Vintage Kenmore Dryer Questions

[corvairstorm]

Hello everyone, I just joined & I have a few Vintage appliances & wanted to start with my dryer.

I purchased this about 5 days ago now & have installed it & are about to use it as soon as I get a load of clothes to dry but wanted to see if anyone out here knew more about it as quick googling lead me to nothing. I asked on a Facebook group & got some info but figured I'd try here too.

I was told it is a 1958 Kenmore Whirlpool Dryer & it is the basic model without a front access lint trap & what would have been behind the unit at the top right is gone so I installed a in line unit.

Anyway, any additional info would be great!

Thanks

Kyle

 

[maytag85]

This is a Kenmore 29” dryer built by Whirlpool. This is the first incarnation of the 29” dryer design by Whirlpool before it was changed in 1961 then again in 1966.

This only has one drying cycle which is approximately 55 minutes to 1 hour.

Has 5 temperatures, air, low, warm, medium, high.

This particular model didn’t come with a lint screen since it was a basic model, there was one you could have gotten which mounted to the very back of the machine but most just let the lint exhaust to the outside since most laundry areas were on a exterior wall around this time.

The inline lint filter may help, but may cause performance issues. These older Whirlpool built dryers have the inlet and exhaust behind the drum, if the airflow is restricted or choked down, it may cause the air to scoot behind the drum reducing efficiency greatly. Same thing can happen if it’s jammed full of clothes since the incoming air will just bounce off the drum going out the exhaust. A few people have mentioned over the years putting felt weather stripping by the inlet to help guide the heated air through the drum but will be a undertaking since the cabinet has to come off of the base and the drum out.

If the ductwork is short, shouldn’t have any issues with lint accumulating in the ductwork/venting. May actually be faster without a lint screen since the airflow will remain the same throughout the duration of the drying cycle.

Be sure the oil the drum bearing, blower bearing, slider/tensioner/reduction pulley to ensure everything continues to operate smoothly and reliably.

Also want to get an extra set of belts incase if the belts are original to the machine.

Hope this helps.

 

[repairguy]

Welcome! Yes it is a 1958. Congratulations and enjoy.

 

[corvairstorm]

Wow, thanks for all that info! That is great to hear so much about this dryer so quickly. I'm glad I joined to get this info. I would like to try to find a manual, although I can't seem to find one. I also was doing testing & it was quite noisy to start so I did find the oil spots & oiled with 2-3 drops & tested. The noise went away slowly to just a hum. I'm happy about that. I cleaned some dust on the inside & the belt looks okay although I'm sure it's quite old. As for the lint screen, it's quite a long vent so I'm not so fortunate there. Although it seems that it's venting without issues. I will keep an eye on my first cycle with it.

A couple more questions, where could I find a manual that I could physically buy and have? eBay? Where could I try to find a spare belt? Also? eBay?

Lastly, what is a safe amount of clothes to put in? No more than half the drum full? What is the safe limit? The reason I switched from my Maytag dryer from the '80s to a 1958 was that a heating element had gone bad and I always enjoy collecting and using vintage appliances. I am now trying to find a 1958 ish Kenmore washing machine but it is proving difficult. I'm located in Northeast Ohio and searching Facebook and Craigslist. I came up with nothing.

Thank you again!

 

[appnut]

The safe limit would be wet laundry from a washer load to be half full.

 

[maytag85]

Since this is a basic dryer without any auto dry, just timed drying, should be easy enough to fix, no repair manual required. Any issues with not heating etc. can easily be found on YouTube. All the principles for diagnosis and repair are on YouTube such as electric dryer not heating, electric dryer taking too long to dry.

May be slightly different on your dryer, but if your dryer for example, has a issue with the cycling thermostat(s), you can check the thermostat for continuity to see if it’s bad, if it is you can source a replacement, usually the Supco thermostats work since they have all kinds of thermostats available.

 

[corvairstorm]

Thanks again guys, I will keep it only half full with wet clothes.

Yes that makes sense, the reason I like the original manual is just because I feel like the machine is complete with it. I have manuals for my vintage cars, oven, etc... it's always fun to see the way things were written as it was a different time for 40's-60's items. Yes I plan to search YouTube in case I run into issues.

Is there a for sale place here for me to find more vintage appliances? As I have searched Facebook & only find ring washers (they are cool & whatnot but I'd like square washers) and a few 80s. Mostly all 2000s items.

 

[DADoES]

 
<blockquote>Is there a for sale place here for me to find more vintage appliances?</blockquote> Shoppers Square (the purple section) is for board members to post items for sale or wanted ... and to courtesy-share sales found while perusing online sources (FB Marketplace, CraigsList, HiBid and other auction sites, etc.).

 

[combo52]

1958 Kenmore electric dryer

Hi Kyle, thanks for posting pictures of your dryer.

These were fairly rugged dryers. I worked on many of them over the years and fairly easy to repair, if you’re going to use it as a regular dryer, the most vulnerable parts that are hard to find are the blower bearing and the timer the belts heating elements and thermostats are all over the place, except for the adjustable thermostat for the main heat control that’s a little hard to find.

This dryer will be a little slower than your 80s Maytag and use about 25% more electricity, but they were decent dryers. They should generally not be loaded with heavy clothing, more than 1/3 full or better way to figure it out is to weigh the clothing after dry. It should never be more than 12 pounds or so.

Generic service manuals from repair master or Sears or even whirlpool for these old dryers are around, trying to find repair advice online is mostly gonna pertain to things newer than 1966, so not specifically useful for this Dryer.

John

 

[maytag85]

Here’s one thing you may want to consider on picking up if you haven’t already, Zoom Spout non-detergent turbine oil. Very handy for lubricating the blower and drum bearing. Not sure how often the blower bearing will need oil (John might know the answer to that), but if this dryer isn’t used all that often, once a year is safe bet. Same thing with cleaning any lint or dust that may have accumulated inside the machine as well.

 

[countryford]

Nice dryer. I was in Ohio last week (not for the eclipse) and had seen that dryer. I was considering buying it and hauling it back to Minnesota with me. But I need another dryer like I need another hole in my head. LOL. Besides my truck was already full with another dryer and 2 washing machines.

I'm glad it sold to someone who will appreciate it and actually use it. Good luck to you.

Justin