re: Need Dryer maintenance advice

If it's the fuse and there is no clog it would seem the link is bad, but I don't like changing this and that till you luck on the fix.
Hopefully Nap will chime in soon.

Local mom and pop appliance shop here in Birmingham.

Mom and pop shop may be less likely to accept the return than a bigger company, but give them a try.

This is sounding very much like a switch issue: thermal switch, door cut-off switch, etc.

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Bigtime92

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Good thought, but my electric dryer clicks after I stop it for two reasons. One, the timer is still engaged, two, things are cooling down in the tumbler.

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It immediately runs for a moment or two then shuts back off.

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Connection problem, possible link problem or as someone said maybe a motor issue.
Not my area of expertise so I'll bow out at this point. Probably did enough damage.

That was the price of the part, twiddle dee.

I'm no specialist, but it sounds much more like a fuse or breaker type thing than the timer to me.

When I had a timer issue it would not move on to the next step in the cycle.

Did you run the issue by the people at the shop? Normally if I buy locally I'll tell them the issue and they'll tell me if it sounds right, my places doesn't do returns if it's been used or tested.

But you can probably sell the part on eBay for $80-100 or something and get most of your money back if that's not the issue.

Okay. Let me get this straight.

It is running. It stops spinning and then all you can hear is ticking (normal, the timer motor tics until power is cut from timer which is in off position) ?

The drum stops or the heat?

The thermal fuse controls the motor (blue wire) on a Kenmore 80 series. If it trips that's it, you have to replace it.

Now there are two thermal cut-offs that cut power to the heating element/ gas system IF the dryer gets too hot. The one with four wires on it that is next to the thermal fuse is called the operating thermostat. This senses output heat. It rarely fails as the thermal fuse will burn out first. The main function of this unit is to cut off heat when using a sensor cycle. BUT if it is bad, the timer will not advance in any setting other than timed dry.

Next we have the hi-limit cut off. This turns the dryer heat off once the high temp has been reached, once it cools enough, it closes again allowing power to flow to the element/igniter.

While those are resettable generally they fail open and don't work slower, they just don't work at all.


But you say your dryer cuts off randomly.

Well for that let's think about the motor.

If the motor is cutting off it can only be one of four things. The timer you know is not the issue. You changed that. It's likely not the thermal fuse as it would never work once tripped.

So let's focus on cheap and easy, and hard and expensive.

Likely it's cheap and easy.

Open the door to your dryer. Pay attention to the switch. Is it missing any part of the black switch arm?

When you press it can you hear an audible click?
While holding the switch down, attempt to start the machine. Does it run?

These switches are the MOST common fail item on Whirlpool made (Kenmore) dryers. They are cheap (like $7-15) and really easy to change. (a flat blade and a phillips and five minutes of time)

Now. If your switch is good, you can see that it makes contact normally with the door, then the motor is bad.

The motor has two switches that can fail and causes non-operation. First the centrifugal switch. It's what keeps power routed to the motor run winding after you start the dryer (you hold start until this switch activates and routes power to run winding instead of start)
Another part that fails is the internal thermal cut-off in the motor.


So if the timer is sending power to the blue wire, and the blue wire isn't open at the thermal fuse, and the door switch is working then you have a bad motor.

But if I were a tech, and I walked in your house, with your problem and description, I would already have the lid switch in my pocket.

I would say 97% lid switch 3% motor. .00002% thermal fuse, and it's loose internally, which never happens.