This is NOT my week

[automagic]

Hey guys,
I have another problem. I put a load of towels in my 1-18 dryer, about 60 mins ago and there are still cold and wet. The drum is tumbling but the heat is not comming on. I checked the breaker, that not it. What could it be, how do I fix it?
Thanks
Donnie

 

[coldspot66]

Could be an open heating element or an open operating thermostat or hi limit thermostat.

 

[automagic]

Thanks for narrowing it down coldspot. Is there anyway to tell which of the three it is or is it hit or miss?
Donnie

 

[pturo]

1-18 Dryer

I had a similar problem with my plainwrap Roper. A neighbor came over with an electical meter that measured voltage flow to see if there was electrical continuity in each connection to the limit switch, thermostat or the heating element itself. He was able to do this with the machine off. It was the heating element, the meter read dead when he connected the pos and neg to it where the needle jumped on the other connections, so we were able to pinpoint it. I hope this helps. Phil

 

[coldspot66]

First of all, be sure you are getting 220 volts at the receptacle.You will need a volt/ohmmeter for this.
IIRC the lower front panel is removable, which will expose the operating thermo. Heater cone is inside the opening with 2 wires attached to it. With the dryer unplugged, you can test the element for continuity with a ohmmeter. If the needle sweeps upscale, the elements are good, if not, they are open and must be replaced. There should also be a wiring schematic pasted to the back of that removable panel. See if the hi limit thermo ( usually mounted to the heater cone) is open. Also look for burnt wires to the heater cone. Hope this helps!

 

[Designgeek]

Be sure to make all those tests with the power cord *unplugged* or you might end up dead unless you know exactly what you're doing. And never use an ohm meter on a device with power plugged in or you'll blow up your meter and possibly fry yourself too.

I'm guessing it's an open heating element. I had that problem last year. Depending on the unit, it can be a pain to replace (as in, major disassembly, dryer parts spread out all over the kitchen floor, without the manual....).