Top 10 Kenmore Elite HE4 Electric Dryer Questions & Answers

The usual suspect for a Kenmore HE that runs, but doesn't heat is a thermal cut-out or the thermal fuse. Although they are a bit more resilient, in some cases the heating element itself could be bad. The way to check: 1. UNPLUG THE DRYER, FIRST. 2. Remove the bottom kick plate on the front of the dryer. 3. Remove the blower fan cover directly under the lint screen. There should be a couple of 1/4" screws holding it on. 4. Directly behind the blower fan cover on top of the blower fan housing are two components. One is the operating thermostat, and the white one is a thermal fuse. The fuse is a one-shot fuse that must be replaced if it is bad. 5. To the right is the heating element housing. There are two additional components mounted on the side of the element housing. The component furthest to the back is the thermal fuse. The one one closest to you is the hi-limit thermostat. 6. Check the continuity of thermal fuse and the thermal cut-out. They both should read a short. Additionally, check the resistance of the the heating element. The element should read something low (less than 20 ohms). 7. If the thermal fuse reads open, replace it. If the thermal cut-out is bad, replace the hi-limit thermostat with it. They are usually sold as a set. If the heating element is bad, you will need to disconnect all electrical leads and remove one 1/4" screw holding the element housing to the bottom casing. Pull the entire element housing from the dryer. Depending on model, sometimes the element slide out of the housing, sometimes you will need to remove a few screws to open it up. I hope this helps you.

Front Panel lights not working? Dryer inside light does work? I fixed this twice already on my dryer. Please read this whole explanation I live in New Orleans where the humidity is very high. I have a laundry room where my Washer and Dryer reside. Kenmore HE4T. I noticed that when I shut the laundry room door, my central A/C pulls hot air from outside the house via the dryer exhaust duct. This causes moisture to build on the inside of the dryer and especially the front control panel. Did you ever see moisture on your dryer?s door even when there were no clothes in it? The moisture collects on the Silicon board that controls the dyers function and basically causes a short. This is what I do to fix it. You will need a ¼ nut driver or socket. 1. Confirm that you have power to the dryer <- is the inside dryer light on when you open the door. YES- keep reading.. NO ? find the circuit breaker and reset it. 2. UNPUG THE DRYER! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 3. Find the 3 screws in the back of the dryer that hold the dryer lid on. Unscrew them and slid the lid back and lift off. Is there moisture on the inside of the lid? 4. Find the 2 screws that hold down the front control panel. They should be silver and will be on top. Do not remove the inside gold screws. 5. Find the 3 screws that hold down the power control panel on the top left side of the dryer. Probably has a high voltage warning sticker on it. 6. Lift the power control panel (sheet metal) part and move it to the right so it lays on the dyers drum. There are some wires attached to it and unless you are a very handy person, I wouldn?t remove them. 7. Lift the front control panel straight up until it comes out of the dryer. There should be some wires that attach this piece to the power control panel. If you are handy, you can remove these 2 clip-on wires from the power control panel by squeezing the black connector locking clip and releasing it from the panel. 8. If you flip the control panel around you may notice moisture on the green silicon chips. Get a hairdryer and take your time to dry them. 9. Dry all components of the dryer with a hairdryer. 10. Put everything back together except for the lid and all the screws. Remember that the front control panel slides down first and then the power control panel sits on top second. Plug the dryer in and see if you get lights, but don?t start the dryer. Unplug the dryer and replace all the screws and the lid. The problem is that once the dryer gets wet from the moisture, it never dries enough for it to start working again. This is a bad design from Sears/Whirlpool. I learn my lesson that just because its more expensive doesn?t make it more better. I now keep my dryer and washer door open all the time even when there are no clothes in it. This lets the moisture escape into the house rather than collect in the dryer. I hope this helps at least one person. Thanks Jason Kennedy from New Orleans

goto sears.com and under parts type the model# hit enter. Then type manual and it will cost you $2.30.

On mine, nothing "clamps down". There are 3 positions in the plastic rack into which you can insert the wire rest - "F", "H", and "A". God knows what they mean (I think the one rack is intended to be used in various dryers, of different depths), but if I use the rearmost position = "A", the back end of the wire rest rests on the non-moving rear of the drum, and the front of the rack rests on the lint screen holder. Seems to work, but the instructions leave a lot to be desired.

ok here is the best way to describe it you will need to get around the back there are two torks screws remove them and slide the top panel back to you ..OH I FORGOT unplug the machine first !!!....Ok now with the top off you will see the drum.. slowly hand rotate it until you see some screws that are lined up with the baffles inside the drum You will need to remove just a few screws on one side (the baffle that has the coins) dont take them all out or the baffle will fall inside the drum and it will be a pain to get back on9u will need 2 people) and that should do it you will need to rotate the drum around until the correct baffle ...ie ..the one with the coins in on top at the 12 o'clock position.. let me know if this works our for you

What happens is that the door switch gets turned inside. I just took mine apart because of the same problems listed. The switch has a tab inside that has to make contact with the internal switch. I pulled mine apart and turned it so it made contact...put it back together and it works fine now. After doing all that it seems like you could turn the swith from the outside a quarter turn with a pair of pliers and accomplish the same thing.

F01 - There may be an internal problem with the control, attempt a Hard Reset.

Hard Reset - In some cases the control can be non-functioning or may not accept activation from the control panel. To clear and restart the control follow the these steps:

* Unplug or turn the circuit breaker off for 30 seconds.
* Reconnect the unit to the power source by turning the breaker back on or plugging the unit back into the wall outlet.
* Press the Pause/Cancel/Stop button twice to clear the "PF" in the display.
* Start a short cycle to check the operation of the machine by selecting a cycle and pressing and holding the start button until the machine starts.

The F01 generally indicates a failed electronic machine control board.
This error code can sometimes be caused by a glitch or power surge through the electrical lines.
You may be able to clear this code by unplugging the washer for 5 minutes.
If the code returns after plugging the washer back in, then the electronic machine control board will need to be replaced.

The procedure for accessing and replacing this control board is shown in this image...

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Be sure to unplug the washer before accessing internal components.
When you access the control board, I recommend transferring the wires from the old control board to the new replacement control board one connection at a time.
Once you have all of the wires transferred, remove the old control board and mount the new control board in the washer.
Reassemble and test the washer.

The "F01" error code indicates a communication error between the Central Control Unit (CCU) and the EEPROM onboard the CCU.
The "F01" can also be displayed if the onboard "Pump Driver" fails to activate.
Generally in order to correct this failure will require replacing the CCU.
There is no way to test and verify if the control board has failed.
The technical data sheet basically states to replace the CCU.

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If you wish to clean the interior cabinet of the dryer follow these steps:

1. UNPLUG the dryer. Dangerous voltages are still present even with the dryer turned off.

2. Open the dryer door and remove the lint screen. IMPORTANT: You must remove the lint screen first in order to remove the blower fan housing.

3. Remove the lower toe panel directly below the dryer door by removing the screws under the bottom front edge of the panel. With the screws removed, the panel will drop down, then come off. NOTE: For better access, you can prop the front feet of the dryer up (a 2x4 works well).

4. Loosen the screws on the blower fan housing directly below the drum and remove. There's usually a small clip holding the cover in at the bottom that you may need to pull out to release. NOTE: You may also have to disconnect the auto dry sensor plug (yellow wires with white plug - use a small screwdriver to release the locking tabs) and/or ground wire to accommodate removal of the cover.

You should now have access to the dryer interior and the blower fan squirrel cage motor. Take the time to clean out the blower fan housing cover as well. A long bristle brush made for dryers works well at removing any lint inside the dryer in the hard to reach places, followed by vacuuming.

NOTE: After cleaning, you may experience a slight burning odor. This is normal as lint gets stirred up in the cleaning process and can settle on the heating components. The odor should dissipate after a short period of use.

If you have any questions, please let me know. I hope this helps you.

HI. There are a few areas i would advise to check to resolve this issue.

The dryer uses multiple thermostats to regulate the temperature. When the temperature is higher than the preset limit of a particular thermostat, the thermostat breaks the circuit and the heater goes off. When the temperature cools enough, the thermostat closes the circuit again and the heat can come on.

Most dryers have a choice of temperature settings, therefore a separate thermostat is used for each setting. The selector switch or timer control then routes the circuit through the appropriate thermostat.

If a thermostat fails, it may prevent the heat from coming on, This happens because the thermostat does not close the circuit when the temperature falls below the operating temperature of the switch. It is a simple matter to test a thermostat; it should show continuity when the switch is cool and no continuity when it is warmer than its rated temperature.

A thermostat can also fail by being always on, no matter what the temperature. This switch would show continuity whether it was hot or cold. In this case, the heater would not shut off and the the dryer could dangerously overheat. As a safety precaution a second thermostat is used, This is called a thermal fuse. The power will be cut to the heating circuit if the maximum safe temperature is exceeded. In most cases, this is a one time fuse. The heater circuit will not function until the fuse has been replaced. Of course, it will be necessary to determine and repair the underlying cause of overheating or the fuse will just cut out again. The most common cause of overheating will be a clogged ventilation assembly. Be sure to inspect the entire ventilation Assembly for build up. This will cause issues, if obstructions exist.

The thermostats are usually grouped together. The are typically oval in shape and about an inch and a half in size. They may be on the blower housing, under the lint trap or inside the vent line. There should be two wires connected to each thermostat.

Label the wires and connections so that you can properly reconnect them later. The wires are connected with slip on connectors. Firmly pull the connectors off of the terminals. You may need to use a pair of needle-nose pliers to remove the connectors. Inspect the connectors and the terminals for corrosion. If either is corroded they should be cleaned or replaced.

To test the thermostats or fuse, set the multimeter to the ohms setting X1. Touch one probe to each terminal. You should get a reading of either zero or infinity. At room temperature, the thermostats should have a reading of zero. When the thermostats are heated to their limit temperature, they should switch off and you should get a reading of infinity. The fuse should be tested at room temperature for continuity.


Now, if all is well with all that is stated above, and the thermostats and fuse are all ok, move on the the heating assembly.

ignitor

The easiest way to check the ignitor is to observe it. Remove the small access panel in front, select a high temperature setting and start the dryer. Watch the burner assembly, shortly after starting the unit the ignitor should begin to glow or spark. If you see it glow or spark, then the ignitor is working. If the ignitor did not appear to function and it is the spark type, it may be out of adjustment which generally requires professional service or it may require replacement. If the ignitor is the glow type, you can test it for resistance with a multimeter.


The ignitor has two wires connected to it.Label the wires and connections so that you can properly reconnect them later. The wires are connected with slip on connectors. Firmly pull the connectors off of the terminals (do not pull on the wire itself). You may need to use a pair of needle-nose pliers to remove the connectors. Inspect the connectors and the terminals for corrosion. If either is corroded they should be cleaned or replaced.

Set the multimeter to the ohms setting X1. Touch one probe to each terminal. You should get a reading anywhere between 50 and 600 ohms. If you get a reading of zero or infinity, the ignitor is definitely bad and will need to be replaced.


GAS VALVE COILS

On the gas valve are one or two coils (solenoids) used to open and close the valve to control the flow of gas. If a coil fails, gas will not flow and the dryer will have no heat.

The easiest way to diagnose a problem in the burner assembly is to observe the burner operation. Remove the small access panel at the bottom, front of the dryer, select a high temperature setting and start the appliance. Watch the burner assembly, shortly after starting the dryer the ignitor should begin to glow. Next you should hear the click of the gas valve coil and a flame should ignite. The flame should be mostly blue and it should remain on for a minute or more.

If the ignitor glows for several seconds (up to 15 seconds) and then goes out, the problem is probably the coils (solenoids). If the ignitor glows and stays on, then the problem is usually the flame sensor. If it ignites and then quickly goes out, it is most likely a problem with inadequate air flow.Test the coil for resistance using a multimeter. Set the multimeter to the ohms setting X10. Place a probe on each terminal. The multimeter should change from a reading of infinity to roughly 1300 ohms (+/- 150 ohms) when the probes touch the terminals. If the reading is infinity or substantially different from 1300 ohms, the solenoid should be replaced.

Symptom: Dryer turns on, drum spins, but you have no heat.

Any of the following components are more than likely suspect as being bad:

Heating Element
Thermal Cut-Out
Hi-Limit Thermostat

All these components COMBINED, should cost less than $100. If you fix it yourself, you will avoid the additional cost for labor.

If the dryer isn't blowing ANY air at all, but the drum still turns, you may have a bad blower fan assembly inside the dryer. Or, the blower fan assembly may be clogged.

If your dryer performance has been failing (i.e., clothes taking longer to dry), it may be for a reason. You need to ask yourself when the last time you cleaned the dryer ventilation. If you can't remember, or if it has never been done, this can contribute to the dryer failing. All dryers need proper air flow in order to dry properly. If the ducting becomes clogged, the heating circuits will actually overheat and eventually fail. This usually results in the Thermal Cut-Out (TCO) blowing or the Heating Element failing or BOTH. When these components fail, they must be replaced. Remove the dryer hose from the back of the dryer and inspect it thoroughly from where it leaves the dryer to where it exits your home. It should be clear with no kinks or clogs. If your vent line runs under a crawl space make sure it is suspended above the ground and has no sags where lint could collect. RULE OF THUMB: The SHORTER and STRAIGHTER the vent duct, the BETTER. After you inspect the vent ducting, turn the dryer on and make sure you have forceful air flow coming form the dryer. This will prove that your blower fan is working properly or not. Since you stated that your dryer is not currently heating, the air will be cold, but you should still have some force behind it. If the air flow is weak, you need to clean the duct work INSIDE the dryer. It is important to keep a dryer checked routinely. I recommend once per season (that's 4 times per year). Dryers are the cause of many house fires. These fires are due to lint accumulations inside the unit catching on fire. A little preventive maintenance can prevent significant problems in the future.

Getting to the heating circuit to determine if the components are good or bad is the next step. If your dryer has the lint screen on the top of the unit, you will need to remove the back panel of the dryer to expose the heating circuits. If the dryer has the lint screen in the door, you will need to remove the lower kick panel under the door by using a putty knife to release the retaining clips. They will be located along the seam in the front about 2 inches in from each side. If this is a Kenmore Elite or Whirlpool Duet, the lower lick panel comes off by removing the screws under the bottom edge of the panel. (HINT: placing a block of wood under the front feet of the dryer can make access much easier). If your dryer has no lower kick panel, you have to remove the entire front panel on these models. This is accomplished by lifting the dryer top and removing the screws that hold the front panel in place.

NOTE: The heating circuit should be troubleshot with the dryer UNPLUGGED. Dangerous voltages are still present with the dryer turned off. Resistance readings are as follows:

Heating Element (located inside heater box) - remove the two leads from the ceramic terminals on the heating element and take a reading across the terminal points. It should read 9 - 13 ohms.

Thermal Cut-Out (TCO) (mounted to the heater box.) - unplug wires and take reading across connector tabs. Reading should be 0 ohms.

Hi-Limit Thermostat (mounted to the heater box, closest to the heating element leads) - unplug wires and take reading across connector tabs. Reading should be 0 ohms.

If any of the above readings are abnormal, replace the component. NOTE: If the TCO or Hi-Limit Thermostat is defective it is highly recommended by most manufacturers to replace BOTH components at the same time. They are often sold as a set. Without doing so, these components can cause potentially fail again.

NOTE: One item I failed to mention - Double check the input power for your dryer FIRST. You should have 220VAC at the receptacle and terminal block. The dryer will STILL tumble and the timer will still function with a portion of the input power missing as these circuits only require 110VAC. The heating circuits, however, require 220VAC to function. If one leg of the receptacle voltage is missing the dryer may exhibit "No Heat" like symptoms. This could also be an indication of a burned or failed power cord. Continuity checks performed with the dryer UNPLUGGED should indicate a short between the prong end of the cord and the respective lugs at the terminal block.


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