MDE14PRAYW Maytag Dryer - Instructions

I opened the panel, undid the plugs, detached the radiant sensor by undoing one screw and removed and replaced the part. Fairly simply.

Turned off circuit breaker. Removed two screws at base of front panel with stubby Phillips-head screwdriver. Swung panel up about 30-degrees, and removed panel, disconnecting red and yellow wire to door switch. Removed four sheet metal screws and took off large drum support bracket. Checked drum support rollers and shafts. They were fine. Reset circuit breaker and turned on dryer. Rattling noise still present.
Removed six small screws holding blower fan assembly. Shaft receiver on squirrel cage fan was worn completely round (it should fit onto a half-round shaft). Ordered new blower fan from PartSelect.com. Replaced tonight, and it works beautifully. This dryer is 29-years old. All it's ever needed in the 10-years I've owned it is a belt replacement and this repair. Long live the 1970s Maytags, and good parts suppliers like this one.

Pulled the big front panel by removing two screws near bottom of front and pulling out at bottom until the top pops loose. Vacuumed out all of the dust and checked for loose connections. Ran dryer - igniter would light, but no gas. Checked the two solenoids with a VOM. the one with the two leads would intermittently read Infinity (open). Super simple repair. Remove two screws on solenoid bracket on top of the gas valve, Replace solenoid and plug it back in with the easy push-on connector. NO PROBLEM - all fixed.

Removed the screws and took the door off then took the front panel off and popped up the top. Then pulled the drum out. Took snap ring pliers and removed rollers and replaced with new rollers then vacuumed all lint from machine and reversed operation to put everything back together. Operation was a total success!

Unplug the dryer and remove the front panel (two screws at bottom of the panel), being careful of the door switch wires attached to the front panel. Using an ohm meter, I checked the ignitor for continuity and found it was open (should be 50-100 ohms). Make sure to check the solenoids on the gas valve. When the igniter goes bad, it will usually burn out the valve 1 solenoid boost coil (the one with 3 terminals), which was the case with my dryer. The solenoid coils are held in by a bracket with two screws (series 01 dryer) and are easy to remove and replace. Be careful replacing the igniter as the heating element is VERY fragile. Take the time to vacuum out all of the accumulated lint and dust inside the dryer while the front panel is removed, including the lint trap and duct. New igniter and boost/hold solenoid fixed the problem.

Note: You may want to consider replacing the 2 Drum Support rollers at this time (while your in there)

1. UNPLUG YOUR DRYER FIRST.

2. Using a phillips head screw driver - Remove 2 screws that secure the dryer door hinges to the frame, Lift door very slightly to unhook hinges and pull out door with hinges attached as straight as possible, set aside. Remove the 2 plastic tabs from the opposing side of the door hinge also secured by screws.

3. Remove the front panel (panel is shaped like a football goal post) by tilting out the top ends of the front panel toward you, then lift up to remove panel from the bottom metal retaining tabs.

4. Remove the 2 hexhead screws from the 2 retaining clips (security hooks) that secure the top
of the dryer closed.

5. Systematically remove the hexhead screws from the rest of the front of "shroud" (it holds (suspends) the drum in place between the front and back of the dryer).

*** I didn't disconnect any wires, I carefully swung out each piece that had wires attached, propped up those parts vertically ensuring no strain on the attached wires. Others may want to disconnect wires to avoid breaking or damaging them.

6. Vacuum out any dust/lint that may be present.

7. Draw a quick diagram of how the underside of the belt is threaded on the idler pulley and motor pully first. Release the tension of the belt from the underside of the drum. The easiest way is to push the idler pulley arm away from the belt and slide off the belt from the idler pulley and motor pulley. Slide the drum out.

8. Remove the hexhead screw from the bottom of the idler arm. Disconnect from retaining spring.

9. You may only need to replace just the Idler Pulley Wheel. I recommend replacing as a "unit" the Idler Pulley Wheel, Idler Arm, Ring-E and Idler Shaft Washer(s) - then you can just swap out the old one for the new one.

10. Reassemble

(When reassembling the belt - place around drum first and slide drum in place. Now from the underside-place (drape) belt around the motor pulley (it will be very loose) Now push the idler pulley arm toward the motor pulley, engage the left side of the belt around the idler pulley and slowly allow idler pulley to increase its tension on the belt) You can test manually by rotating the drum by hand to ensure proper movement.)

After replacing all the other fuses and sensors I finally replaced the Radiant Flame Sensor and it is working perfectly.

After replacing the other parts and the heat still not coming on I read somewhere that the Radiant Flame Sensor is a normal closed circuit and when I checked with a meter it was open. I would have saved a lot of time and money if I had read that earlier.

I removed the front panel of the dryer by removing the 2 screw that secure it at the bottom and pulling upward to disconnect the cover at the top. I then removed the two screws that hold the metal cover that secures the 2 elements in place. I disconnected the wire plugs from the 2 elements, removed the 2 elements and replaced them with the new parts making sure to place them in the same positions as before. I then replaced the housing cover and tightened the screws. Then I replaced the front cover of the dryer.

I removed the front of the dryer by removing the two screws on the bottom of the front panel, disconnected the door switch wires. I removed the connectors from the coils on the gas valve, the heat sensor and the igniter. Loosened the gas line at the valve. I removed the screw holding the gas valve and burner assembly and removed the assembly from the dryer. Remover the screw holding the burner to the valve, and removed the igniter. Replaced the burned and reconnected what I had removed. The reason the burner didn't light was due to the gas deflectors being burned off of the burner, If the igniter, sensor, and coils check out OK , check the front of the burned to besure it is deflecting gas to the igniter

Turned off gas and unplugged dryer
1) Removed bottom front panel
2) lifted top panel up like a car hood
3) Removed door springs
4) disconnected electrial connections to door unit, removed door unit
5) removed drum, scraped old felt from drum
6) glued new felt with a very strong glue (nanoglue or gorilla glue, same thing), let it dry overnight
7) secured back inside panel, replaced drum and put dryer back together.

Took off back cover, thermostat was easily identified because of photos I've seen on website. Took 2 connectors off, removed 2 screws and removed old thermostat. That was pretty much it!

NOTE: Replacement thermostat 694674 has an adjustable temperature range setting that MUST be manually set prior to installing! You need to use the enclosed chart to find your original part# and make sure the setting is matched. My original part# 341146 had a "D" setting so I had to change but very easy to do.

We tried replacing the door switch first, still didn't start. Next we tried the thermal fuse and it turned on and has worked ever since.

After changing all the rollers in the dryer (which didn't fix the problem) I decided to take apart the blower. Sure enough, that was the problem. As the dryer heated up, the damaged wheel would swell and start rubbing the housing. I replaced both and fixed the problem. The repair was pretty easy, since I had taken the dryer apart several times replacing the rollers.

Opened front panel .Tested both coils on gas valve.
Found no continuity on one of the coils. Replaced coil,
dryer works like new.

Well, I had to find out just how the dryer came apart. Most of the time, the back comes off but with this particular Maytag, it is the front that has to be removed. Once the four screws from either side are removed, the front pops off and the canister that holds the heating element is right there on the bottom. Cleaning away years of lint was fun but the heating canister was removed quickly using two screws and removing four wires that attached to the unit. Once the screws were removed (top back and bottom front) and the wires removed, the replacement unit slid right in without any problems. The regulator on the old unit had to be transferred to the new unit before installation. I closed up the front, put the four screws back in and snapped the front closed and the dryer worked perfectly.