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That Awful Squealing
Noise Coming from
Your Whirlpool/Kenmore Dryer
This article originally appeared in
The DRSNews.
(You ARE subscribed, right? Did I
mention it's FREE?)
I
thought we'd seen the last of these a while back, but I'm still running
into them and answering questions about this, so thought I'd clue you
in.
Recently,
for 2 or 3 years, Whirlpool tried using a new belt idler in many of their
29 inch (wide) dryers. After using the same very reliable roller type
idler for many decades, I'm not sure why the change was made, but suspect
a 'bean-counter' convinced someone that the change would save a bunch of
money.
Well,
to make a long story short (not like me, I know! <grin>), it didn't
work out. Loud squeals, high pitched whines - some of which are so high
pitched, my aging ears
can't even hear - and intermittent crazy noises of all sorts have been
caused by the belt sliding over that little piece of Teflon™.
Thank
goodness the company has gone back to what worked for so long, the 691366
idler pulley assembly. That has solved the problem - unless you happen to
own one of the dryers in question.
The two
versions look like this:
If
yours uses a slider like the one on the left, you'll want to replace it
with the roller type idler shown here on the right, part # 691366.
If it 'squeals' too long it also does the belt no favors, so you might
want to pick one of those up too. Most of these machines use the same one,
part # 341241, which is inexpensive and easy to replace.
By
the way, you can save a bunch of money by ordering the 29" dryer
repair kit part # 4392065.
Includes this idler pulley, a new belt, set of drum support rollers,
hardware, and instructions, for much less than buying these parts
individually.
And if you're not sure about the
correct belt for yours, drop me an email with your model number and I'll
be happy to look it up for you. You'll find your model number inside the
dryer door.
Copyright 2006 www.DavesRepair.com
This article may be reprinted and distributed freely
only in its entirety, including this message.
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