MDE16CSAZW Maytag Dryer - Instructions

A year or so ago I replaced one drum wheel. The dryer worked fine for months until it started sqeaking again. When I removed the wheels again the shaft was no longer round but half moon shaped. this allowed the drum to drop lower than it's supposed to. consequently the drum ate through the back drum support. I replaced the back drum support and the roller shafts, in addition to two new rollers. It works great now. The more difficult part of the repair was replacing the rear drum support. It is screwed in from the back and requires two people. Everything else I did by myself. The lesson: If you replace the rollers, be sure the roller shafts are not worn. An asymetric shaft eventually causes more parts to wear out.

I watched the video

Okay, first of all, just let me say, if I can do this, ANYONE can. I am not very handy when it comes to things like this. I watched online videos and they will walk you through everything. I am so pleased with the results. Quiet as can be now. Before, we would have to shut the door when it was on because the scretching was so loud! The parts on this site were far more affordable than at my local repair store and they all came right to my doorstep. Overall it took me about 45 minutes and three beers :) Good luck!

Followed your video; replaced felt seal on front of drum, (torn in two or three places), and replaced both front guide kits,which were ground to the metal, causing the black dust, ( metal shavings). Thanks for the help, Buck. The drum support rollers were OK.

This was fun! Kill the power!
Remove door, remove from panel, remove front drum support, remove drum and belt, remove blower cover, remove blower wheel, remove electrical connector from motor, take two clips off motor mount to remove motor. Put it all back in with new parts. 200 bucks and back in business. Go for it.
Bob

Using the pictoral parts diagrams on the PartSelect website, it was a logical process to disassemble the dryer to change the drum drive belt. This was a great opportunity to clean lint from the motor and air passages and inspect all components. Cleaned the belt track, the roller drum wheels and felt seals. Unit now runs like new. BTW - very fast shipping on the replacement belt and it was the right part the first time!

removed dryer door 4 screws
removed front panel
removed front tumbler bracket
removed blower cover
removed wires attached to heat and door sensors
removed top
removed drum and belt
removed side panel
removed clamp holding idler pulley
replaced pulley and clamp
reversed above steps

1 - unscrewed door
2 - made a mess because the directions did not work for my dryer
3 - figured it out = eventually
4 - popped loose the front panel
5 - unscrewed metal bars (that were holding the top down in the front)
6 - lift front like a hood on a car
7 - unscrew the rest of the front until the drum was loose and I could get to the felt strip
8 - glue new strip on where the old strip was = to the front and back plates that hold the drum
9 - put it back together :)

After seeing how much it would cost to have a maytag guy come out & do it, I decided to look it up on this site & found it was reported to be an easy fix. It was very easy, just made sure the same connectors went into the same slots & switched them out (1 nut to remove & replace).

Removed door and front and drum. Removed fan assembly. Be careful when working fan off of motor shaft. Unhooked wiring from motor. Removed clips. Replaced motor. Reverse procedure to put dryer back together. Now works like new. Very, very, happy. Part came in 2 days using standard shipping. Way better than buying a new dryer.

Took off the front, took thd drum off, removed old belt, placed on new belt ptu everything back together.

I removed the 2 screws that hold the door and removed the door. I then removed all the screws that hold the front panel and removed the front panel. Then I was able to lift (on hinges) the top panel. I then removed the screws that hold the front drum housing, then removed the drum and belt. At that point you have plenty of room to access the idler pulley. I removed the Idler pulley spring. Then I removed the the screw holding the Idler arm and shaft. Reinstalled in reverse order.

The dryer disassembly was pretty straightforward. The drive belt slips over the drum and easily prys over the drive and idler pulleys. The drum seal is held in place with the existing metal tabs. The old drum glides had to be drilled out and the new ones pop rivited in easily. Overall a rather simple process and the dryer sounds and drys like new again for minimal expenditure and time. Probably would have cost $200+ had I had a service person do the work.

Insure the double pole breaker in the breaker box is functioning properly.

Tools required: Stubby socket wrench, 5/16" socket, 1/2" socket, 1/4" socket, #3 Phillips screwdriver, external circlip pliers, straight slip joint pliers. A decently strong electric screwdriver is highly recommended - Milwaukee 2401-20 M12 cordless 1/4" Hex Screwdriver, for example.

Unplug the dryer. Turn off the gas supply.

Remove the screws holding the door hinges to the dryer.

Remove the door and hinges from the dryer by pulling the door and hinges up, then out.

Remove the two plastic thingies (door stops), opposite of where the hinges were, from the front panel of the dryer. Each plastic piece is held in place by two screws.

Grasp the front panel by its top edge, pull it toward you, then lift the panel up and off the clips at the bottom.

There are a couple metal brackets holding the top of the dryer down to the front shroud (the doorway) and frame, one on either side. Each bracket is held in place by two screws. Remove the screws, remove the brackets, then rock the top panel up and back, like the hood of a car.

Remove the screws holding the shroud to the frame. Look carefully. There are two screws that look like they hold the shroud to the frame, but actually do not. Don't remove these screws yet.

Remove the screws holding the plastic duct / lint screen slot to the shroud. These are very long.

Disconnect the wires from the door switch.

Remove the shroud.

Remember the two screws I referenced previously, stating they shouldn't yet be removed? Now's the time to remove them. Do so, then set the panel aside, being careful not to damage any wires. Don't lose the rubber gasket sitting around the circular portion of the duct.

There's a metal cover over the blower wheel. This cover is held in place by a bunch of screws. Remove them all, then remove the cover.

Remove the circlip going around the blower shaft, in front of the blower wheel.

Remove the clamp from around the blower wheel and shaft.

Pull the blower wheel off the shaft.

Install the new blower wheel.

Reinstall the clamp around the blower wheel and shaft.

Reinstall the circlip.

Reinstall the metal blower cover.

Make sure the rear of the drum is resting on the wheels.

Now things become a little difficult, because you have to fight the drum a little bit. Put the panel containing the moisture sensor, front drum seal, and duct into position. (Be careful not to mess up the drum glides. Make sure the rubber seal at the bottom of the vent is in place, sealing the vent to the blower.) Screw the panel into place with two screws, but don't fully tighten yet.

There's a felt seal that is supposed to go between the rear lip of the drum and the rear inside wall. The seal is supposed to be held folded, pinched between the lip and the wall, with the edge of the seal being outside the drum. The seal isn't supposed to jut into the inside of the drum. Use your fingers and some other tool to push the rear felt drum seal out of the inside of the drum. If you use a screwdriver, be careful that you don't cut, rip, or otherwise damage the felt seal.

Do the same with the front felt drum seal.

Carefully inspect the felt seals. You don't want any portion of the seal somehow working its way back into the inside of the drum. Then verify again that the rubber seal that goes between the blower housing and the vent is in place and properly sealing. Now tighten the screws.

Connect the wires to the door switch on the shroud, then loosely screw the shroud in place. Screw the shroud to the vent. Once all the screws are in place, tighten all the screws.

Lower the top of the dryer into position.

Hook a bracket into one side of the lid, position the bracket over the front shroud, then screw in place.

Repeat with the other bracket.

Place the front panel onto the bottom clips. Seat the panel onto the clips all the way, then rock the panel forward into place.

Install the plastic door stops.

Insert the door hinges into their slots, push the door down to seat into place, then install the screws that hold the hinges in place.

Plug the dryer in, turn on the gas, test.