RED4440VQ1 Roper 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.

Nothing to it. Just remember to put the insert in the knob, NOT on the selector stem. Line up the flat part of the insert with the flat part of the stem and push the knob in place.

Don NOT ram it on the selector stem. When it's seated, don't push any more. That's all there is to it. It works. If the pointer on the knob indicates the selector is lined up correctly, but it isn't, the problem is the selector, not the knob.

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...)

Prop up the hood of the dryer with flat bar. Take out 2 screws holding dryer front end and 2 switch screws for dryer light inside dryer door. Secure dryer drum with bungee cord. Lift front end and remove. Remove broken belt. Route new belt over drum and pass underneatch idler pulley at botttom of dryer. Apply pressure to idler pulley w/one hand while securing belt around motor with the other. Make sure drum seals are snug between front and back of dryer while putting everything back together.
Have confidence. This is a very easy fix.

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..

I found a video tutorial that explained the three things that are usually the problem when a dryer stops working. This showed how simple the task is. I used a multimeter to check the switch, to make certain that this was the part that needed replacement. This was part of the tutorial, as well. I ordered from PartSelect because it was recommended to me by an application that I use to find places where items are less expensive. The correct part arrived in a few days and it worked fine. I'm not a handyman by any means, but the tutorial showed exactly what needed to be done. It appeared simple and it was.

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.

It was so easy... Pop out the old with flatblade screw driver and insert new piece... Works perfectly and looks better than the velcro strip I was using to hold the door shut...! Thanks for fast delivery and having the part available...

Regards,
JBL

I was reluctant to call a repair service. Typically when an appliance is as old as my dryer (14 years old), service people encourage you to replace, not repair. I had replaced the dryer's motor within the last 5 years and believed my dryer still had life to it. At first, I tried cleaning the lint build up from the dryer cavity and hoses. This worked but only for a couple of days. After reading other successful repair stories on the website, I decided to try replacing the thermal fuse. It was so easy. The part was easily identifiable. It was just a little hard to yank off the connecting wires. Good as new and no service call.

Solution: electric motor replacement as the integral centrifugal switch lever (plastic cam) wears over time causing the start windings' switch poor contact. Took it all apart, (back panel, front and top) including lifting the drum out to completely expose the motor. Needed to wrench the plastic fan from the inside motor shaft. Tricky part was swapping the original pulley (6 rib belt, still good) for the one supplied for 4 rib belts. I needed to file another flat onto the other side of both motor shafts (old and new) to break them free, using a vice to secure the pulleys. The dryer works perfectly! It's a great dryer that can be repaired by a determined novice. The enclosed instructions were helpful, although if followed about cutting the original motor shaft to obtain its pulley might require drilling the shaft from the pulley = nonsense. Thanks again Parts Select.

I needed to remove the front lower cover, very easy as it is held on with clips only so I used a flat head screw driver to pop it off. I had to remove the lint filter and then there are two screws attaching the top cover of the dryer to the internal lint filter tray. The top of the dryer can then be opened front to back I again used the flat head screw driver to pop the top open as it has two clips at the front corners. It helps to have someone to hold it open or a rod of some type to keep it open. You can now lay the belt on the top of the drum and work it down the back side by pulling forward on the drum itself to seperate the drum from the seal that presses aginst the back side of the drum. I then went from the lower front to retrieve the belt now draped over the drum and pinched the belt to pass it through the tensioner and over the drive pulley. looking at it from the front the belt will come down the right side of the drum under the tensioner pulley around the drive pulley across the bottom of the drum and up the left side. The belt sits almost in the middle of the drum not against the back lip where there is a groove that might be confused as a place for the belt to ride that is where the seal sits then reverse the process to reattach the top to lint tunnel and reattach front cover and you are good to go . i would suggest vaccuming any old dust/ lint whlie everything is open as this reduces the chance for catching on fire I was supprised as to how much lint was loose inside the dryer cavity itself and our dryer is gas and the flame is an open flame.

After researching and finding correct replacement unit placed order and waited to receive. Screen is located top of dryer so replacement simple and fit was perfect.

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.

Troubleshhot problem, used multimeter to verify current to motor. Once that i was sure motor was getting proper voltage, I used a meg-ohm meter on A/C motor windings and physically tried to turn motor and found that it was siezed. I then cleaned inside of unit inspected belt and drum rollors. Due to the cost of the items, I decided If I was going to replace the motor I should replace all moving parts, and install new belt. Everything went easy. WHAT WAS MOST IMPRESSIVE! was that the Parts people sent the correct parts on time the first time, with no hiddin charges. There web site should accurate diagrams of parts and internals of machine. I was really pleased and will use this service again. Thank you

just slide the new filter in.