11061402311 Kenmore Dryer - Instructions

*as with all electrical repairs I unplugged dryer from the outlet*

I disconnected the wires to the heating element, removed the 2 nut screws holding the heating element in place and removed the defective heating element. It looked like the heating element had darkened on the lower end and the wire terminals definitely looked like they had built some resistance that lead to the connection wire melting.

I slid the new heating element in and replaced the 2 screws. I cut the melted portion of the connection wire about 1/2" beyond the melted area and stripped the wire jacket exposing clean wire. I took the connection kit & clean wire lead, divided the wires into 2 groups on each end and braided them together and twisted them to a hand tight grouping. I then took the lead cap and twisted into onto the braided wire connection until it was also hand tight and snug.

I then reconnected the heating element connection wire back to the terminal end of the heating element and made sure all connections were snug.

I plugged the dryer back in, reset the dryer by turning the dial to a timed setting then back to off. I set the heat to low turned the dial to a time dry and turned on the dryer to ensure the element heated up and that the wired connection was secure. After 20 - 30 seconds, the element maintained heat and no issues were found with the fixed wire.

I replaced the dryer back and all screws and reconnected the vent hose. Dryer has worked great for the last few weeks with no issues. I was really surprised it was that easy to fix.

First I unplugged the dryer from 240V and removed the back cover upper (behind the switch) and lower (exposing the remainder of the parts)

Inside the upper section was a folded wiring diagram of the dryer (don't know if this was courtesy of Whirlpool or another individual, but it was a very nice touch.)

I did a resistance measurement across the heating coil and found out it was fine. I then plugged the dryer back in and carefully took voltage measurements from one phase of power (this was easily accessed where the power comes in to the dryer, just be careful not to touch or short the wires)

I had an assistant turn on the dryer (this makes things go a little faster, as you are behind the dryer otherwise) and checked for 240V across the heater coil.

Once I did not have this, I kept one lead on the left side wire (one of the power phases coming into the dryer) and moved the other lead to the left (as viewed on the wiring diagram) until I no longer had 240V. This identified the faulty component as the Thermostat High-Limit, non resetable.

I ordered the kit with the High Limit NR and High limit Thermostat (as both had to be bad). I also ordered the 150 degree cycling thermostat (although this was not necessary - for <$20 I opted to replace it as well)

Removing wires one at a time, each component is fairly easy to replace.

My only complaint is that with the combo kit, the wire attachment is a little different that the original component and requires you to cut an existing wire and crimp a different terminal to allow all three wires on the High Limit thermostat (250 degrees) to be attached. There is little to show you how exactly the crimp is to be connected (it goes on the smaller of the three wires - DO NOT CUT the jumper provided and USE A GOOD CRIMPER - not the $2 variety, or you'll be getting a new connector!!) The connector provided is designed for some strain relief from one connector to the other, however) An additional jumper with the appropriate connectors already attached would be a nicer design.

Also, make sure you do NOT screw in the smaller cover that covers the power in until you place the entire lower half cover back on the dryer (unless you want to take it off a second time, as I did...) as it uses a common screw to hold both in place.

Overall, fairly easy to do with a minimum of tools, straight blade screwdriver to remove stubborn wire connectors (esp. for HT thermostat 250), ratchet and socket for quick removal and replacement of covers, and a good T&B style crimper ($10-$20 at your local hardware and well worth it even if you only use it a couple of times)

30 minutes and done - the dryer now cranks out the heat and the advanced settings (Auto dry) work great - no more 2-3 times throug to get things dry.

If you have a minimum of mechanical ability and a little bit of electronic troubleshooting skill, you can check and repair this youself and save about an $80-$100 service call.

Thanks to Part Select for the diagram of the dryer layout as well!! (Schematic would be nice if available online, though!)

Shipped the part in about 2 days from order time, as well. Will be back (hopefully not soon, though, as something has to break first!!!)

Be safe and good luck!

(One last note: Make sure your lint trap is clear including the hose - either due to build up or a lazy kid...as this probably caused the failure as heat could not escape...)

I order a new belt and I watched the video instructions on how to replace it, follow the instructions, removed the top and took out the dryer tumbler or can, found a broken idler pulley, order a new one, got it in about two days, replaced all the parts and now its working like a new dryer, I called several repair shops and I got estimates from $65 to $150, I spend less than $35 and it took me about 35 minutes to install and I got it fixed..

First I pulled out lint catcher, you will see two screws ,removed two the screws on top ,( philips head screw driver) I than took a putty knife and pushed in the front of the dryer under the lid and lifted the top up, I than removed a self tapping screw on each side with a 5/16 wrench and lifted the front panel out. I than pulled out the drum and this exposed the two rollers, I than pulled of the nut locks with athe pliers , took off the plastic triangle snaps and pullled off the old rollers , replaceing them with the new ones,put the triangle locks on and that the lock nuts on , I than put the drum back in, than the front panel, replaceing the two self tapping screws , snapped down the top,replaced the other two screws again on top and replaced the lint catcher, I was done.

I looked at the parts breakdown to see how it cam apart.

I tore the dryer down,
1. removed the door
2. openned the top
3. removed front panel
4. removed fron bulkhead
5. removed belt and drum
6. removed back cover
7. removed the ductwork
8. removed the fan (this is the hardest part, it is very tight on the motor with left hand threads, there are flats on the (inside of the dryer)fan where the motor shaft goes into the fan for a wrench and you can put a socket on the front pulley on the motor. I ended up just knocking the center out of the fan and replacing it.
9. removed the motor and cleaned the entire unit
10. reinstalled everything in reverse order. Note:I went ahead and replaced the idler pulley and the rear wheels that support the drum, and put a new belt in (just about
everything that could fail) I spent about $200 to keep a $1200 dryer in service at least another 7 years.

Boyfriend stated it was simple, he removed the back and replaced the part using a few everyday tools.

Followed simple instructions to replace two pulleys and belt. The Virtual Repairman helped me identify the cause in minutes. Took another 5 minutes to place the order and the part arrived two days later. Saved $125 at least. Thank you!

john

My dryer was running way too hot and the temperature settings didn't make any difference. Clothes were shrinking and coming out almost scalding hot. I followed simple directions posted on you tube for troubleshooting this problem. I checked that there were no lint blockages, visually inspected all connections and hardware. All seemed good. Metered out all thermostats and fuses. Everything checked good for continuity. For the reset-able thermostats, I heated them on a hot plate to verify that the normally closed switches opened near their specified temperatures. Dont do this for the non-resetable fuses and thermostats. If you're
not sure, avoid this step. Only the hi-limit thermostat seemed to open a little higher than expected but I couldn't with 100% accuracy determine the exact temp it opened. Made sure the heating element wasn't shorted in its housing or that too might give the dryer the same symptoms. That checked good too. Only thing left I could think of was to change that hi-limit thermostat. Ordered part, removed and replaced. Perfect fit. Op-checked good. All heat settings now operate normally. No more shrunken clothes that are too hot to touch even on the lowest setting lol. Hope this helps, happy hunting.

Took a bit to first figure out how to get the front of the dryer off in order to access the motor, wheels, and belt, but found a "how-to" online. Once I had that, the rest was easy.

Lubricated motor and guide wheels but squealing still there. Then noticed the "idler pulley assembly" (the part that keeps the belt tight against the drum) looked a bit old and worn. Ordered a replacement part on this site because it was much much cheaper than a service call, installed it.... and NO SQUEAL!!!

repair was fairly cut and dry...if you have any handyman experience....the hard part was partselect web page...starts out easy to locate part if you have the correct model number....however after that it can be confusing as to what you are looking for part wise and if you have located the correct part....diagrams are helpful if you could see them and/or understand them or what you are looking for....as a novice can be fustrateing....even after calling partselect for help/explaination....other wise it went well for a repair and hopeful will get another 10yrs out of this dryer.....

Unplug Dryer.
Disconnect dryer vent line from rear of machine.
Removed 8 screws holding back cover on.
Removed back cover.
Disconnect 2 quick connect wires from dryer heating element tube on right side of the machine.
Remove 2 screws holding element cover in place.
Remove cover and element.
Remove thermostat from unit and connect to new unit.
Re install parts in reverse order of above.

we received the two heating element wires in 3 days and connected the heating element with no problem works great.

We pulled the back off the dryer and we weren't sure where the problem was exactly. So we pulled off the heating element and the thermostat. The heating element seemed to be burnt out, so we ordered that and the thermostat. We got the parts very quickly, so we put them in and found that the dryer still didn't heat. There was another thermostat (trip thermostat) that we decided to order and try...bingo...that was it. Now it works like a charm.

Super easy to repair...I had to idea how to get started; but after watching the video from your site it was a breeze. Thanks for having "how to repair" videos on your site.

Repair kit came in 2 days..fantastic..thank you so much....with new rollers, belt and tension roller she works like new

First, let me say the t videos are excellent. Check them out if you haven't already.

I came across the video on diagnosing the causes of odd dryer noises. After watching that, I decided that the issue was probably a drum roller.

I took a chance and ordered the maintenance kit to avoid having to take the dryer part to confirm the diagnosis and then put it back together again while waiting for the parts to arrive (BTW - the parts arrived within two days of my ordering them) .

Even if you know your issue is only the roller, I recommend getting the entire kit. It takes no extra time to replace the drive belt and the idler pulley while you have to dryer apart and I consider it good preventative maintenance.

Definitely watch the how-to video PartSelect provides on how to perform the repair using the maintenance kit. It's very clear and very helpful. I'm not sure I could have figured out how the belt fit through the idler pulley without it.

As video shows, the repair is pretty straightforward. As others have noted, you'll likely find a couple of dollars in change and a goodly layer of lint in the bottom of the cabinet. Have your shop back handy.

It seems kind of silly, but I found the hardest part of the whole repair was getting the front panel to slide onto the two bottom clips that support it.

One thing to watch out for are two small metal clips surrounding the screw holes at the top of the front panel. The nut screws that hold the panel in place screw into these, not the panel itself. After I struggled to get the panel in place I realized that in the process I had knocked the clips off and so had to remove the front panel again in order to retrieve the clips from the bottom of the cabinet. Minor frustration. And with all the practice I had the first time around, the panel went on much more easily the second time :-)

It was very gratifying to plug the dryer in, turn it on and have it run perfectly. Better yet, it impressed my wife.