Whirlpool Senseon (Calypso) Dryer - What cracked my drum and is it repairable?

[ovrphil]

Hi friends,

Two years ago 2015 I bought a Whirlpool W & D set. There wasn't a way to plug in the dryer, but I did check out the washer. I carefully brought it back to the apartment and it sat in the garage for about 10 months, til we moved to another apartment. A two man crew brought the set into the laundry room..and I was ready for its maiden wash. The washer has worked fine. Once outfitted with right three-prong plug, the dryer panel lit up and seemed to be ready for any choice. I chose a Normal setting and pressed start...and then a pretty obvious clunk click - something really bad. It didn't take long to notice why...see photos.

Knowing it would be less costly to replace it with another dryer, I got lucky to find another identical unit about an hour or so away, and I've been using it since. I realise that having a second machine for the control panel is always a plus...but recently, I looked at what it might cost to replace the drum(see $99 for a drum)just to have a backup. Often, yes, a CL find might turn up something as much or less than replacing a drum-possibly the least painful path, but these aren't always easy to find nearby at $100 or less.

Has anyone replaced a drum or disassembled one of these dryers to share, what is involved? Also, has anyone ever seen such a cracked drum before? Any ideas about how this could happen? I don't think the drum can be fixed, but maybe some of you experienced people have repaired a cracked drum - seems like a bad idea, though. Also, I have no idea what lies beneath, but the drum rotates on something that could also be demaged.

So, at this point, I haven't downloaded a service manual or studied what's involved, but I have been thinking of saving this dryer versus removing the board and letting the rest go. Maybe.

Thanks for any ideas, shared experiences or opinions...

I
Phil

 

[henene4]

What cracked it

As far as I would judge, that just seems like material fatigue.

The crack starts right at the begining of the weld and the area around welds on thin metal parts is always heavily altered by the rapid heating and cooling. The material partially hardens which makes it more brittle.
If it sat unused for so long in a position that might have put some slight strain on that specific spot and was transported that way, the material might have warped ever so slightly.
Then, when you started the cycle, that verry slight deformation put strain on the more brittle area, causing it to crack.

That's just a guess though.

On the topic of replace vs repair:
Given that dryers didn't change much in the past half century, I would have given the sugestion to evaluate if you were happy with that dryer.
But as you basicly never used it, you can't take that as a meter.
Maybe decide it based on how important a matching of washer and dryer is to you while considering that Calypso parts get more rare and expensive or even went NLA.

However, if you do repair it, I think it might be a smart move to renew the rollers and felt seals while you are in there. Check pully etc. and lubricate them as needed.
And give it a thourough vacuming as well.
After that procedure, these dryers should basicly run like day 1.

 

[yogitunes]

that is an odd place for a crack to happen...all I could figure is some sort of defect from manufacturing....those drums are pretty durable...I don't know that the crack would pose much of an issue other than if there was a part of it that would snag clothing...

although unique to the Calypso namesake, these basically are a Whirlpool/Kenmore 27" dryer setup....

what I do like about this design, is there are rollers both front and back for the drum to ride on, versus the 29" which only has rollers at the back, and a glide on the front....

these are prone to build up lint in every nook and cranny versus their 29" counterpart...so it does not hurt even to open it up, at least once a year, to clean out the ductwork, especially where the lint filter area is....also, add a drop of oil to each roller, and the idler pulley....

this video will help guide you for the basics of opening one of these up....pretty simple actually...

most times vacuums and a brush will clean out the dryer.....I prefer compressed air

keep us posted....

 

[ovrphil]

Henrik and Martin - also...

Thank you Henrik. Along with Martin's idea, maybe it was simply a material fatique. I thought the same as you guys who have seen WAAAAY more than I have in washers and dryers....just seemed like a real odd place for the drum metal to fail. I was hoping there would be a liquid metal cure, but it's too big a crack to fix via a liquid metal repair. I have welded before, but it was decades ago. But I'm wondering if welding would fix it or...once that crack appeared, the drum is officially out of round and unuseful?

In any case, the video is very good, Martin. If this dryer is similar to the one(s) in the video, I will definitely get it apart, clean it by vacuuming and using canned air(I have no compressor tools). I will definitely want to inspect and lubricate. What I couldn't understand...when the drum rotates, it moves smoothly in the 360 degree arc, but something is catching the crack at ONE point only. Otherwise, it seems like it would work anyways, with that crack. Does that make any sense? Just guessing...it seems like a screw or something is in the track(?) of the drum and when it reaches that object, which I am guessing is something hard, it hangs up and either stops or makes a nice audible complaint!

Well, I'll have to get in there and report back...thanks so much for your ideas / feedback. I love the video - easy to understand.

 

[henene4]

On that crack

I woulnd't risk welding, could cause more harm by thermal expansion and contraction and consequent deformation or by setting the plastic paddles on fire.

Once the drum is out, try smoothing any sharp edges of that crack with a file and/or sandpaper to prevent damage to laundry or potentially the rollers or front panel. Make sure it really is smooth from every angle so that even if something gets sucked in there it wont get damaged.

I'll risk to suppose that the crack would have little to no effect on operation even though that is just a logical conclusion and not actual knowledge.

It will be a leak of a sort. You could end up with quicker lint buildup in the cabinet or even some minor condensation. But as the crack is small, I doubt these effects would even be noticeable.

If the crack goes across the surface the rollers make contact with or extends to verry edge of the front of drum and thus creates kind of an open slit, that could have more of an effect.
You might hear a slight noise every time the crack rolls over a roller. The front corners of that potential slit could cause punctual fricton on that front seal type thing and/or the front panel potentiall harming them.
If you smooth these out well enough you should eliminate any potential for short term damage.
Long term there could be some additional wear on the front rollers and front seals. The seals could be weakend by hot moist air an the 2 corners of the slit. That small indentation running over the rollers could wear them down quicker then usual.
Also to consider is the chance of the crack leaving a permanent mark in one of the rollers. Some dryers make that typical "knock-knock-----knock-knock" noise when you start them up from cold. That is due to temporary of permanent flat spots in the rollers. Temporary flat spots are caused by the hot drum resting on the rolers after a cycle has ended thus pressing a slight deformation into the roller surface. During the next cycle, these will smooth out again once the heat softens the rollers. If the crack happens to stop on one of the rollers by the end of the cycle it could leave its imprint on that roller and depending on the depth that might not smooth out again.
Permanent flatspots can happen if a dryer sits unused for a verry long time (several months or years). The drum pushes on the rolers and leaves flat spots like with temporary flat spots, but as that compression happens in a cold state over a long period, they often are not reversible. But as that takes literaly years to happen, that shouldn't concern you.

Another thing might be that small items like socks or the edges of towels or sheets might end up getting caught in the slit as there will be air flowing from the tub through the crack. Depending on the size of the crack (which is hard to tell from pictures) that could damage items or in verry extreme and verry unlucky circumstances pull items through the slit into the cabinet potentially igniting on a hot surface or getting cought in a moveing part. Verry unlikely for such a small crack though.

If you are thinking of filling that area in and it isn't to big of a crack you might want to consider a kind of 2 component filler putty.
I get that stuff at my local hardware store. Its 6 small seperately packed pieces each consisting of 2 different puttys. There are different ones avaible; if you find one that specifically states temperature resistences prefer that, but just normal once should do the trick as well.
Take one out, kneed it in your hand until evenly mixed, then use it just like normal putty to fill in the crack so that its completly covered and thick enough so that you can later sand it into shape. That stuff starts to set within a few minutes, so work quick. The surface dosen't have to be nice, its only about completely filling the crack both inside and out.
After 24h it is fully cured. It now behaves kind of like plaster and can be easily shaped with sandpaper. On the outside you want it to be as close to the curvature and profile of the rest of the drum as possible as any discrepancys can cause noise while running. On the inside you just need to smooth it out a bit to get a nice surface. Be carefull though not to take of to much material as it might not hold up to the forces during tumbling if its to thin.
Product I'm talking about is something s8mmila4 to this: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Loctite-0-34-oz-GO2-Repair-Putty-2-Pack-1722005/203988598

 

[cfz2882]

brazing best fix

I agree with reply #1-fatigue crack eminating from spotweld.Aligning and then brazing the crack would be a good,long term fix,but paint would be burnt around repair area.2-part epoxy as suggested above probably by far the most practical though.

 

[ovrphil]

Some homework!

Henrik! Thanks for all your detailed thoughts..and again, Martin I appreciate the video. Thanks Brendan. I'll need to practice opening the current Whirlpool dryer being used, as the broken drum unit is in the storage.

1) I agree - welding is not the solution. Your putty suggestion is closer to what I was imagining. That is, I was imagining a product(maybe derived from the space program? lol)that resists high heat, water, and maybe even bonds chemically with the surfaces and allows sanding. I'll do searching; chemically bonding surfaces would be nice, but I also thought of using a very, very fine mesh glued(using high tensile, high heat adhesive qualities to provide a surface for the putty. It might be too much to ask, but if it was very thin, not as thin as gold leaf, but thick enough not to be objectionable after sanding, this might be a better outcome(?).

2) Yes..that crack(about 2.54 cm or 1 inch extends to the drum edge. So, as I mentioned before... once per revolution, it makes a pretty strong CLUNK noise(hitting the front rollers?). It's not a more softer noise that you described from heat/cool dynamics with drum and gravity acting together. I can feather the edges, make sure they're rounded at the ends, and try running it with renewed rollers and felt seals. The crack has probably allowed lint to the interior chambers beyond the drum. Overall, using it without trying to repair the crack isn't my favorite idea...not that it wouldn't work. My thought is, but I'll need to try it...the drum might work fine until I load some wet clothes in it. Then with heat and the weight(I never ever overload a dryer!)...the drum might complain again, once per revolution. That's just something to try and see. Jeesh. This thing is in storage, I have no room to bring it to the apartment, so I'm going to just do the best I can.

Thanks so much for your ideas and suggestions which exceeded my expectations. I'll need to practice opening my current Whirlpool Senseon (Kenmore as Martin pointed out)and clean it, because I could only get to a limited amount of lint cleaning with a vacuum and tool. I can then better take apart and clean, restore and figure out what to do with the cracked drum. And if I can, I'll repair the drum and maybe find a washer. These are becoming harder to find on CL, too.

I'll be in touch, guys. You are the best.

Phil [this post was last edited: 11/5/2017-11:45]

 

[ovrphil]

UPDATE -a putty solution called Quiksteel

Henrik, your suggestion just led me to discover this product with more than enough heat and bond strength, sandable, etc. &#92

It's called Quiksteel. I would be willing to at least carefully try this product...and it's rated to 500F. Anyone out there drying clothes in 400-500F dryer and applying over 700 lbs of weight? LOL!

Just to inform others, please check out the link. It might be a solution for your next project sometime?

QuikSteel Epoxy Putty

QuikSteel Steel Reinforced Epoxy from CarGo Chemical USA, now in India The Original Quiksteel from CarGo Chemical, USA has a tremendous and ...

quiksteel.blogspot.com

 

[yogitunes]

I was thinking along those lines as well...

or something like JB Weld....apply, let dry, and then fine sand it smooth....

 

[ovrphil]

Martin...versus paying $92plus shipping from Sears direct...Quiksteel is a try. It's better than JB Weld..but you were thinking along the same lines anyway, thanks.

 

[DADoES]

 
That price @ Sears is MUCH lower than some other sources I checked.  One source doesn't recognize the part number.  Others advise out-of-stock, ship in 6 days to 4 weeks.  Sears either has a bunch warehoused or (more likely) their parts database isn't up-to-date.

 

[ovrphil]

Sears drum part

I know, Glenn! You probably saw this :

http://www.appliancepartspros.com/bulkhead-parts-for-whirlpool-gew9868kq0.html

and they're out of stock at $257.43. So $92...I had considered it.

 

[ovrphil]

I'll be tackling both dryers this week...and will update with photos. Thank you guys!

 

[yogitunes]

any possibility of a used appliance place around your neck of the woods?

would not hurt to stop and ask if there are any scrapped dryers with a drum you could buy to swap out inexpensively....

or leave your number to keep an eye out should something turn up....

worth a shot....

 

[ovrphil]

That was my first idea vs. buying another tub and I have been looking. Not knowing what will show up...I was looking for one with problem electronics. I did find one for $25...but too far from me.So..meanwhile, I'll attempt repair for my first stop. I wonder if the drum is WP Model specific? Cross-match possible? Thanks.

 

[yogitunes]

Whirlpool/Kenmore 27" machines only came in one size that I know of....

they may label them differently, Super Capacity, Capacity Plus, King Size Capacity, etc....

just stick with that sort of body style, and drop down door opening, filter in front.....

even if you got a whole donor machine inexpensively....strip it for parts....motor, blower, sensors, belt, rollers, burner/heater, etc....and scrap the rest....

curious if anyone knows, can we switch out our dryer doors for a windowed one like this?...

 

[ovrphil]

A windowed dryer!

...would bring lots of smiles !

 

[ovrphil]

Got started!

I disassembled the working WP dryer. The video, thank you Martin, was excellent and I documented everything. I'll post photos, but it's apart right now. The rollers have no lubrication at all - just round interior metal rolling on steel posts...should I add a very light layer of white lithium grease? I know, I should look all this up...but just seems common sense to use a light amount.

WHAT A CARLOAD of DUST(photos forthcoming). I don't think anyone serviced this thing since new. There was
7 dimes and 7 penneys in the bottom case. Where's the big bills? ;-)

More later...

 

[yogitunes]

I have used white lithium grease, or even high temp red bearing grease on the rollers....

some mention just a drop of oil.....Zoom Spout or 3-n-1 to be exact

I think grease will last longer.....just clean them really good before adding new....

check the blower fins as well, if the previous owner used dryer sheets, lint will stick to everything.....check and clean the entire duct system....

we have got to get you one of those little pancake air compressors, it will come in handy more times than you can think...Harbor Tools, if one is close to you, usually have them on sale cheap....