My way of replacing the pulley was much faster than the parts select video that showed how to replace the belt tension-er pulley. They took off the door, the entire front AND the drum to get to the pulley. I ACCESSED THE PULLEY BY REMOVING THE 4 INCH EXHAUST PIPE, (ONE SCREW) WHICH GAVE MORE THAN ENOUGH OPENING TO REPLACE THE NEARBY PULLEY! I suggest you remake that video
We only had to tilt the dryer enough to be able to screw the leveling leg in place.The only hard part was holding the dryer steady to screw in the leveling foot.
Opened machine up, removed electric control panel, removed door assembly, removed lint collector assembly, removed and replaced 2 sensor bars then reassembled machine. Ended up not being the problem but, I now have new moisture sensing bars.
Loud squealing from newer Whirlpool Front Loading Dryer
Dryer was making intermittent squealing noises sometimes it was amazingly loud, sometimes not so bad. Still, I figured this couldn't be good so I wanted to find a fix. Read the stories here and everything pointed to the 'idler pulley', so I figured I'd give it a try. For me, access was the hardest part -- my laundry room is small and I can't easily get the dryer out or move it around. Not a problem with the part, just my own setup. Important to note that this repair is best done through the BACK of the unit, not the front. Once I got access to the back (removing AC and Water used for the 'steam dry feature') I also had to disconnect several of the electrical connectors to get the unit fully apart. Good news -- the actual replacement of the pulley took about 1 minute! It was just all of the moving and disassembly that took so long. The original idler pulley had worked its way off of the shaft and was out of place and causing the squealing. All is well now, and I saved a bunch by doing it myself. No more squealing!
Ordered the fuse first hoping it was just that simple, watched the video for how to replace, first step was to take the back of the dryer off, well I order to take the back off I had to take off the Electrical Cord, as well as he top of the dryer. Only to find out he part I was replacing was not back there. Found the tech sheet attached within he dryer though, and as it turns out only needed to take he front bottom panel off. Without testing he continuity I was just giving this a shot, the Thermal fuse did no fix it, so I tried the high Limit Thermostat and Fuse kit still no luck. Took out the Element to find I was physically cracked in 2 pieces, replaced that and I was back up and running. And all parts were found in the bottom front panel of the dryer, so beware before you watch the video and take our whole dryer apart like I did.
First tried repairing the old idler by cleaning and lubricating the shaft. That lasted for about a week but the squealing returned. Ordered the part and had it in a few days. Replaced the idler wheel and it's been quietly running like new for several weeks now. Now wife thinks I'm Superman.
Had previously replaced the heater coil (purchased from PartSelect) and fixed the no heat problem. Should have taken advice given on this site and replace the thermostat and thermal fuse kit at that time. Since I knew how to remove the assembly it was easier this time. Just remove, unscrew the two parts and replace with the new ones. Reattach the wires and reinstall the assembly and it is now working again. Also vacumed the inside and trimed and replaced the exhast vent hookup for less restriction.
Disconnected the power and duct from the dryer. Removed the back and top of the dryer by removing the 1/4" screws. Created slack in the belt by compressing the spring and moving the idler arm.Slid the belt off the pulley. Removed the tri-ring clip, slid the old pulley and gasket off. Cleaned and inspected the shaft and vacuumed the inside of the dryer. replaced the gasket, pulley and tri-ring clip. Replaced the top and back of the dryer. Connected duct and power.
Followed standard instructions regarding removal of top first & then the front panels. Realized after following this process that I did not have to remove top, but only one of front panels to obtain access to moisture sensor. If I have to do this again, the replacement of sensor will be much easier.
Dryer had a high pitch squeal, first at startup, then during full cycle.
Removed the top panel of the dryer via a couple of screws from the rear. Remove the rear panel swing it open light a door to the right, minding the electrical connections. Removed the belt from the pulley, removed the Tri-ring from the shaft and slid the pulley off of the shaft. The shaft was slightly rusted so I used a steel brush and brake cleaner to clean it up, placed the new gasket, pulley, and tri-ring on, replaced the belt, and put the panels back into place. As the dryer is about 7 years old, also removed the front lower panel and cleaned out unit which had quite a bit of accumulated dust and glitter especially in the vent lines. (3 girls live here). Pretty easy, most screws remove with just the one tool.
Dryer is on a pedestal. Opened drawer and removed two 1/4 inch screws on bottom panel of dryer front. Panel drops down and exposes the dryer exhaust where thermistor is located. Removed two spade connector wires and removed two 1/4 inch screws. Installed new thermistor and reversed procedure. For the moisture sensors I used a phillps screwdriver and stuck my head in the dryer and removed the lint screen assembly (3 screws). Removed the spade wire connectors and used a straight blade screw driver to remove the moisture sensor. Installed the new sensor and re-installed the lint screen assembly in the reverse of removal. All very easy - just took 30-45 minutes total.
Watched steve on the video on changing the thermistor a couple times, it appeared to be straight forward replacement. Unplugged the dryer. . . Went through the front, my lent filter slides in and out from the lid so I had too remove two extra screws to detach it. After opening up the front it became very apparent my thermistor was not located in the same location as the one in the video. Dryer needed a cleaning (lint/dust) so I released the idler pully tension on the drum belt and went ahead and removed the drum/belt and shop vac/ blew with compressed air and shop vac once again. Gave my dryer a much needed cleaning since I had it apart. Put everything back together in about 20 mins. Pulled the dryer away from the wall and removed rear cover and presto there it was right next to the dryer air outlet. Replaced thermistor and replaced back cover, inspected out flex hose on dryer outlet, I clean it out (flex) yearly to prevent problems. Reattached flex on both ends, re-positioned dryer, plugged back in, and works great! Definitely fixed my problem. . . Replacing the drum by myself was a bit difficult. Still do able (there's a video on that also. . )
