Old Maytag electric clothes dryer.

[[email protected]]

It is over thirty years old.The automatic shut off thingy quit working
about twenty years ago.I usually hang my clothes on the line to dry.I
can use the clothes dryer, but I have to remember to shut it off after a
while.I always keep the lint filter cleaned out.Why doesn't the
automatic shut off switch work anymore?
cuhulin

 

[Michael Kennedy]

It is over thirty years old.The automatic shut off thingy quit working
about twenty years ago.I usually hang my clothes on the line to dry.I
can use the clothes dryer, but I have to remember to shut it off after a
while.I always keep the lint filter cleaned out.Why doesn't the
automatic shut off switch work anymore?
cuhulin

I'm guessing that this is not a serious question, but here is an answer
anyway.

Best guess would be that the motor in the timer went bad or a gear broke in
the timer. Easiest solution is to replace the timer. Of course you could
also repair the timer if you were inclined to do so.

Mike

 

[James Sweet]

I'm guessing that this is not a serious question, but here is an answer
anyway.

Best guess would be that the motor in the timer went bad or a gear broke
in the timer. Easiest solution is to replace the timer. Of course you
could also repair the timer if you were inclined to do so.

The timer motor burned out on my dryer, first time I'd ever seen that happen
but the winding was open, maybe the dryer lost neutral and it fried the 120V
motor? Anyway I needed it working quick so I cut open the motor, removed
thousands of turns of hair thin wire from the form and wound it with the
smallest magnet wire I had. Connected it to 9VAC from a small transformer
and it ran, figured it would get me by for a while but that was over 3 years
ago and it still works so I haven't bothered to get a new dryer.

 

[William Sommerwerck]

It is over thirty years old.The automatic shut-off thingy
quit working about twenty years ago.

The easiest way to make an auto-shutoff "dryness" control is to stick a
thermostat in the output air stream. As the clothes dry, the air temperature
rises. The higher the temperature, the dryer the clothes.

If the thermostat fails, the dryer will not longer automatically shut off at
the selected dryness.

 

[Sam Goldwasser]

The timer motor burned out on my dryer, first time I'd ever seen that happen
but the winding was open, maybe the dryer lost neutral and it fried the 120V
motor? Anyway I needed it working quick so I cut open the motor, removed
thousands of turns of hair thin wire from the form and wound it with the
smallest magnet wire I had. Connected it to 9VAC from a small transformer
and it ran, figured it would get me by for a while but that was over 3 years
ago and it still works so I haven't bothered to get a new dryer.

That's almost as good as repairing the plastic pinion gear in the timer
of my 35 year old Maytag washter with hot melt glue. That was a few years
ago as well.

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[Sam Goldwasser]

It is over thirty years old.The automatic shut-off thingy
quit working about twenty years ago.

The easiest way to make an auto-shutoff "dryness" control is to stick a
thermostat in the output air stream. As the clothes dry, the air temperature
rises. The higher the temperature, the dryer the clothes.

If the thermostat fails, the dryer will no longer automatically shut off at
the selected dryness.[/QUOTE]

Adn start a fire? Don't depend on the thermal protector....

--- sam | Sci.Electronics.Repair FAQ: http://www.repairfaq.org/
Repair | Main Table of Contents: http://www.repairfaq.org/REPAIR/
+Lasers | Sam's Laser FAQ: http://www.repairfaq.org/sam/lasersam.htm
| Mirror Sites: http://www.repairfaq.org/REPAIR/F_mirror.html

Important: Anything sent to the email address in the message header above is
ignored unless my full name AND either lasers or electronics is included in the
subject line. Or, you can contact me via the Feedback Form in the FAQs.

 

[William Sommerwerck]

Adn start a fire? Don't depend on the thermal protector....

The "dryness" thermostat isn't intended to provide overheat protection.

 

[[email protected]]

I am serious about my old Maytag electric clothes dryer.I always unplug
it from the 240 volt outlet when I am not using it.I have had to have my
old Maytag washing machine (it is the same age as my Maytag clothes
dryer) repaired a few times over the years.I guess it is about time I
buy a new clothes washer and clothes dryer.Probally Whirlpool.Only a
basic clothes washer and basic clothes dryer is all I need, don't care
for the fancy bells and whistles.
cuhulin.

 

[William R. Walsh]

Hi!

Why doesn't the automatic shut off switch work anymore?

There could be a few reasons for this. The little motor that runs the timer
unit itself is usually very reliable and will run for a long time. The most
common problem I've seen is dried up grease. Gears with broken teeth are a
close second. The gears may break if the grease is stiff (or gone!) and the
motor has enough torque to force and break them. Many times the little motor
just stalls from the extra load of the grease, or lacks the strength to push
the timer dial past some positions.

My grandmother had a Norge washing machine that was like that. It would run
normally to start out, but if you forgot it, it would stay in the spin cycle
all day long without someone to advance the timer past the "bad spot".

There is also the possibility that the contact points for the automatic shut
off feature are burned or out of adjustment.

William

 

[R!]

[email protected] wrote in

<snip>

Some of the old Maytag dryers had a simple dryness control that
consisted of two sensors in the tub that were located on the paddles in
the tub (looked like coilled up wire), an electronic dryness control
that had a large value resistor (from rectified AC) feeding a capacitor
that was tied to one of the sensors in the tub with the other end
grounded to the frame of the dryer as well as thr second sensor was
grounded, and a solenoid that released a holding switch.

------->|---/\/\/\/\/\/---(Sensor)
|
=
|
--------------------------(Sensor)

as the clothes dried the voltage was allowed to rise across the
capacitor....

When the voltage was high enough a neon bulb fired and triggered the SCR
(Silicon Controlled Rectifier) in the electronic controll to engage the
release solenoid, ring the bell and shut off the dryer.

The electronic controll had the capacitor right on top of it with a
strap around it...

This replaced the standard timer system...

Note I simplified the discription quite a bit, left off such things as
fabric settings and such...

R!