If your dryer doesn’t heat…

Is your dryer taking longer to heat than it used to take?  This is a common problem and can be an easy fix.

The first thing to check is make sure your setting is on a heat setting, then feel the clothes to see if they are warm when the dryer stops.

If the clothes are not warm, then I would check the heating element. Sometimes you can see if it is bad; it might be broken right off or look burnt. If you can’t tell use a multimeter to test for current.

If it’s not the heating element, see if the exhaust pipe is plugged. To do this, detach it from the back of the dryer and use a hose brush to clean out any lint that is in there. Also, check where it blows the air out of the house. If the vent is blocked it stops the air flow, which will cause your high limit thermostat to shut off too soon.

The high limit thermostat can be found on the heating element. There is also a cycling thermostat that is located on the blower housing that cycles your heat on and off. If either one of these is bad your dryer won’t heat. These can be checked with a multimeter to see if there is current running through them. If not, you will have to replace whichever one is bad. 

Some dryers have a moisture sensor located inside the drum. If this fails it will cause the cycle to stop too early as well.

Just a reminder: please make sure you clean your lint filter after every use, and once a year you should check your vent pipe where it hooks to the dryer and where it goes outside and clean any lint out. 

There is a certain amount of lint that gets past your lint filter and ends up in the bottom of your dryer by the heating element. I pop the top off my dryer and use a vacuum to suck that out every year. If you don’t keep this clean it could start a fire.