MDE5806AYW Maytag Dryer - Instructions

I was somewhat intimidated by the fact that dryers are all repaired from the front. Pulling out the drum seemed scary at first, but that turned out to be very easy. After removing the front panel and lint shroud it is easy to reach the idler pulley and take the tension off the belt. If you're going to replace the rollers which is generally the cause of the noise, get new retaining wrings and a decent pair of pliers for them. The rings can lose all their spring easily by strechting them too far to get them off. Replace the idler pulley and belt while you have the dryer apart. Vacuum all the lint out of there and you're good to go.

Removal of the entire 2 front panels
Removal of the heat exchanger into the drum
Removal and replacement of the belt
Reinstallation of the heat exchanger, and both front panels

The replacement part just snapped into place. (The old part had fallen out) It took less than 30 seconds to do the repair.

Took off the four screws to get to the female clip and used pliers to squeeze it out. Next was using pliers to pinch out the male connector and place the new one in.

popped up top of dryer -- With pliers squeezed clips on inside of latch - - with screw driver pryed latch out -- just pused new latch in.......... Thanks to parts select for sending part sooo fast.. wife was happy.. Thanks, Dale

Could not have been easier! Removed 3 screws above the control panel which allowed the removal of the front of the panel. The control board was only held on by 2 tabs....no screws, and removed easily. Simply transferred all the leads from the old board to the new one, there were only 5 or 6, then snapped new board in, reconnected the panel, and 3 screws later I had a completely functioning dryer again.
For this Sears was going to charge me $160.00 for the part and $160.00 for labor!

Had to figure out how to open the dryer - bottom screws in front and work up, removed the drum and found the fan blade was broken. Had some difficulty removing the fanblade from the motor shaft but after that the new one was easy to install. I did need help to place the belt and drum back into place. as one person has to hold the belts on the pulley while the other adjusts the belt while putting the drum back into place.

Unpluged dryer from outlet, disconnected vent, positioned dryer on side, removed screws from bottom panel, pulled pannel away from dryer body to gain access to motor. Disconnected drum belt from motor pulley, disconnected wire harness from motor. Removed motor mounting bracket assembly and placed entire assembly on floor. Removed clamps and blower assembly from old motor, installed new motor and reassembled. Very easy project, hardest part requires some trouble shooting knowledge to determine the exact cause of problem.

Changed, got in aimed wrong direction-best to take a digital photo before you disassemble. Overtightened bolt and nut in assembly, it seized. Attempted to drill/grind it off, should have removed motor. Drill skipped up into motor windings. Could have replaced dryer, decided not, fixed by ordering motor, mount, nut and bolt and new belt idler. Reassembly was a snap till the gremlins hit again and I lost one of the drum glides. After a trip across town, I reassembled and it was good to go. Disassembly, use a screw driver to pry up the top, use the nut driver to remove upper front left and right screws, lift front forward and off bottom hooks. You have to release the wiring harness, it has four connectors. Use a sharpy marker and write the wire colors next to the plug-ins connectors you pull gently off and set the door aside. The second wires are two wires for the inner assembly which again need to be marked for color and then pulled loose. Pull them through the plastic hold down so they're out of the way. Use nut driver to remove four screws from inner drum holder, pry gently off dryer blower. Reaching around both sides of the blower housing find the belt tensioner, pull it to the right, push the belt out of it. Lift the drum out, up slightly over the back rollers. Set aside. Use the nut driver to remove the screws into the base holding the motor mount down, now lift the motor/blower assembly forward and pull gently loose from the dryer vent pipe. Set it up where you can work on it. Using the nut driver, take the screws off the blower housing, use a vise grip to secure the motor and use a 7/8 inch turning counter clockwise to remove the turbine. Use the nut driver to remove the screws holding the turbine housing in place, pop the motor clips off. Pull the motor off and remove the nut and bolt of the belt idler assembly using a wrench on the back and a socket wrench on the other side. Reverse order to reassemble, when tightening the idler arm tighten it to where you feel it stop but not any further. Put the belt around the drum again, get it in the previous location on the drum, feel around the drum to make sure belt isn't twisted, bring belt in from the back between the idler wheel and the vent pipe in a loop (Make sure the belt is behind the tension spring rather than in front), Tip the idler arm upward, use the other hand to slide the belt loop up over the motor pulley. One final note is this being a Maytag you might write these direction on the inside of the front panel for next time.

watched video for Each Part

All you need for a Maytag is a snub nose Philips screw driver. The screws on the front panel are at the bottom angled down, so a regular length Phillip's won't work. Just unscrew the 2 screws, then lift the panel up and out. Careful not to pull out too far, there are 2 wires attached to the switch. The replacement switch is NOT an exact copy of the old one. My Maytag is over 30 years old and it only had 2 prongs on the switch. The new one has 3. Don't let that throw you. It is the same size. Just attach, 1 wire to the bronze connector & the other to the silver. Push the switch into the door opening, re-attach the door. Total time 20 minutes. Saved well over $100 in a service call. Anyone with an IQ above freezing can do it.

Took dryer apart, and found that the idler arm pulley was in pieces. Ordered the replacement from Partselect.com. Received part very promptly. Decided to also order a new belt, and that arrived in a very timely manner also. Put the parts in, and assembled the dryer. This was for my 90 year old grandmother, and she is ever so pleased that it is up and running again. Completed the repairs for about $50, and saved big money by doing it myself versus a service call, that would have boiled down to replacing the unit for the price it would have cost to fix. Will use partselect in the future for all my appliance repairs, as they offer a great selection of parts for all different appliances. Very pleased with satisfied with quality, and service from Partselect.com

Removed all of the front outer bolts holding in the lower plate, front door assembly, drum outer frame and drum. While removing the outer sheel there are colored wire connections that activate the linterior light and door sensors in which I marked the interior sheel with a marker so I knew which wire went where. Before removing the drum I drew a sketch on how the belt is ran thru the pullys and around the drum, so I would have no problem reinstaLLING IT.The rooler bracket was easily removed with a socket wrench and the retaining wring was pried with a pliers. Reinstallation of the shaft, roller and ring were as simple as removal. I then cleaned the entire interior and lint basket for optimal performance. The most difficult part is pulling the belt back around the drum, but still not very difficult. Finally I reattached nall removed parts as they were removed and I now have a like new dryer for about $20.00 vs, buying anew one or repair fees costing Hundred$ OF DOLLERS.
Thanks Partsselect.com Again!

Replaced glides and assy idler pulley cleaned all parts fron dust and debree, vaciumed heating eliment to remove all excess lint and wool to make sure I did'nt have a fire in the lower unit.
Job was'nt all that hard just have to watch what you're doing.

1.Unplug unit
(gas model, did not shut off)
2. Remove bottom front panel-2bolts
3 Remove main front panel-2 bolts (no need to remove door)
4. Make note of wire colors on door switch and light, disconnect
5. Remove 3 screws that hold air duct assembly(that lint filter rests in) then set main front panel aside
6. Remove lower air duct (to blower motor)-3 bolts
7. Lift and tilt-up top lid/panel of dryer and wedge wood or ? (this will give you easy access and better light)
8. Reach back behind motor to move idler pulley and remove belt from motor & idler pulley
9. Remove 4 bolts and lift up and out front bulkhead frame that holds drum in place
10. Slowly pull straight out & slightly up entire drum
11. Remove circlip/retaining ring, washer, roller, washer and shaft assembly.
12. Vacuum entire unit
13. Light lubricant on shaft when reinstall in reverse order.

Snap ring pliers and a mental note of how the belt is routed on idler will prevent unwanted profanity.
This is an inferior/substandard unit before Maytag bought them. Spend the money and replace both rollers with new shafts (about 50.00). I have spent over 140.00 in parts to keep this unit running (less than 8 years old). So do the math before you start pouring money into this model.