Maytag (dryer) repair question.... works but no heat

[Richard]

I ended up with my mothers washer/dryer when she passed. Not sure but I think it came from Sears.

Maytag Model: LDE 8904 ACE

As best I can tell, works perfectly fine (timer works, drum works) BUT zero heat. Not being the official Maytag repair man, I'm trying to figure out which part is bad and where it might be located.

I don't know the names of all the sensors but I put my DVM on the heat sensor "right next" to the heating coils, put it on the coils and virtually every sensor I could find in there. Everything showed continuity and no open circuits.

(I don't know that this is correct either!!!)

So, any thoughts on how to narrow the problem down to part "X" so I can replace it?

She's been ITCHING to buy a new washer/dryer.... " just because". Well, the last time she had this itch, we got a front loader set. One of those water efficient ones (this one is top loader, old traditional design).

Well, the front loader was deeper than this one and you could not shut the closet doors (she's got them hidden in a closet that we built for the ORIGINAL units we had)

Anyway....she decided she didn't like them so though we didn't "give" them away, we sold them for peanuts and made a very happy kid who didn't have anything at his home (made us feel ok about doing it)

I much prefer to fix this than to buy yet another set and have her decide she doesn't like how they work and dump them!!

I appreciate any thoughts.

 

[California]

There's an overheating sensor in the ductwork and its normal to replace it after 10 years or so.

There are just a few varieties. I found prices all over the map, many dollars, down to several on a card for $10 for the same sensor.

Here's an ebay search like what I used. Look on the ductwork for something like this. Turned out I needed the Whirlpool version.

clothes dryer overheat sensor for sale | eBay

Get the best deals for clothes dryer overheat sensor at eBay.com. We have a great online selection at the lowest prices with Fast & Free shipping on many items!

www.ebay.com

 

[chevy]

There may be a centrifugal switch on the motor shaft. It is there to keep heating elements from heating if the motor fails. The switch will load up with lint, then not close properly to turn on the heating element. Blow the lint out of the switch & lube it.

 

[Frankenkubota]

Probably not the case but...

I had my floors sanded and the guy had to hook his machine into my fuse box to get 220.

Later on .......i figured out he didn't tighten the white return wire.

My dryer turned on and the controls etc seemed to work but no heat. I bought a new dryer, same problem.

Tightened the return wire, solved the problem and gave away the older dryer.

 

[Egon]

If it’s electric there should be some heating coils which have probably broke.

 

[Boiler74]

I take care of a lot of dryers. Mostly Frigidaire and Whirlpool though. In my experience if it will run but not heat the heating element itself is bad. Take the wires off to it and test for continuity. If it tests good put on test lead to the metal housing of the element to make sure the element didn’t break and is touching the housing itself.

Repairclinic is very helpful too.

https://www.repairclinic.com/RepairHelp/How-To-Fix-A-Dryer/8-4-91489-/New/Maytag-Dryer-Not-Heating-lde8904ace

 

[Richard]

There's an overheating sensor in the ductwork and its normal to replace it after 10 years or so.

I physically removed this to check for continuity and it tested fine (which doesn't mean it's good) Can these go bad without testing 'open'?

There may be a centrifugal switch on the motor shaft. It is there to keep heating elements from heating if the motor fails. The switch will load up with lint, then not close properly to turn on the heating element. Blow the lint out of the switch & lube it.

This will be interesting to dig into, I'll have to go find the schematic.

Probably not the case but...

I had my floors sanded and the guy had to hook his machine into my fuse box to get 220.

Later on .......i figured out he didn't tighten the white return wire.

My dryer turned on and the controls etc seemed to work but no heat. I bought a new dryer, same problem.

Tightened the return wire, solved the problem and gave away the older dryer.

Yikes, that was an expensive fix for a screwdriver.

If it’s electric there should be some heating coils which have probably broke.

It is electric. The coils are in a 'tube'. I removed the entire ensemble and tested it for continuity. I did not remove the coils from the tube but none were broken and appearing to be out of place.

I take care of a lot of dryers. Mostly Frigidaire and Whirlpool though. In my experience if it will run but not heat the heating element itself is bad. Take the wires off to it and test for continuity. If it tests good put on test lead to the metal housing of the element to make sure the element didn’t break and is touching the housing itself.

Repairclinic is very helpful too.

https://www.repairclinic.com/RepairHelp/How-To-Fix-A-Dryer/8-4-91489-/New/Maytag-Dryer-Not-Heating-lde8904ace

I removed the spade wires to it but again, left the coils themselves in the tube where they reside. Tested fine (presuming I did it correctly!)

Any chance there is a control on the dashboard that might control the heat? A relay or something? Or is my issue likely to be behind this front panel?

(I appreciate all the comments)

 

[PuffyC]

I have a Maytag that has a history of this exact same problem and my bet is it’s the thermal fuse. You can get one off Amazon for about $6 and it takes maybe 20 minutes to replace. If you pile a bunch of junk on your dryer or have some buildup in your ductwork they start running hot and blow that fuse. I’ve probably put 3 or 4 in mine so far. On the plus side that’s all I’ve ever had to replace and we use ours a lot.

 

[Richard]

Since I can't touch it for several hours.... (busy working) let me ask this:

1. Can it be tested with a VOM for continuity? (if so, everything so far, checks out)
2. AS A TEST, could I jump across the two terminals and if the dryer gets warm, verify my issue (and then fix it).... but if it stays cold, rule it out?


It seems to me so far that it can be one of several things and I'm trying to figure out how to narrow it down. So far, everything I've tested for continuity checks out. I don't want to replace parts needlessly... (but admit they're not terribly expensive so might be worth changing out a couple cheap parts first) Sure beats a new dryer when this one otherwise, works perfectly well.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

I would take a close look at the timer switch. When you chase down the problem, good luck getting parts. Our "Just in time" manufacturing strategy has fallen completely apart, and repairing anything can be a nightmare.