Following is a little info on using your meter for resistance ohms and some basic electrical stuff.
Here is a sticky from the start of this forum section.
http://forum.appliancepartspros.com/dryer-repair/5019-how-check-dryer-parts-continuity.htmlHere is my usual blurb on resistance meter usage.
A couple things to watch when measuring ohms and continuity
1. Always remove power from the machine otherwise you could blow your meter.
2. Always disconnect at least one side of any device you are checking. This eliminates the possibility of measuring an alternate/parallel circuit path.
3. When checking for closed contacts and continuity use the lowest scale (Usually 200 ohms). Then try higher scales. This scale is 0 to 200 ohms so if the device you are measuring is 300 ohms this scale would show an open circuit which it is not, you are just measuring outside the scale's dynamic range.
And now some basic info not totally correct but makes it easier to understand and is close enough.
Volts is the amount of pressure pushing electrons through the wire.
Amps is the amount of electrons being pushed through the wire.
Resistance (ohms) is the resistance to those electrons being pushed through the wire.
So if a switch or thermostat is open (infinite resistance) then there is no circuit path for the electrons so you get 0 amps.
If a switch or thermostat is closed (0 ohms) then as many electrons as possibler flow. This is basically a dead short across the device.
If there is a resistance then that lowers the amount of electrons that can be pushed through the wire.
So:
If you have 100 volts and an open then 0 amps flow.
If you have 100 volts and a closed switch (a short) infinite amps flow. This will then blow your breaker unless there is resistance somewhere in the circuit to reduce the current flow.
If you have 100 volts and 10 ohms of resistance then 10 amps will flow.
Increase the resistance to 20 ohms and 5 amps will flow.
Voltage divided by resistance equals amperage.
As the electrons flow through resistance they hit other electrons causing friction which produces heat. This is basically how a stove element works.
This is the part that is not 100% correct but will do to explain things.
The above is for DC, AC becomes a little more complicated but only because motors create a different type of resistance on top of just the DC wire resistance.
Wattage is volts times amps.
In your dryer you have a 4500 watt heater.
We know there is 240 volts going to it so it has 18.75 amps (4500 divided by 240)
Now if we want to find out the resistance we take the voltage and divide it by the amperage (what resistance would reduce the current flow to 18.75 amps). So 240 divided by 18.75 equals 12.8 ohms. That is what your heating coil should measure.
Hope the above helps and does not just confuse you more.
