How to Troubleshoot & Replace Whirlpool AP3094244 / 279816 Dryer Thermal Cut-Off Kit

First, let me share with you that I have never done anything with a dryer besides put my clothes in it and press start. I'm a girl that will try to fix things on my own if I can learn how to do it. I can do it anyone can do it. I found out by asking questions, that I needed to purchase a multimeter and learn how to use it. There are some great videos online that can demonstrate how to read a multimeter. Then I viewed two videos online on how to repair the exact model of my Whirlpool dryer for a heating problem. It specifically showed me how to take apart the back of my Whirlpool dryer and test each probable problem area. I needed a Phillips screwdriver, and a rachet set to open and remove the parts. First of all, it's very important to unplug your dryer from the wall outlet. Remember, safety first. I found that the lent area was packed with "years" of lent. I cleaned that out thoroughly by removing each part. Then, I used the multimeter to locate the problem by checking the three thermostats in back of the dryer by checking the ohms. I immediately found out that the safety shut off thermostat was no longer working properly. I also removed the heating element and visually checked it to see if any of the coils were damaged. It was apparent once I removed it that my heating element was no longer working as well. I did a lot of research online to comparison shop, & I found that appliance parts pros had the products I needed in stock and at a very reasonable price. I thought that I would not pay the extra fee for the quick shipping, since it said that I could receive it in maybe 2 days. To my amazement, I received it in less than 24 hours. I put the parts back into my dryer exactly as I had taken them out, and because I had labeled the wires for their connection, it was very easy to reinstall. Thank you appliance parts pros for helping me repair my dryer and save me a lot of money and time. I'm feeling a little bit like Wonder Woman right now. :-) Good luck to all of you who may have a similar problem as myself. Don't be afraid to ask questions, it helps us learn. 

I used the Appliance Parts Pros d.i.y. video to get some oversight on the repair; ordered the parts (heating element, Hi-Limit T-stat and Dryer Thermal Cut-Off kit). I unplugged the electric; disconnected the exhaust duct; moved the clothes dryer so that I could remove the back sheet metal panel. The electrical connection at the heater "Stacon" terminal was corroded and broken - an open circuit. This had happen about 10 years before and I was familiar with this problem. After removing the heater I inspected it and noticed that one of the ceramic insulator stand-offs had cracked and it appeared that the heater coil was touching the heater housing (the housing surface was charred in this area). After receiving the parts mentioned above, I installed them. The damaged wire, I cut back to a good area and spliced it with a crimp (union) connection to the wire (modified) supplied with the Thermal cut-off kit. The Thermal cut-off and the Hi-Limit Thermostat were replaced with new parts as the existing items were 15 years old. I checked the Thermal fuse and Cycling Thermostat with an ohmmeter - these existing parts were good. I test ran the clothes dryer with the air duct connected, back cover off and checked the ampere draw (21 amps at the heater), and the voltage (240 vac). Disconnected the dryer again an put it back together and ran the unit for 10 minutes on hi heat setting - all OK. Oddly, when I measured the resistance of the old and new heater coil, the resistance measurements were the same, about 9 ohms, cold). The old heater case was charred in the area of the broken insulator stand-off, this condition may have had an effect on the amp draw and/or heat condition to cause the heater terminal wire to part, ??? 

Did some poking around on the interweb and found appliancepartspros.com along with the help I needed to fix my dryer. I have never worked on a dryer but am fairly mechanical. Tools I used were a 1/4" nut driver and a pair of needle nose pliers. I watched a youtube video of changing-out the heating element and couldn't believe how easy it is. My dear wife had spent time cleaning most of the stuff that had accumulated around the dryer since it was installed in 2010. I used the small shop vac and cleaned the dryer after the rear cover was removed as well as the duct/wall vent. The wall vent had so much lint in it that the flapper would not close. This is a West wall and the flapper closing will keep the room from getting so cold in the winter. I should probably clean that annually. I didn't do any testing of components, just ordered the Whirlpool Dryer Heating Element, Dryer Thermal Cut-Off Switch Kit and a Hi-Limit Thermostat. Only problem I had (besides NOT being as limber as I used to be working in the tight area Lol), which really wasn't a problem, was that the Hi-Limit Thermostat is included in the Dryer Thermal Cut-Off Kit. The two interchangeable parts look different, the one in the Kit uses a jumper wire and the other one doesn't. The one that doesn't use the jumper wire looked just like the one I took off my dryer so I used that one. Upon disassembly, I found my heating element was broken. I saved the two switches I removed and replaced in case I might need them in the future (will test them to make sure they are still good). As mentioned, there is a slight smell for a few minutes when initially turning on the dryer. First drying cycle with the new element I used a setting ~75% of what I normally used to use for a load. I didn't let it go through the cool-down cycle and when I took the clothes out they were much warmer than in the past and completely dry. I would imagine the element was not working correctly for some time. Great experience with the order. Ordered the parts on a weekend and received them on Tuesday using just the "Fast" shipping. Removal and replacement of the parts could be completed by anyone with a 1/4" socket and a pair of needle nose pliers. A helper is nice to bring a cocktail. 

I am a single mom and have never worked with wire terminals or continuity testers before. This was a first. Without troubleshooting the components, I just ordered the heating element and replaced it (hoping this would fix the problem). This did not fix the issue; however, I was grateful I ordered this part because the original housing for the heating element was cracked and may have needed replacing down the road. After replacing the heating element (which was very easy), I went down to a hardware store and purchased a continuity tester. I did this because the "get repair help" tab recommended testing continuity to find the bad part. I simply followed the instructions on testing each dryer component to see which one was faulty and it turned out to be the thermal cut-off kit. Replacing the thermal cut-off kit seemed a little more intimidating because I had to cut wires and put on new wire terminals. Once I actually did it though it wasn't as bad as I thought. This repair finally fixed the problem, and we have fluffy, warm clothes again. My recommendation is to follow the troubleshooting tips located in "get repair help" so you're not just throwing money around (lesson learned). Also, watch the repair videos a few times while you are waiting for your part (which won't take long at all, with GREAT shipping time). This helped me feel more confident and familiar with my dryer. This isn't the first time I've used this site either. Our timer stopped working on the same dryer and I was able to successfully fix that issue as well. I LOVE this site and how well it's constructed to walk you through your appliances. 

I bumbled onto your website (probably with the help of Google) and saw you had videos. Plugging in my model number and symptom got me first to a video on how to open the dryer. It was VERY helpful to me that the fellow used our exact model of dryer to demonstrate! I was able to take it apart and meter everything out, discovering that the thermal cutoff was dead. On the chance that it might've taken the thermostat with it, I ordered the full kit. So It arrived early and I couldn't go right over, given that it was at our vacation rental home across town so I was going to do it Monday. Except Sunday night our home dryer, a Kenmore 110.69822801, made loud mechanical noises and stopped doing ANYTHING and although I had confidence with the first dryer being easy to put back together, I had a bad feeling about our home one. My discomfort increased when I saw that the dryer Matt used to demonstrate was NOT our exact same model, since ours looked more like our other one with a square door and the controls up at the back while his demo had a round door with controls on the front. But, I approached it the same way from the back as our other one, eventually getting the top hinged up, realizing that inside it was the same as the front control model. So, I watched a couple more of Matt's videos and finally gained confidence to totally open it up discovering the wreckage that happens when the idler pulley seizes, rubs black rubber off the belt, then totally falls apart with a rattle and a clunk. So I ordered "Dryer Repair Kit (27 Inch Wide Dryers, Thin Twins)" and it's on its way. Back to the first dryer, it was even easier than I thought. I kicked myself when I realized that I had left my crimpers for adapting the later thermostat on this end of town, but rather than waste 40 min driving home and back, I tried just replacing the thermal cut-off kit and the dryer works just great. Kudos to your video production department for doing consistently informative videos. Armed with some viewing, I have the confidence to reassemble our home dryer and if need be take it apart again if there's more internal parts broken. 

Watch the video that cam with the part and it was easy to put back together. the high temp cutoff was burned up on it. Thanks for the video this internet repairing is great 

The heating element had been replaced approximately 2 years ago, but the dryer thermal cut-off kit was not used. When it started doing the same thing--extreme temp, wrinkling clothes, ruining clothes--decided to replace all attached to heat function. Parts arrived when expected. The videos on-line was a great help making it a lot easier than thought. While I was working on it did a "tune up"-used dryer repair kit and replaced rollers and belt. After abount 45 min on everything, the dryer runs like new! Happy wife, happy life! thanks appliancepartspro.com for having the parts and speedy delivery. 

I called a local repair man and asked a few questions. He said to bypass the sensors and see if it worked. That would tell me if the sensor was bad. It was the case, so I ordered the sensor and replaced it. It now works fine and I saved myself having to buy another dryer and moving it. 

I viewed the video online, which was excellent and it helped me tremendously in the repair. It was good in the step by step instructions. The written instructions that came with the kit were NO help at all. When it said to check the part # with the model# --was it correct?--it was very satisfactory in advising me that I had the correct part. I had gone to an electrical store for the part and they were trying to sell me the wrong part. I am so glad to have found you and I will recommend you. 

My husband took the old timer out and replace it with the new. Now it worked fine. Being we order the other parts we decided to replace them.