... speaking of Old Horses, I tried to rustle up a fix to a dryer heating issue on our old Whirlpool LAE5800W0 and created another. Yeah, it's been fixed a few times already, but NEVER SAY DIE.

The Original Problem: Heating Element shot.

Fix: New Element, three Thermostats. Going blind a bit, no multimeter reader here, but I figgered if I'm replacing the heater, who knows what shape the thermostats are in?

After a quick test, it worked! Eurekum! I was jazzed enough ( yeah you know freaks love that crazy beat ) to throw in a load. The clothes were drying! I was a Happy Hippy.

Errr ... Mebbe Not. Within five minutes the lights were flickerin' and I heard a few pops. Knowing it wasn't my Marshall amp shorting out, I unplugged the unit. The breaker didn't trip, but I was on a bad one. Totally bummin', I let the Whirlpool rest a day.

I went back downstairs today and opened up the back to discover the source of the short: The black and white wires leading to the Starter had melted to the Heater Body. In my roundabout haste, meaning hours devoted to this project, I neglected to tie the old wires together AWAY from the heater before closing up the cabinet. I pulled the wires away, taped them up, grouped them all together and tied them up near the blower, FAR from the heater. Closed it up, plugged it in. I thought that was the end of it.

I turned the Timer to position and pressed Start. Nuthin'.

The New Problem: Seems I shorted out the Starter Switch after all. When I realized the short, the whole unit was working, so I hoped that I shut it down in time before damage occurred. It's got power, the Timer ticks, so that suggests that I fried the Starter Switch only. Hopefully.

My Question: Below is the schematic. How can I be sure it's just the Starter? If someone is kind enough to offer advice, I will repay that with a followup result.

Moral of the Story: Never work whilst stoned. :p

I want to thank the kind souls who help here 'cuz you've helped us in the past as I've lurked here for some time. Fixed this thing twice now and our washer twice as well. If that seems nutty, I'd agree, but really, do computers belong in laundry machines? Tell me the new ones are what they seem to be.


Thanks in Advance,

A Dirty Stinkin' Hippy

Thanks, Denman! I know it's an unfair question without a meter, but I thought a simple jump might indicate something, 'cuz that's all I got! You're right, meters are cheap as dirt, but I have my sights set for a Aromatherapy Lava Lamp from The Sharper Image ...

Haven't done that yet, tomorrow.

Meanwhile, I did without my weekly ZigZag purchase and sprang for a Craftsman $20 tester.

Here's what I found:

First, tested Circuit Breaker. OK.


Control Panel Parts

Temperature Switch

1. Tested Air Fluff setting, between the Red and Black terminals.

Continuity: Buzzed ( >30Ω ). Readings wonky, up and down in the hundreds,
guessing it takes time for readings to settle.
Resistance: 5-80Ω. Readings wonky again. I assume a low of 5 means it's OK.

2. Tested High Temp setting, between the Red and Black terminals.

Continuity: Buzzed ( >30Ω ). Readings wonky, up and down in the hundreds
Resistance: 2.2Ω was the low.

Conclusion: Didn't bother testing the Low setting, I assume this part is OK.

Start Button

1. Tested between the Red and Black terminals.
Open when button not pressed.

2. Button pressed.

Continuity: Buzzed ( >30Ω ).
Resistance: 0Ω. Nearly perfect reading.

Conclusion: My assumption is wrong. This part is OK.

Cycle Signal

1. Tested between the Red and Blue terminals.

Continuity: No buzz; readings in 1000s.
Resistance: Readings in 1000s.

Conclusion: Either this part cannot be tested, or it's BAD.

Timer

1. Tested between the Gray ( TM1 ) and Black terminals.
These are at the top of the Timer, side by side.

Rotated dial while testing.

Continuity: Buzzed ( >30Ω ).
Resistance: 0Ω. Perfect reading.

Conclusion: Lucky me, probably don't need a Timer. BUT, there are other terminals.


Cabinet Rear Parts

All Three Termostats

1. Tested between the opposite terminals and ignored third "middle" post.

Continuity: Buzzed ( >30Ω ).
Resistance: 0Ω.

Conclusion: All three Thermostats seem OK.

Heater

1. Tested both Red posts; removed just one wire.
Note to Readers: Careful here. These connections easily prone to damage.

Continuity: Buzzed ( >30Ω ).
Resistance: 10Ω. A low of 10; went higher. I assume this is normal.

Conclusion: If 10 Ohms is normal, then Heater is OK. I hope.

Didn't dig deeper to the Motor. I really don't wanna deal with that Cabinet again.

Any thoughts out there?


As Always, Thanks for Reading and Advising,

A Dirty Stinkin' Hippy

Thanks again, Denman.

While gone, I jumped the Cycle Signal, also commonly known as The Annoying Buzzer, and no dice.

So, I'll proceed with your posted steps and check the Motor. Your way is LOTS easier than dealing with cracking open that Cabinet Panel. It's bent more than my brain. Getting those Panel Clips to line up is a bear.

The final step, probably the most obvious one, is to replace the burnt wire. You think it's safe enough to splice them with spade connectors? Don't see how it could hurt.


Dirty Stinkin' Hippy

Note to Readers: A newb at Multimeter Reading here. Don't fret if you find the numbers dancing all over the place, keep holding the points steady on the device you're testing. It'll take several seconds but the reading should settle on what you're looking for. I didn't splurge for Alligator Clip leads, so I used my daughter's alligator-type hair clips to hold the leads in place. Tape would be better but that's messier and could gum up the parts a bit.