Bought the washer/dryer set when it was supposed to have been a little over a year old in early '98. I noticed after a while that the rear of the drum in front of the element ring had become discolored, sort of tan, I assumed from the heat of the element. Over time, it has gotten worse so that it will cause like-colored tan marks on light color clothing items. I'm assuming there is a thermostat that should prevent the overheat that is not doing it's job. Observing it while operating yesterday (raised the top) there appears to be a thermostat on the upper right curve of the element housing at about the 2:00 position (looking at the back of the drum from the front of the dryer) . The face of the TStat is directed toward the element. This burning of clothing occurs even on the lower heat setting, Low, delicate fabrics. The parts list for the dryer shows: "T Stat Safety #AP2142632". The diagram on the lid shows an upper temp limit thermostat. Is that the correct part I'm looking at? If so, I again assume if I replace that thermostat, it should solve the problem. Any further ideas? Thanks.

they are brown spots, obviously from the fabric contacting the hot rear wall of the drum in front of the heating element.

is the washer same age as dryer?

The part you are asking about is basically a one shot thermostat, designed to open when inside temp goes over the threshold. That is not your problem. You will have the same problem if you replace it. If you think the dryer is overheating, check your venting. A restriction in the ducting will cause overheating more times than a thermostat. Thermostats rarely fail in a dryer. I would check your washing machine. if you have anoil leak from the transmission, it will discolor your clothes you describe, a light tan color. Take the front panel off the washer, and look around. I bet you will see oil....Keep me posted. All you need is a putty knife to remove the front panel

This has been going on for quite a while. I replaced the washer's pump last winter and there was no evidence in the lower compartment of anything other than water from the damaged pump (loose screw in a pants pocket).

These marks occur on collar tips, also and look just like a hot iron having touched fabric too long. The ends of the collars are medium tan, dry, not looking at all like oil stains. As I think I mentioned, the painted surface of the rear of the drum in front of the element is the same color as the marks on the clothing. The washer is a front-load. How would the transmission gear oil come in contact with the wash water? Where is that proximity point in the water flow?

If the venting is a possible co-source, I have shop vac-ed the lower part of the venting in previous years. I will look closer at the rest of the vent to the outside. I will also find a suitable thermometer, probably from Harbour Freight, to check the max temp. My main reason for blaming overheating from a thermostat is the obvious discoloration of the paint in the rear of the drum. It may have been that way when we bought the units, but I did not realize it at the time. Only noticed it after the problem appeared on the clothing.

Is there another circuit that controls the max temp of the dryer, that is, the temp setting dial selector? What tells the element to not exceed that setting? What maintains that temp setting? If I remember correctly, we get the marks whether the regular high setting, medium Perm-press or low-delicates settings are selected. Seems like that component, what ever it is, may be a key source of the problem. But I don't know enough about the circuitry of a dryer to know how to identify the possible problem component. Just trying to common-sense this through.

Thanks for your suggestions and your patience.

RogerB