79681592410 LG Dryer - Overview

Had to replace front drum support rollers. Removed screws underneath top in back that held bracket that keeps top in place. Slid top towards rear and lifted up. Removed 4 screws that hold plastic front panel in place (inside..2 on each corner) Unplugged front panel electric plugs to remove panel. Opened door..removed 2 screws at bottom of door opening. Removed screws on top of front panel. Unplugged door switch plug. Removed front panel. Removed right front roller with 9/16th wrench for nut. Adjustable for back of stud. Lifted up on drum to get roller out. Reversed to install. Left roller a bit harder to get to stud. Removed and installed same as right side. Did not attempt to replace rear rollers. Have them if needed but very much more involved to replace.

Found disassembly video and watched several times. Suspected that one of the drum wheels had seized up. Found extreme volume of lint and hair inside unit as well as a dryer sheet melted on top of heating unit. Front left drum wheel was worn down from lint and hair jamming its movement. Video made it easy, not a really complicated piece of machinery. Replaced all 4 wheels due to normal wear on other three. Wanted to be sure drum evenly balanced on all 4. Parts came quickly and were easy to install. My sister and I did this together. Would not recommend doing it alone. Took time to vac and wipe down entire unit. Now it runs so quiet we have to look to see if it is operating. Got a brand new machine out of it, saved a couple of hundred dollars in repair bills, and found 11 cents inside the machine. For your own piece of mind, if you have had your dryer for several years, you need to open it up and clean it out. Its not hard... added note, we are both in our 60's... so if we can do it so can you.... Such a feeling of accomplishment, can't buy that in a store....

The first thing I did was locate a copy of the Service Manual (not the User / Owner Manual). After looking at that and looking online I learned that there is no sensor for the Flow Sense feature itself. The Flow Sense doesn't detect a blockage. It detects excessive heat and the manufacturer has simply concluded that too much heat is most likely caused by a blocked duct and then it activates the Flow Sense safety feature: cutting off the heat source. Since I knew it was a heat problem I figured I'd get inside and check the two thermostats and the igniter. Igniter was fine, one thermostat was fine, the other one - the High Limit Thermostat - was giving inconsistent readings. I replaced it. Here's how: First I took the dryer apart. This is a little time consuming. There are a lot of parts that need to come out. I recommend that you put the screws in small baggies with a note as to where you took them out of so that you know where they go when you put it back together. You need to remove part of the back, the top and the front. I removed the electrical box because that is what is shown in the manual but I'm not convinced that I needed to. See if you can get the rest of the dryer apart without removing it but if you have to remove it it's not that big of a deal. It's a little tricky to detach the wire harnesses is all. And extra steps, of course. I did not remove the drum. Instead I just reached inside with the front off and pulled the wires off the thermostats to test them for resistance with a multimeter. It was kind of a pain and a little awkward but I did not want to mess with the drum tensioner. Once I figured out that the High Limit Thermostat was the likely culprit I removed it - which required a very short Phillips head screw driver and some patience since I could not actually see one of the screws. But all good. Just remember which wire goes on which terminal. Make a note for yourself: gray back / red front - something like that. Then I ordered the part and installed the new one and rebuilt the dryer in reverse from what I did.

Now, here's the thing: I actually did two things: aside from changing the thermostat I also thoroughly cleaned out the dryer. Somehow a lot of lint built up in there - no idea how since it all appeared to leave the dryer through the vent. but there must be some small gap somewhere. I cleaned everything including the flame detector. When I put it all back together it worked but I'm not 100% sure that the thermostat was bad. It's at least possible that all the lint and dirt was messing with the way the thermostats behaved. So what I would recommend, if you have this problem, is to clean it out first and then put it back together enough to run it and see of the heat comes on. It will take maybe 30-60 seconds for the heat to come on while the igniter lights. If not, go ahead and replace whichever thermostats or other parts you think are broken.