Dryer repair · Tulsa, OK
You press Start and nothing happens, or it hums and the drum sits still. Most of the time the reason is a small part, and a few things are worth ruling out first.
Before you call
Smell gas? Don’t touch any switches. Leave the house and call your gas company from outside. A scorched plug, a burning smell or a breaker that trips again means leave the dryer off until it’s been looked at.
What usually causes it
A small switch at the door opening tells the dryer the door is shut. Its plunger wears, or the latch stops pressing it, and the dryer behaves as if the door were open. If your drum light no longer comes on when you open the door, that’s a clue: on many models the light runs through the same switch.
Colby tests the switch and the latch and replaces whichever one has worn out.
This safety fuse blows when the dryer runs too hot, which usually traces back to a clogged vent. On some dryers it only cuts the heat, but on many it also cuts power to the motor, so the panel may light while the drum never moves.
He checks the fuse, replaces a blown one, and finds out why the dryer overheated.
On dryers with a dial, the push-to-start switch wears out after years of presses. On electronic models the trouble can sit in the touch panel or the control board, which may show an error code instead of starting.
He follows the start signal from the button to the board to find where it stops.
A hum or buzz when you press Start, with no movement, means the motor is trying and failing. A motor that’s wearing out can also start, run a few minutes, then shut itself off as it overheats.
Colby checks whether the motor has failed or something, such as a sock in the blower wheel, is jamming it.
An electric dryer draws 240 volts through a heavy cord bolted to a terminal block on the back. A loose connection there can burn through and cut the power, even with the breaker on.
He measures the power at the cord, replaces a burned cord or terminal block, and tells you if the outlet itself needs an electrician.
Questions
ALights mean power is reaching the controls, so the breaker is probably fine. That leaves the door switch, the thermal fuse on models where it cuts the motor, the start switch, or the motor itself.
ALet go of the button and stop trying for now. A hum without movement means the motor is stalled, and a stalled motor heats up quickly. Unplug the dryer or switch off its breaker, then text Colby what it did.
AYes. The drum motor, the controls and the igniter all run on household current from a regular outlet. If that outlet’s breaker or GFCI has tripped, a gas dryer is as dead as an electric one.
AYes. There’s a diagnostic fee for the visit, and if you have Colby do the repair, the diagnostic fee is waived.
AMost appointments are within 48 hours, many within 24, and often the same day. Call or text and Colby will give you the soonest time he has.
Rather type it out?
Tell us what's wrong and how to reach you. Colby will call or text you back.
