Artfuldodger
Senior Member
That would be nice in the winter.
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clothes dryer still taking too long to dry
- Thread starter oldfella1962
- Start date
That would be nice in the winter.
Artfuldodger
Senior Member
Unhook the dryer vent hose for one cycle. That would rule out the hose and narrow it down to the dryer.
Is the "automatic moisture sensing" sensor used on every cycle or can you select a cycle that doesn't use it. Maybe it's opening and closing the circuit to the heating element if faulty. I guess the dryer would work fine on a "timed cycle" if this sensor was bad.
Maybe it's working on only one leg of the 220 circuit. Is that even possible? You could close and open the breaker to reset it.
It could be as mentioned, what ever acts as a thermostat to control the juice to the heating element.
Is the "automatic moisture sensing" sensor used on every cycle or can you select a cycle that doesn't use it. Maybe it's opening and closing the circuit to the heating element if faulty. I guess the dryer would work fine on a "timed cycle" if this sensor was bad.
Maybe it's working on only one leg of the 220 circuit. Is that even possible? You could close and open the breaker to reset it.
It could be as mentioned, what ever acts as a thermostat to control the juice to the heating element.
red neck richie
Senior Member
Okay, my clothes dryer was taking forever (three or four hour-long cycles!) so I bought the long flexible brushes and completely cleaned the venting from the dryer to the outside of the house. I removed wads and wads of wet lint built up over the years! I took the back off the dryer and cleaned all lint from everywhere in the dryer. I checked the inside of the dryer to see if it got hot (OUCH! Indeed it is hot) but to my surprise my dryer is still taking forever.Any thoughts as to what the problem could be? BTW what does "automatic moisture sensing" and "wrinkle guard" do? We've never used them, but just asking in case it's relevant to my situation.
Could it be that all the moisture that was in the venting from the lint clogging it will take time to dry out? It was very wet lint so I'm thinking a lot of moisture would remain in the 15 feet long venting from my dryer to the outside of my house, which terminates in a "floating cap" style vent outlet. Any thoughts?
Sounds like the blower wheel or motor is bad.
CHANDLECTRIC
Senior Member
You have to have both legs of the 240 v.Circuit for the dryer to operate any.
Artfuldodger
Senior Member
If it's got two heating elements, maybe one is bad.
GA native
Senior Member
Builders and architects should be slapped for such a design. I had the same problem with my dryer. The exhaust vent went up the wall eight feet, and across the ceiling 20' feet. Denim would not dry. The wife's delicates, on low heat, would not dry.
I rerouted my vent through the garage and out of the wall. It is now 5' long with three 90 degree turns. Everything dries fine now.
You've got a ton of ideas here, and I would say just keep eliminating suspects.
I would disconnect the drier from the exhaust vent, and see if the situation improves. If it does, then your vent is likely the cause. But it could be that the blower fan is clogged. Or the blower motor is weak.
Bill Mc
Senior Member
Too much soap can cause that.
GoldDot40
Senior Member
I'm thinking if it was a vent length issue, this would've been a problem from day 1. If it's something that just started recently, I'm thinking it's mechanical. What brand dryer is it? I'm betting the answer is Maytag.
oldfella1962
Senior Member
yes I checked that last night. Since I'm an electronic tech by trade I'm going to go the checking the thermostat & shut off switches/sensors/heating element and whatnot as suggested by some of you - if it's something along these lines I can replace the parts by myself. Now I can't wait for the workday to end so I can try these things out! Thanks everyone for the advice & ideas.
oldfella1962
Senior Member
I'm a big fan of having a laundry room adjacent to the garage or entryway with a straight shot right from the dryer to an exterior wall, just a couple of feet of tubing total, so you can just replace that section every now & again for about ten dollars.
firebreather
Senior Member
I find that some times , and I quote disconnect power , 2 remove back cover make sure that the 4in pipe it clear from all debris like sand etc once my pipe was halfway clogged , 3 go ahead and clean blower louvers in wheel , it's just like hvac , air flow is a big thing , , 4 make sure there's no blockages in discharge line to outside , my buddy had a bird get in his flapper n make a nest , ha never figured that one , good luck if you've got air flow , a safety or thermal overloads causing your troubles I'd bet , also just because there's a belt doesn't mean it's not tumbling them fast enough , I'd check 1 first n move on
Bob Shaw
Senior Member
My old dryer used to do that when it got clogged-up with lint behind the lint filter, inside the dryer. I used to have to clean it out with a coat hanger. In my opinion, you need to find out what's going on because those suckers'll catch fire on ya'.
So what did you find ??
oldfella1962
Senior Member
My wife has been doing laundry during the day - I'll ask her how it's been acting tonight.
mattech
Deranged Throat-Puncher
The drum will still get hot with a bad heating element. The underwire from a bra is bad about coming out during a dry cycle and hitting the element. I've had to replace a couple heating elements, only about $15 and now my wife puts all her bras in a garment bag to dry. No issues since.
oldfella1962
Senior Member
okay - I watched a youtube video that shows how to test out every...single....electronic component on my exact dryer. Everything tests good! Heating element, 
yet when I take the dryer vent off the back of the dryer, water and lint pours out.
and indeed my wife said it still takes hours to dry a single load. I checked the entire length of the venting all the way to the outside of the house, and it's not clogged - no lint at all.
My wife wants to get a new dryer, but "in theory" this dryer works! This dryer should be working fine, but it's not.
I just don't get it. But I can't have water mixing with electricity!
yet when I take the dryer vent off the back of the dryer, water and lint pours out.
and indeed my wife said it still takes hours to dry a single load. I checked the entire length of the venting all the way to the outside of the house, and it's not clogged - no lint at all.
My wife wants to get a new dryer, but "in theory" this dryer works! This dryer should be working fine, but it's not.
I just don't get it. But I can't have water mixing with electricity!
Dry a load without the dryer vent attached
See what happens
See what happens
okay - I watched a youtube video that shows how to test out every...single....electronic component on my exact dryer. Everything tests good! Heating element,
yet when I take the dryer vent off the back of the dryer, water and lint pours out.
and indeed my wife said it still takes hours to dry a single load. I checked the entire length of the venting all the way to the outside of the house, and it's not clogged - no lint at all.
My wife wants to get a new dryer, but "in theory" this dryer works! This dryer should be working fine, but it's not.
I just don't get it. But I can't have water mixing with electricity!
Check your spin cycle on your washer,,,, shouldn't be getting that much moisture out the vent,,,,
NOYDB
BANNED
Water?
To be getting water out you have to be putting water in. As cmp1 suggests check washer. What is the condition of the clothes when the washer stops?
oldfella1962
Senior Member
you couldn't wring any more water out of them if you tried - the washer drains and spins with no problem.
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