New to Halo of Heat, and I have issues.

[volvoguy87]

I am in Cincinnati, Ohio visiting a former housemate and thinking of moving here. He just bought a glorious wreck of a Victorian house that is a bit of a work in progress. He also bought a Maytag A206 and DE306. Thus far, I have learned how to light the pilot of a gas water heater without blowing myself up. Next, I need to move a gas line so we can connect the 1953 Magic Chef range. The 1950 GM Frigidaire refrigerator looks great, but it has not been installed yet.

Now for the meat & potatoes:
The A206 has some SERIOUS hard water and iron deposits. I replaced the belts yesterday because the transmission belt had a large chunk missing. How should I clean the tub of the red iron deposits? I plan to replace the injector tomorrow because it has a nice drip from the left rear corner. The timer is a little tough. It advances just fine, but to set it, you have to push HARD while turning, much harder than my A208. Also, when the timer advances, it makes a scrunching noise. is that normal? It spins and drains just fine, and there is no oil on the bottom or inside. The agitation was is a bit sluggish. Is that because the new belts need to get broken in? By pulling on the motor, the agitation picked up and the motor did not sound stressed. After pulling on the motor for awhile, the agitation was normal without having to pull on the motor. What are your thoughts and recommendations?

The DE306 is my first experience with a Halo of Heat dryer. Comparing it to my old DE308 Big Load dryer, I am very impressed. The HOH has a much shallower drum, but it mostly purrs along like a fine watch. I really like the magnetic door latch and the gasket on the body of the dryer, rather than on the door, is also pretty spiffy.

The problem is that after the dryer warms up, there is a rhythmic screech. It is slow, so I think it is the same speed as the rotation of the drum. Have any of you experienced this, and if so, how do I fix it? Also, is there anything I should replace, adjust, inspect, or lubricate on this dryer? This set is not for show, but will be daily drivers for the foreseeable future.

Just so you don't worry about us moving the stove gas line, all parts and fittings being used are gas-rated. We also know to clean the threads and use yellow gas tape/dope. Hopefully, we won't blow ourselves up in the process. As a side note, what is the procedure for lighting the pilots on a '53 Magic Chef stove?

Thank you,
Dave

 

[tuthill]

Hi Dave, the way you described the slow agitation problem, it sounds like you need to replace the motor mount/springs. They wear out over time and can't produce the right tension that the belt and motor needs.

 

[qsd-dan]

"When the timer advances, it makes a scrunching noise."

Normal, that's the beautiful sound of the early ker-chunking timers.

"The agitation was is a bit sluggish. Is that because the new belts need to get broken in?"

No, it should be fine from the get go. Did you scrub both pulleys squeaky clean? Could be some muck on there or some old belt material stuck to one or both pulleys.

"By pulling on the motor, the agitation picked up and the motor did not sound stressed. After pulling on the motor for awhile, the agitation was normal without having to pull on the motor. What are your thoughts and recommendations?"

Uh-oh. May be time to take the trans apart and clean the old oil/replace with new. However, you may only need a spring/glide kit since the springs loose tension overtime. Get some poly lube for the glides/rollers if the kit doesn't come with it.

"Is there anything I should replace, adjust, inspect, or lubricate on this dryer?"

OH YEAH!

The lower right hand pulley and sliding shaft need to be cleaned and lubricated with turbine oil. The sliding part of the shaft will need to clean and re-greased with bearing grease. Remove the upper pulley and fan housing. Clean both fan bearing and shaft. Liberally apply turbine oil to both areas. If you have access to compressed air, remove the motor blow it out. This should bring it back to the near dead silent operation HOH's are known for.

 

[goatfarmer]

Toilet bowl cleaner will help remove deposits. Also products like CLR will do it.

 

[toggleswitch2]

oh yeah.

I'm needing a cigarette after all of that! LOL

 

[volvoguy87]

Cigarette?

Please don't light a cigarette just yet Toggles, I'm not finished yet! I still have to move the gas line, and we wouldn't want an open flame near that procedure?

I'm just getting started,
Dave

 

[washendry]

IRON OUT

Dave
If you have a local Hardware, go there and ask for IRON OUT, its used to clean rust from Water Softners and toliet tanks, they have it in both spray and granular, if you've got some old towels you want whitened throw them in the Maytag with the Iron Out, it does remove coloring too so be careful, I know you'll have that Pair Hummming sooon!!
Kim

 

[polkanut]

Whink Rust Oxy Stain Remover works great. Look for it at Lowes, Home Depot, Wal-Mart, or maybe a Mom & Pop hardware store. My sister has had very good results with it.

http://whink.com/rust_oxy.htm

 

[volvoguy87]

An update.

I finally got to spend some quality time with the Maytags. I still need to replace the injector on the A206 but that will be soon enough (it is not being used just yet). The dryer is another matter...

The local morons (Home Depot and Lowe's) don't know what turbine oil is. I haven't used it knowingly myself, what is it and where can I buy it? Will regular black grease do for lubricating the sliding shaft? As long as the dryer is being opened up, should I replace the belts? If so, are they still available and what part numbers are they, or should I use generic belts? I seem to remember something about a felt seal on the front, should I replace this too? Does the drum sit on any rollers that would need a little TLC? We are on a pretty tight budget, but we also want to do the right thing and clean, lubricate, and service all the right things on this DE306 so we don't have to do so again.

Thanks again,
Dave

 

[panthera]

Dave,

I used white lithium grease, sparingly and it worked just fine. Turbine grease will be available from a dealer who works with tractors and combines, their shop, if they are nice, will give you a little dixie cup of it. Not cheap, otherwise.

Miele sells little sachets of the hi-temp silicone grease for bearings exposed to sheer and heat (one long-running Miele design put 6.8KW 3phase (the real three-phase, dahlinks, let's not and say we didn't) elements right below the rear drum bearing)

Others who know more than me have commented on the motor sled, but yes, you might make sure the motor is clean and dry, too.

Sounds like a fun project. I fired the sorry asses of the jerks who came to repair the damaged gas lines after the flood last year. They told me white teflon tape and no dope was fine for gas. Well, yeah, sure - not in my honey's house, you jerks. Did them with proper dope. In Europe, we still use hemp and dope if a joint is going behind walls or won't be accessible for easy inspection. Guess hemp would be out in the US 'cause of all the hysterical bull-shit.

 

[volvoguy87]

Gas lines.

I replaced some of the house's gas lines yesterday so we could install the stove in the original location. I did use teflon tape, but it was the yellow gas-rated kind. I cleaned the threads of the black pipe with a wire brush, then I wiped them with a solvent to remove the cutting oil and any oily residue. I let the threads dry, then I wrapped the male threads with the gas tape and screwed them together wrench tight (but not too too tight). When all was said and done, I used the soapy water test to test for leaks and fortunately found none. I purged the line of air and tested for leaks again and still found none. I cleaned the soap off the connections then went out for dinner. I came back an hour later and went sniffin' and smelled no gas.

I will do another round of sniffin' and soap testing the next time I go to the house. Meanwhile, do any of you know how to light the pilot lights on a Magic Chef stove, circa 1953? The gas is shut off to the stove right now, we wouldn't want a kaboom.

Working with gas is not hard, but it is deadly serious business. I usually work very slowly, but I took extra time with the gas lines and made sure to triple check all my work during and after assembly before the gas was even turned back on.

It never ends,
Dave

 

[qsd-dan]

"Will regular black grease do for lubricating the sliding shaft?"

Yeah, that's fine

"The local morons (Home Depot and Lowe's) don't know what turbine oil is. I haven't used it knowingly myself, what is it and where can I buy it?"

You won't find Zout Turbine oil in Homo Depot. Gotta go to an appliance parts outfit to get it, they all have it available. Don't use anything but turbine oil of the brass bushings or you risk damaging them by using grease or some other substance.

"As long as the dryer is being opened up, should I replace the belts? If so, are they still available and what part numbers are they, or should I use generic belts?"

Belt replacement might be a good idea, but not critical. Belt #'s are 311012 and 311013. Try to get genuine Maytag belts. I bought aftermarket belts once and they fit too tight, causing a strain on the motor.

"I seem to remember something about a felt seal on the front, should I replace this too?"

It would be a good idea to replace it if you can actually still get the seal, part# 314820. They're getting rather hard to find now, especially the rear blower housing seal, part# 312901. You'll need some hi temp sealer to glue the seal on.

"Does the drum sit on any rollers that would need a little TLC?"

Nope, drum rollers were used on models staring with the 08 series and up (1975). If you're feeling REALLY ambitious, you can remove the entire drum and lubricate the drum bushings with turbine oil.