How to Troubleshoot & Replace Whirlpool AP6008273 / WP3387223 Dryer Moisture Sensor Bar

New heating element, thermostats, and sensor bar. 

Received two moisture sensor bars for replacement having tried cleaning the bars in place with rubbing alcohol, to no avail. Upon disassembly, one of the spade connectors was loose and there was “bridging” debris between the two sensor strips on the backside of the housing at the end not connected to the wiring harness. This site of “bridging” is not visible or cleanable when installed. I cleaned the original strips and the “bridging” debris, reassembled and “viola” the dryer is working properly without sensor replacement. I think the “bridging” debris was providing contact across the bars and causing the circuit to close. I am not going to return the sensors because of their low cost, hassle and expense of return shipping. BTW, on this model, purchased in 2010, only two Phillips head screws need to be removed from the dryer interior holing the plastic assembly for the lint screen and the moisture sensor bars. This is easier than removal of the bulkhead and the dryer exhaust. This was very easy access; only two screws! Bottom line: Before ordering the parts, try cleaning the bars from the dryer drum side (dryer sheet residue) and if that does not work, then disassemble, check connection to wiring harness and the backside of the sensors for debris, reassemble and test dryer function. Now I have two new sensor bars that are not worth returning. 

I replaced the heating element and one sensor. The top and the back panel had to be removed. The heating element was located on the left side where the air blows into the drum. That vent pipe just came off exposing the metal tube that holds the element and sensors. They are all slide-off connections with one screw holding them to the body. Once the screw was removed the connection wires slid off with some budging. That released the tube which had more screws. After the tube was opened, the element which was seated on a snap-in plait, just came off along with the sensors. All I had to do was snap the new element into place along with one sensor and put everything back together. I am a fix-it Mom/Grandmother so it was relatively simple. Just remember to put everything back the way you found it. *One of the sensors I ordered didn't match the original part. The original had an electric plug on it on top of the sensor. Thus 3 connections instead of 2. As a result, I didn't replace that part. It runs just fine now. Beats paying $800 plus for a new dryer. 

Replaced moisture sensor bars and dryer thermistor. I also vacuumed and cleaned out the substantial amount of dryer lint that had collected in the housing and within the parts I removed. After repair and cleaning, my ten year old Kenmore (Whirlpool) is now drying clothes normally. The most difficult part was removing the service panel from the front of the dryer! 

Ordered sensors. It took about 5 minutes to replace old sensors and the dryer works fine now. 

Google searches about the specific problem returned at least a few possibilities. The easiest and least expensive items to try first were the moisture sensor bars and thermistor. Before purchasing the items, I did try to clean the old moisture sensor bars with alcohol, but that didn't seem to fix the issue. The replacement of both of these parts was extremely easy and took less than 15 minutes, and now even large loads are drying completely and in a reasonable amount of time. It was well worth the cost of the parts. Also, the video provided by appliancepartpros on YouTube made it a piece of cake. 

I replaced other parts In 2017 and worked great until It wasn't completely drying clothes. So I replaced dryer igniter, dryer thermistor & moisture sensor bar, so far working great. 

Replaced the 2 moisture sensor bars. 

I replaced 3 parts, moisture sensor bars, thermostat and another heat sensor. 

Replaced thermal fuse, tested it, found it worked and replaced moisture sensor and flame sensor since I had it apart. This site is the gold standard for DIY. Easy location and identification of parts, ordering, diagnosis and how to videos make this the premier substitute for the time and hassle of finding a repairman to actually return phone calls, show up, have to order parts, then return, usually at a cost of a few hundred bucks. I performed maintenance, fixed the problem and replaced other maintenance vulnerable parts for less than $100 and learned in the process. A bonus: no teaser to access repair tech or products. Hard to believe there's no charge except for the parts; ideal and efficient.