cannot be solved elsehow. I ground the cabinet to the cold water shutoff and, low and behold, the system now works like it should...

RCD