On my He4 Dryer (almost identical to the He3 I'm guessing) that I posted about only a few hours ago:

PROBLEM:
99% of my problems were with (as I said) the buttons on the Control Panel either sticking ON or not making contact.. likely from dirty contact points inside each one...

This renders the unit power-less as the push-button selector wheel IS what turns the thing ON..

Ours appeared to have no power but that was determined false with a volt-meter.. It had power..

CURE: (unplug it first)
I removed the top cover (three or four screws in the rear) then slid it back a little and pulled it up and off...

I then removed the screws securing the side panel and control panel (it pulls UP out of a slot at each end)

I unplugged the door-switch and both ribbon cables from the control panel by pressing in the tiny clips that hold them on the main-board in the middle of each plug... (not in the control panel.. the board under the metal plate on the left)

I then took the black sheetmetal plate OFF the back of the control panel on the kitchen table exposing the back-side of the green PC board with all the buttons solder points visible..

The black-plastic area that the boards mount into pulls up and out once you find all of the little clips surrounding the area that release it from the white plastic frame...

Once you get that apart the other side shows you all of the tiny white-headed buttons in each hole.. the factory marks them with a red dot (marker) in-all there is one for each button on the face-dial of the machine.. and a few remotely mounted ones for the alarm etc.

CONTACT CLEANER:
Now first RULE with contact-cleaner is DONT GO NUTS as it can melt the plastic and/or remove the text printed on the face of your control unit... NO It won't hurt the board or the plugs but with too-much used it will melt plastic.. anything you spray should be a slow accurate burst...

On mine with the buttons facing UP I used a DROP on each button until the red marker spots they made with a marker faded away.. and I mean a DROP.. I didn't stand there spraying the stuff ON.. I got the tube full then wet each button completely and used a small screwdriver to push them up and down moving around the fluid I just sprayed in.. it dries FAST so work FAST..

I also cleaned out each connection on the ribbon-cable quickly with a quick burst on the main board and control-panel.. the larger one on mine had some signs of moisture but the cleaner removed it and any water that built up.. I seriously think that the coating they used on these connections actually prevents them from working..

The MAGIC FLUID: We used "CRC - Electra Clean" contact cleaner.. $13.00

http://www.amazon.com/CRC-02125...J1U1A/ref=60510100057-20
Amazon has it and most Hardware Stores carry something similiar..

I kid you not.. the second I dropped it all in re-secured everything, plugged it in and hit the button it started.. I even did three more loads of laundry and it has yet to fail 4 hours later.. as to a week later I'll let you know...

So my video on the Hair-Dryer trick was accurate.. It dried out the buttons temporarily and allowed it to start.. But wasn't the perfect CURE.. "Contact Cleaner" was needed to clean them off internally without removing them from the board or replacing them completely...

Being a Field Service Technitian for the Foodservice Industry at least 15 years I should have thought of this earlier... :rolleyes:

EDIT: As to it being a problem with the door-switch? Mine wasn't the problem that I stated earlier.. Because it's so close to the buttons the Hair-Dryer hit them and of course they too dried out temporarily....

HOPING that this post makes it to anyone with an HE Kenmore Washer or Dryer with "bad buttons" as yes.. they use the same buttons on MANY Models...

Rob

Well after many a repair (at least 7 times) mine is finally DEAD.. I'm not impressed with this machine at all.. many headaches that all had to do with the buttons not working.. wires with bad connections.. all ending up at the control panel.. Now my control panel is JUNK.. it's buttons are bad.. in fact they are so small on the board I'm amazed they every worked in the first place.. the machine is fine.. the panel refuses to start the motor.. If you ask me? Waaay over-designed and too much computer junk inside to do a simple job.. start a motor and turn on the heat..

I might have a cure for that...

I work on Electric Chicken Rotisseries all day that use crank-timers that turn on the heat and determine how long they cook for.. I just might trace-out the wiring to do the same thing on my Dryer once it's in the Garage and out of the cellar.. maybe as a backup.. Crank the thing to say 45 minutes and it will activate the motor and the heater.. when the time is up.. it's done! :D

PS: The original Video I posted of my washer is lost.. sorry

Rob

:D
I have had my dryer since 2005, no probs until last night. Blinking lights etc, you know that drill. Then dead. Only inside light worked. Followed your instructions and it works! Thank you very much. I called Sears repair back and told them to go to @#$%.
G

The blow dryer worked only briefly for us. Our dryer is stuck on the heavy duty dry cycle. My wife found that if she ran her finger in a circle around the cycle controls it would free up the button so that we could select a different cycle. Temporary fix, but maybe this will help some others out there.;)

I took the dryer apart like you suggested but I did not have the CRC so I merely blew out the front control board with dry air. Put everything back together again and Wallah! it works like advertised.
Many thanks for your knowledge and willingness to share.
Tom:)