MEC5430BDS Maytag Cooktop - Instructions

Only hitch I experienced was identifying the correct replacement. The original diagram presented the accurate shape of the element my range required. However a different shaped element was displayed when I noted my unit is a series 12 serial number. I ordered it (with reservations) and as it turned out the replacement was identical to mine. Next time I will have a lil more confidence in the instructions given.

This is a slide-in range, so I:
1. Turned off the circuit breaker for the range. The range is hard-wired, so can't just be unplugged. I determined the clock on the range went off.
2. Removed 4 screws holding the front control panel to the cooktop. Removed 2 screws from each side panel into the cooktop. Removed 4 screws from the rear panel holding the cooktop.
3. With my assistant (my wife) lifted the cooktop and tilted it so that I could access the underside.
4. Used an iPad to take photos from several angles of the wire connections from each burner control. Printed the one showing the connections on the dual burner control.
5. Removed the 4 screws holding the sheet metal support for the dual burner and one of the other burners. Released the spring steel retainers holding the dual burner. Removed the burner.
6. Used the iPad again to take photos of the connections to the dual burner, and printed it.
7. Removed all the wire connections to the burner. Checked continuity from the center (common) terminal to each of the other terminals. Determined that in fact the inside coil was open (burned out).
8. Removed the two screws holding the spring clip retainers on the old burner. Matched the old and new burners to determine where the spring clips should go. Drilled 2 small holes in the base of the new burner and screwed the clips from the old burner on the new one.
9. Now the tricky part: The new burner didn't have the exact same limiter and heat sensor probe as the old one. After several false starts, we were able to barely make out the terminal letter/number designations on the control and match them to the same letter/numbers on the new burner. It required a magnifier and a strong flashlight to read these engraved markings.
10. Made the connections on the burner. I used a pair of long-nosed pliers to carefully pull the connections off the spade terminals, and attch them on the new burner.
11. Mounted the burner to the sheet metal support using the spring clips previously installed.
12. Re-attached the 4 screws holding the burner support to the cooktop.
13. Carefully replaced the cooktop onto the range, paying special attention to not pinching any of the wires, and making sure all the wires, from all the burners were still connected.
14. Replaced all 12 screws holding the cooktop to the range.
15. Turned on the power, and checked all burners, including the new one, to see if they were opetating properly. YAY! They all worked!

It must be noted that we had to call a repairman to troubleshoot our installation the first time. We had reversed two of the wires to the new burner, because of the difference between the old and the new limiter connections. The engraved markings in the porcelain were very difficult to see. The instructions that came with the new burner never addressed this issue, and instead had very confusing (and worthless) instructions about replacing the limiter from the old burner to the new on. (This was not possible, anyway).

After the repairman left, we discovered the front burner that had been working, no longer was. With our newfound experience, we repeated the previous steps to take the range apart and discovered one of the wires had become disconnected from that burner. We re-connected it, re-attached the cooktop, and everything worked.

One telltale indicator that we had mixed up the connections on the burner, was the red "hot' warning light on the range top came on as soon as we restored power, even though no burners had been on. I should mention that the dual burner "worked" a couple of times even with the reversed connections, but then failed to work any more.

looked on internet on how to remove top. an easy fix after watching video

First I found a YouTube video for Maytag Range Repair – How to replace the Surface Element with Limiter - 6" - 1200W

The steps are very easy-
1. Open oven door and locate and remove 2 screws holding top cook surface. These are located near the top inside edge

2. Lift surface cook top and then remove 4 screws holding this section to the cook top. This may require 2 people but I was able to hold the cook top and loosen the 4 screws myself. Then put the cook top aside.

3. Take a photo of the element being replaced for wiring connections.

4. Removing the wiring and element holding clips was very easy. I used needle nose pliers for both

5. The clips have to be removed from the old element and put on the new one. Place them in the same locations

6. Make sure to reconnect the wires to the same pin locations. The replacement element I had the red (hot) wire pin 2b was in
A different location so I had to use the extension wire supplied with the new replacement element

7. Put everything back together in reverse order.

Easy peasy, took me about 40 minutes to complete the entire replacement and have it back in place working.

This is a two module cook top That I have, 2 burners in each module. I took it apart take the damaged one out and replaced with the new one, put it back together and turn it on. Heeeyyyy it works. Thanks.(and I'm not an electrician)

Removed module replaced radiant element very easy repair.

I found on youtube Also we marked each wire with masking tape 1A and 1B, 2A and 2B. The wires were the same color.

One important note is you can't buy the control for the right front burner (Custom Control) by itself. This kit included both the burner, control and wiring harnesses. This is a retrofit, I am assuming a known problem with the original design. This repair requires the cooktop to be removed from counter, turned upside down, and disassembled. It comes with a 45 step instruction sheet thats pretty good. Let me point out a few things that are helpful: 1) The screws to attach the control to the switch plate are too short. These are 8/32 screws 1/4 inch long. I had to go to the hardware store and buy two screws 3/8 long and cut them, since 3/8 is too long of course. Follow directions carefully, you need to remove the bottom cover and fan to disconnect it before taking the burner box completely off. The shaft of the new control is shorted than the other controls so you need to put a "filler" in the burner nob. THey suggest you use the rubber gasket from the old switch so make sure not to throw it away. One other note, since this is a retrofit, you need a drill. You need to drill out two slots in the switch plate to mount the new burner control. Good Luck.

My dual zone burner would trip my breaker anytime i tried to turn it on. All the other burners would work fine. I searched online and found a way to test my burner, which was shorted or grounded out. I purchased a new burner from the site...It was as cheap or cheaper than other sites. It showed up a few days quicker than i was expecting..I also replaced the switch to the burner, just as a precaution and to save time since i already had the top glass off of my burners....EASY JOB!

Slipped new knob on,done.

First I cut electric power off removed the two screws that hold glass top lifted up and removed two screws that hold element in place. I disonnected the wires and then pulled the element out

Followed the instructions in the video provided by PartSelect, which was very accurate. They only problem I have encountered is that the wiring from the old element compared to the new element do not match up 100%. I had to call Whirlpool today and schedule a Tech to come out and see if they can resolve the problem. Right now, when the burner is turned on, both the inner and outer elements turn on.

Went well. Husband, who has some appliance repair experience, did repair in less than a hour. Replacement burner was not an exact duplicate of original but he was able to adjust for that.

Tools required - #2 Phillips and needle nose pliers. (possibly a new spade connector and stripper/crimper) (possibly a multi-meter)

Shut off the power and slide the range forward about 8-10 inches from the wall. It does not need to be completely in the open and perhaps would not need to be moved at all. Some of the parts may be stuck with accumulation of cooking debris and grease, depending on age. Disassembly will be a bit more difficult than a new range because of this. Clean everything up before reassembly.

Open the oven door. Remove two screws, one on either side, below the control panel. Lift and work the control panel loose. It has two bullet shaped posts that engage slots in the front of the range. These are tight. Be patient and work it by lifting and pulling and wiggling the entire control panel. When loose, it will lay down flat supported by all of the wiring harnesses. In our case it did not stress the wires. If concerned, support it somehow.

There is a galvanized bracket that runs most of the width of the range and retains a rubber gasket on the front edge of the glass. Remove two screws that hold this bracket. The bracket easily comes loose, set it aside.

There is a stainless steel trim piece on each side of the cooktop, running from front to back. Each one is held in place by one screw in the front. Remove the screws and the two trim pieces will slide forward and can be removed. Set them aside.

There is a rubber gasket across the front edge of the glass cook surface. Remove it. The cooktop glass can now be lifted and worked loose from the rear rubber gasket that seals across the back edge. Set the cooking surface aside in a safe place. You now have access to the burner elements.

Using the needle nose pliers, work the spade terminal connectors loose from the burner that is to be replaced. Note their positions. The burner is held in place by two spring clips that attach the burner to a galvanized support bar that runs from front to back of the range. A screwdriver can be used to compress each clip allowing a tab to be lifted out of a slot in the galvanized bar. If needed, you can remove one front screw that holds the bar in place and lift it for better access, but while this is not necessary, it allows for a better view of the retainer clips and the tabs that fit into slots in the support bar. With both clips released, the burner is free to be removed.

Our burner clearly had a break in the coil, so there was no doubt about the cause of non-functionality.

The spring clips must be removed and transferred to the new burner. With both burners, face down on a bench, remove the screws that retain the clips to the old burner. Make note of the index numbers at the position of the old clips and place them at the same position on the new burner. This positions the burner when it is mounted so that the terminals are properly positioned to allow the wiring harness to be attached as it was.

With the spring clips in place on the new burner, place the burner back in the range and engage the tabs in the slots on the support bar. They will snap back into place. Reconnect the spade connectors. The burner should now be tested before reassembly. (see later)

In our case, when power was reestablished (but burner control in the off position) the Surface Hot light was on art all times, so we knew something was wired wrong, even though it was re-connected exactly as it had previously been. There are slight differences between the new burners and old burners that apparently impact the wiring. There are no markings on either the old burner or new burner to give clues as to how it should be wired. Neither was there any advice in the instruction sheet that came with the new burner. We tested all of the terminals with the power on (burner off) to determine what voltages were where and removed the cover of the small box to which the terminals are attached. This box contains small switches, and we were able to determine the new wiring scheme. By wiring it exactly as it originally was, we had inadvertently put power to the Surface Hot light full time and the same potential to both sides of the coil so it would not heat. With this corrected, it worked fine.

As always, reassembly is just the reveres of the steps taken to disassemble. It is a bit tricky to place the glass back in the rear gasket. Just be careful and work it into place. Also the front control panel can be challenging. Line up the bullets with the slots and work it into place. It will snap into place when it is close with the aid of the heel of your hand.

One other note. One of the four wires in the harness had a smaller female spade connector which had to be cut off and a new one crimped on in order to fit the new burner.

Because of the wiring logic issue that had to be troubleshot, this took about three hours, which included disassembly and reassembly twice (because we reassembled before testing), figurin

Element was sent by buyer, As they recommended, when model of stove given to them. It was upper right rear. When element came. First took off old element. ...Match both element , new element did not look exactly the same, small variation. It did not come on.. I moved old element from left side to right side . Old element worked on both side .. tried new element on left side also.. still didn't work.. so I called right away and explained.. new element did not work.. not defective, but, just wasn't the right one.. I had a specialist came and check it out also. I was told wrong element.