Tumbler and Motor Belt

Found step by step instructions on your website, they were posted by another do-it-yourselfer. The exact make of dryer that I have, and the drawings with part numbers listed was quite helpful. The bad motor came out easy enough and the new one was just like the old so it fit right into place. Strung a new belt around the tumbler drum and dryer is just like NEW. Thank you so much. Probably saved a couple hundred dollars.

It was very easy to access the parts that needed to be replaced (blower wheel, belt, and glides).
1. Unplug the dryer power cord.
2. Removed the two screws at the bottom of the front dryer panel. Pull the bottom of the panel forward, which frees the retaining clips at the top of the panel.
3. Disconnect the two wires from the back of the panel, and remove the panel. The drum will be resting on the motor/blower hosuing.
4. Slide the belt off of the back of the tumbler, and remove the tumbler (have to angle it a bit, to clear the frame) and the belt.
5. Remove the thermostat cover (piece of angled sheet metal, in front of the blower unit).
6. Remove the screws from the blower housing, and lay it forward, to expose the blower wheel.
7. Remove the snap ring, and then the retaining ring from the blower wheel. Remove the old wheel.
8. Install the new wheel, then the retaining ring, and then the snap ring. Reattach the cover to the blower assembly.
9. Reattach the thermostat cover.
10. On the tumbler, drill out the rivets for each of the glides, and remove all glide parts. Install new glides.

This is a good time to complete any general cleaning inside the dryer cabinet, especially in the area of the motor. Since there is limited access to the motor itself, might help to use the blower function of a shopvac to blow out that dust.
Vacuum out all lint from around the felt drum seals.

11. Loop the new belt over the tumbler, and install the tumbler (the glides go towards the front of the dryer). Note: to keep the belt from falling off, I taped it to the drum with two pieces of painters tape..the blue tape that comes back off easily.
12. On the back of the dryer, remove the access panel, and complete installation of the belt to the idler pulley.
13. If you taped the belt to the drum....don't forget to remove the tape now. Reinstall front panel to dryer.

This was my first experience working with snap ring retaining rings. Even with snap ring pliers, they are difficult to remove without stretching them out. Be sure to order a new one with your blower wheel.

Also my first experience using a pop rivet gun ( to install the new glides). Found a rivet gun at Lowes for $9.99. Worked okay, and all rivets set properly. Good thing, because you don't get any extras with the glide kits.

After replacing the parts, and starting up the dryer, all of the clunking/squelling/rumbling noises were gone. There was a noticable smell while the new glides got broken in...smelled a bit like melting rubber. However, after a couple of drying cyles, the odor was gone.

1. Removed two screws from front panel.
2. Removed panel.
3. Removed four bolts off tumbler face.
4. Removed face.
5. Removed drum and belt.
6. Vacuumed.
7. Replaced idler spring assembly.
8. Replaced drum.
9. Replaced belt.
10. Rotated drum to make sure belt was properly seated.
11. Replaced tumbler face.
12. Replaced front panel.

MAJOR MOTOR ISSUE: Motor would attempt to start, but the shaft would not turn. The cause was a build-up of lint that was jammed between the armature and field. The fix was the patient use of compressed to blow out the motor, and a light application of wd-40 onto the shaft where it emerges from the housing at each end. I had fully intended to replace the motor; and after removing the wires, the fan from the shaft and the motor from the bracket holding it tried the above and it worked. The fan was stubborn to remove from the motor shaft, but a light application of wd-40 enabled it to slip off without resistance.

After testing the newly cleaned motor (starting, stopping, running without getting warm) I concluded that it was still turning freely and basically ok. There was no slop in the armature bearings. I ordered a new belt and door seal and reinstalled everything after thoroughly removing the dust and lint that coated everything. I also paid careful attention to the ductwork—I used duct tape to seal the connections & hopefully should be set for another 20 years or so. The disassembly and re-assembly instructions on this web are excellent and should be read carefully before starting the job. The purpose here is to help people save motors that are just clogged with lint.

If I had waited until I reviewed the pack-up date that came with the part, the disassembly would have gone much faster. The part arrived in record time, several days before anticipated. Outstanding website, parts and repair experience!

First step was diagnosis. I unplugged the dryer and removed the front panel to access the heater. I disconnected the push on terminal at the heater over temp sensor and tested heater for continuity using a DVM. No continuity meant the heater element was bad. I visually inspected the tumber belt and found it to be split. I ordered the parts heater element and belt from PartSelect on a Thursday at 2:00 PM. I received notice that they shipped the same day! FedEx delivered the parts by Saturday. It took me about an hour to remove the heater and replace the element (its the 2nd replacement in 28 years) and about another hour to replace the belt and do a general cleaning of the dryer interior. All in all, it was a fairly easy repair (for a technically inclined guy).

I had my oldest son who was home from college help me. We removed the front face of the dryer and put the unit on it's back. We removed the door switch and the blower unit. I didn't get a good look at how the belt was routed when we removed the drum but was able to figure it out when we put it back together. Not only was the belt frayed and dry rotted, the blower squirrel cage was free-wheeling on the shaft. I found a tab of metal I was able to insert in the flat of the shaft between the cage bushing and the shaft and I put the squeeze ring and snap ring back in place. We also discovered the source of much of the rattling noise we had grown accustomed to was actually change pieces trapped under the drum ribs. We removed them and put the ribs back in place and we installed the new belt and figured out how the belt routed around the shaft and tensioning pulley. We cleaned all the trapped lint out of the dryer and reassembled the unit. It now works like new. Thanks!

I looked for dryer repair videos on my computer. I found several and they all showed me that what was most likely broken was the tumbler belt. I didn't even know dryers had a belt. My dryer still turned on,and still produced heat. It just wouldn't rotate. One of the videos even used the exact Maytag dryer in their video that I had. After watching it a few times, I knew I could make this repair. I am pretty good at fixing things if I can first see it done. I had never taken a dryer apart before though. I pulled the dryer away from the wall and unplugged it. I unscrewed the small access panel on the back of the dryer. This let me see the two belt pulleys back there. Then I went to the front and removed the two screws(my particular model) that held the front panel on and removed it. I then unscrewed the four screws holding on the front face plate in front of the tumbler. Next, I pulled the tumbler out, it is not screwed in. There was the broken belt. It took two days with regular shipping for the belt to come in. I put the tumbler back in, resting it on its two supports, placed the belt on, flat side down, and routed the belt through the pulleys in the back of the dryer exactly as it had been shown in the videos. I turned the tumbler clockwise two full rotations by hand to make sure the belt was seated correctly on the pulleys, and it was. I then screwed the face plate back on in front of the tumbler, put the front panel back on and screwed it in. I then reattached the back access panel. I plugged the dryer back in and turned it on. It worked. Though it may take a bit longer, this type of repair is about as easy as replacing a broken belt on a vacuum cleaner even for someone who has never done a dryer repair before. Watch a Repair Clinic video and if you enjoy fixing things, replacing a belt on a clothes dryer will be your next successful repair. It really is pretty easy.

Turned off breaker, then unplugged it anyway. I need some room to attack this old dog! Pulled out of its hole beside the washer and went to work. Opps, don't forget the flexible vent, I broke it off about a foot from the dryer. Four screws on back, lower right to remove acccess panel. Next two screws under front panel, pull bottom out about a foot and it unclips at top. Read the 5 repair stories about replacing the motor as I took everything apart, all were helpful. Had to put motor in a vise to loosen set screw on pulley, lucky I had a 3/16 allen socket, that was the only hard part, unless you count getting screws out from under the freezer where I kicked them. Be careful. Still ended up with belt in v-groove on back part of drum (where it does NOT go) so had to reach in from front and pull it out about 4 or 5 inches. Things a quiet now and I am a hero around here. Thanks for the good help fellows.

Had replaced the heater element a few week earlier under the thought that it had failed just because the dryer was old. But shortly after replacing the element the dyrer started making a lot of noise when started. A few dryer loads later the hearte element had faild again.
The design of the Maytag Dryer makes most repairs easy. The machine is very well made.
Since I was investigate the noise that the dyrer was making, I did a complete teardown of the dryer to check things out. Fould that the drum drive belt was old and the blower fan had spun off the locking tab and also that the heater element was burned out. again. Did a complete check of all moving parts and orded the parts that needed to be replaced. Did a clean up of all old lint in the dryer vent system and fan unit. The fan and belt parts were easy to replace. The heater element does take time and care when working with the ceramic holders. But since I had done it before I did not find any surprised.
The dryer works like new now. Just hope none of the sensors or ideler wheels give out.

Removed the front panel by removing two front screws. Removed screws from front panel holding tumbler drum. Cleaned interior with a vacuum cleaner. (dryer is at least 16 years old). Removed what was left of rivets on damaged glides with a drill, and cleaned area well. Attached new glides with rivet gun, and also applied glue to make glide and cork more secure. Replaced belts, and decided to reverse drum due to damage to drum from allowing glides to deteriorate to the point of putting scratches on the drum itself, allowing the new glides to rest on drum where there was no damage at all. This process was easy, and fast. We did make one error however, in not noticing that with our model, that there were TWO glides to be replaced. Luckily a local repair shop had one more glide so the job could be done the same day. The dryer sounds like it did when it was brand new. Very quiet! The comments from other home repairs helped very much in clairifying any possible errors. Fast delivery of parts, and the extra help was great. Thanks!

First I unplugged the dryer. Then, I took off the front cover, then a piece that holds the tumbler on. I put the new belt on and took a few minutes to make sure the belt was placed correctly. Lastly I put everything back on and plugged it back in. She started right up.

I bought this machine in 1984. For the belt to last this long, is extraordinary. The belt comes in a plastic bag with instructions. After removing the front cover(2 screws at the bottom, tip bottom out towards you. Cover unhinges from the top. Lean face against a wall. Don't remove any wires). I then vacuumed the inside thoroughly. Used a parts brush to wipe everything off, and blew out with compressed air. Vacuumed again. A bit obsessive, but gas and dust are not a good combination. So why not take the extra time. There is a continuous mark on the circumference of the drum, left by the original belt. Use this as your guide to locate the new belt. Rotate the drum by hand to make sure it tracks correctly. I also ran the motor with everything open, to make sure everything was cool before I buttoned it up. Also took the time to replace the gas line with a new one, and duct-taped the vent pipe to improve air flow.

took the front cover off the dryer to get front access to the tumbler and the rear access panel to get access to actually aligning the belt on the tumbler. all in all it was fairly simple to change and the part came in within 2 days of ordering. very pleased with the delivery time!!! thanks, jason hines

Removed the front casing of the dryer. loosened the barrel of the dryer, threaded the belt (per instructiond given inclosed with belt) replaced screws, casing and reconnected wiring. All went well and when connected to electricity and started, dryer ran fine. Thank you for the instruction sheet, there could have been trouble re-threading if the sheet had not been enclosed. I am a satisvied customer! !