I have a Kenmore Series 90 dryer. It has no heat when drying, but it spins normally. Lint trap and exhaust has been cleaned.
I saw on other forums posts that possible issues may be 1) Thermal cutoff, 2) High limit thermostat, or 3) dryer heating coil. Also possible inlet and outlet thermistors.
Can someone help me out with some instructions for how to proceed? Should I check the listed items? If so, is there a wiring diagram available and what values do I check for?
If those things are not the right approach, then what should I be looking at?
Any info here would be helpful.
Thanks,
-Tim
First try resetting the AC panel breaker for the dryer. Then you would need to establish that you have 240vac coming into the dryer. Open the front bottom panel. Place dryer in air only cycle. Check for 120vac to ground at the heater element terminals. One meter probe at ground, the other to one element terminal and then the other terminal. If good, unplug the dryer and check continuity of the operating thermostat, thermal cutoff and hi limit thermostat. Report back with your findings.
Eric
Eric,
Thanks for your reply. I checked the breakers and both were good/on. When it comes to testing all of the electrical components - high limit thermostats etc - do you have a diagram showing where to test at? I’m not real familiar with where all of those parts are inside of the machine.
Thanks,
-Tim
PS. I’ll follow up again once I get a chance to test the incoming voltage etc.
Eric,
Thanks for your reply. I checked the breakers and both were good/on. When it comes to testing all of the electrical components - high limit thermostats etc - do you have a diagram showing where to test at? I’m not real familiar with where all of those parts are inside of the machine.
Thanks,
-Tim
PS. I’ll follow up again once I get a chance to test the incoming voltage etc.
I wanted you to reset the breaker regardless if it looks like it’s on. Sometimes, one half of the breaker can trip internally but the breaker looks like it’s still on but only one leg of power is being supplied to the dryer. The dryer heat circuit requires both legs (240vac) but the drive motor only requires one leg (120vac). So try resetting the breaker anyway. The wiring diagram should be inside the control panel. You have to go the the sears parts website and plug in your model number for access to the parts diagrams.
Eric
Ok, I tried resetting the breaker - turned them both off and back on (mine happen to be pinned together). That didn’t change anything. Still no heat when it was turned on.
After taking the bottom panel off of the front of the dryer, I tested both leads into the heating coil with dryer running. One of them read ~120V, the other read nil.
Is this conclusive, or is there anything else that I should check? Does this mean that there is a power supply in the dryer that has failed?
It means you have two problems. For one, the heating element is open. Unplug dryer and check resistance across the element terminals. Normally reads 10 to 12 ohms. Which terminal read nil? Red wire or red/white wire?
Ok, so heating element is likely bad causing an open circuit. I’ll test that when I get home from work tonight and will update then.
What is the second problem then?
Don’t know til you tell me which terminal read nil and which read 120vac.
Ok, thanks. I will update as soon as I can, but it won’t be until later tonight.
The red wire on the bottom reads ~120V, the red & white wire on the top read nil.
I also unplugged the dryer, disconnected the leads from the heating element and tested for continuity of the element. The meter didn’t register a value for resistance - I think this means it was an open circuit?
So am I right in assuming that the element is bad? What was the “other” problem you referred to?
Yes, the element is open but there is also an open circuit somewhere between the timer and the red/white wire. Need to check continuity on the thermal cutoff, hi limit thermostat and operating thermostat.
http://www.appliancepartspros.com/whirlpool-dryer-heating-element-3387747-ap2947033.html
Eric
What values should I be checking for? Just continuity?
Yes, they are just switches. On the operating thermostat, check between the red and red/white wire, not the blue wires.
Ok, checked all 3 switched. All checked out fine. After thinking back to something you said earlier (“Place dryer in air only cycle…”), I had been testing the element with the dryer on a setting where the heat wasn’t on. After running it on a different setting, I got ~120V on both leads into the element. Sorry, my mistake - I guess I was just being dumb and am a little unfamiliar with the internals of the dryer.
So if all 3 switches test OK and both leads into the element read ~120V, that should mean the element is the only bad part, right?
Ah, yes, assumed you were in heat cycle. Looks like heat element is the only culprit.
Eric
Ok, good. Was hoping I was right about that. Eric, thanks a bunch for all of your help!