One of the most common problems with a clothes dryer is lack of heat. There are several things that can cause this from a simple burned out wire to a tripped thermal cut-out. We get a lot of calls saying things like ...'I have to run the clothes through 2 or 3 times to get them dry.' or 'It's blowing cold air so I know the element is gone'. Now while it can be the heating element, it usually isn't.
In many cases the dryer for whatever reason has over heated and so to prevent further damage (or a fire) the thermal cut-out trips. It's basically a fuse that controls the thermostat and heater components of your dryer and it trips off when it senses that the dryer is getting too hot. So it blows cold air, or in the case of some more fancy elec. controls, does nothing at all.
It's very often caused by something as simple as bad venting. If not enough air passes through your machine it doesn't dry efficiently and overheats. Here are some tips to extend the life of your machine and also to save you energy.
*Clean your lint trap after every load.
*Use the same size venting hose as the back outlet of your dryer. Don't cheap out and get the narrower stuff to save a few bucks.
*Install your hose with no sharp corners (lint builds up) and kinks.
*Use the closest vent possible. The closer and straighter it is, the more efficient.
*Make sure your outlet cover outside isn't clogged up with lint, especially if you have flaps or a wire mesh to keep out rodents. Just give it a quick vacuum occasionally.
*Inspect your hose periodically. Especially after moving the machine. It's really easy to kink it while pushing it back into place and it's hard to spot.
*If you've got really old hose it's cheaper and easier to replace it with a new clean one than to pay to have it swept, unless yours is in a really tricky spot (like in the ceiling of the garage).
*Consider a clothes line outside in good weather and if you need to soften your clothing (we know some items like towels get all dried and crunchy) just tumble them in the machine for 10 minutes. You can also use half a dryer sheet at this time for static control if you want to.
We hope these tips will be useful for you. If you need more information or are having a problem with one of your appliances please don't hesitate to call us!
Best Wishes,
Elizabeth
