Why don't you post this over in the laundry room along with make and model number. It could be something very simple that you could do yourself. Dadoes frequents the laundry room and is an absolute genius with appliances.

Things run in threes they say. Keep an eye on your washer. LOL :-)

What mama said. Check out repair before purchase.

well at least if it's the washer next, I can get a matching pair ;-) After my dryer I was listening to my fridge kick on and was thinking "not you next" LOL

Dang. It is frustrating when appliances give the ol' one-two...hopefully not three punch. More than a few times, online information and step by step repair videos have saved us replacement or service call costs.

It's a Kenmore gas dryer. I did pull it out away from the wall, disconnected the vent hose and that was clear. I tried to remove the front panel below the door just to take a look, but couldn't get the darn panel off. I guess I'll need to leave this to the experts.

Yeah, I wouldn't mess with a gas dryer at all.

When's the ladt time you cleaned the vent hose from indoor the whole way thru to outdoors..and insude vent opening on dryer? Does yours have a sensor bar? Do you use dryer sheets?

You have a known brand, hopefully one a capable repairman can deal with. Regarding the preceding comment, if you do have a vent "hose", ask the repairman if it would be affordable to replace it with a vent "pipe" (sheet metal). They're much safer and don't trap lint as much as the slinky-type hoses do.

My washer and dryer are inside my condo, the vent goes in the wall and UPPPP through the roof....often wonder how it makes it all the way up and out...???

Ahhh...ya that can pose a problem but regardless periodic cleaning of the entire vent hose is an absolute must. Some people blow them out but it makes a mess has to be done though otherwise fire is a concern. I would address this while your dryer is down before fixing or replacing.

Elmer is right about what type of dryer vent to use..and codes may even demand the straight (non accordian) type.

Dh repaired our gas dryer. Disconnecting the gas line is not complicated or dangerous. Same symptom, it was a $17 heating element. I ordered it online, he popped it in and it's still going....about 5 years later.

I'm not understanding the reason why some would not do repairs on a gas dryer. My husband has repaired our gas dryer(s) many times over the years.

There's no reason anyone should fear repairing a gas dryer.

There are lots of reasons. A malfunctioning gas dryer can catch fire or emit carbon monoxide. While there are a limited number of components and the operation isn't all that complicated, it's still a gas burning appliance and an untrained person can't possibly know as much as a trained repairman, to be able to recognize what's wrong. The fact that after tinkering and some parts replacements it works again doesn't mean it's operating properly and safely, or that that all problems have been corrected. Or, even can be corrected (as could be the case with a cracked burner).

The loss of property and lives is a risk not worth taking in order to save the cost of a repair visit. Other than simple things, I'm of the view that most DIYers don't objectively assess what they can and can't do safely and knowledgeably and they often stretch themselves too far. Dryer repair happens to be an area where the risk from and likelihood of foolish incompetence are too high in my view.

Gas makes me nervous! I lost my eyebrows back in the 70s trying to light a pilot on a heater and have been fearful since.

lol Mr Fudd, I cannot decide if you are so uncomfortable repairing appliances that you think no one should, or that you are proficient at repairs, but think no one else, barring a professional repair person, could possibly be proficient enough to safely take on the task. My suspicions lean towards the former. Of course, not everyone should tackle things that are over their skill ability, or if they are uncomfortable doing them for any reason. However, there really are DIY homeowners that are up to the task.

Neither. My views are as I described, with nothing else in mind. Certainly it's not at all as you speculate.

Ok. Maybe your impression of foolish incompetence is inflated, or we know a disproportionate percentage of skilled DIY repairers and tradespeople. Most people that grew up in rural areas learned how to fix things.

Actually working on a gas dryer is 99.9% electrical since it is generally a solenoid/coil or sensor that has gone out when a dryer won't heat.

"Most people that grew up in rural areas learned how to fix things."

gyr, isn't it true that many in rural areas and small towns are less well off financially and so can less afford the cost of hiring competent service providers for repair work? And, owing to the rural location, face a market with fewer service people to choose from, compared to those in more populated areas?

What you observed may have be a result of necessity, not inclination. An amateur is an amateur, no matter what the circumstance. Given the choice between using someone who faces a particular task once every five years and isn't immediately familiar with what he or she is doing, or someone who does it every day for pay and needs to be competent to continue in business, who would you choose?

There are people who are knowledgeable about how mechanical and electrical things work and there are those who are not. I fall into the latter category and I am not proud of that. I have to call the supposed professionals to make repairs around my house when needed. Many times these pros do a shoddy job or mislead me about what needs to be done (I know this because unlike me, my husband knows how such things work, but is too busy to help out with these tasks anymore.) It is not a virtue to have more money than understanding.

I was brought up in a family that could always afford to outsource many things. I was told though that if I did not know how to perform the basic jobs that I was hiring out, I would be a fool and receive subpar work. This wisdom goes back for many generations in my family and has proven itself quite true.

I have a repairman coming out soon...they were actually supposed to come out Thursday but called this morning saying they could come out today. I thought I had a few days to think about what I should do, repair or replace...I'll guess they'll let me know if it's worth fixing or not. So either they'll be reading it it's last rights or give it a little CPR and give it a few more years hopefully!! I'll report back in a little bit.

It was the thermal fuse. Yes, probably a simple fix but I'm just glad it's fixed and done right. $146., cheaper than a new dryer. Hopefully the dryer and washer will go together in a few years. I'd be ok with that. LOL

Mr Fudd, I can try to explain life outside your little pocket, but will be unsurprised if you discount it all anyway.

Rural and less well off does not automatically go hand in hand, any more than urban and less well off. Most could afford routinely needed services just fine; those that could not, would often trade services or use of their equipment, or make payments (companies knew their customers, and knew who would, and would not, pay their debts). There often were fewer service providers to choose from, but everyone knew the excellent companies. The less qualified companies had to survive doing the emergency overload work. Unqualified companies usually did not survive long at all. Word travels in rural areas, even if they are large geographically. And companies would not survive getting things wrong and having to drive long distances for repeat efforts, so quality repair skills were even more important than they might be in smaller geographic service areas.

The inclination for many was that they wanted to learn and be able to do those things themselves. And the professionals often hired and trained others in the community--if they were too busy, they could tell you who could fix it in their stead, or who to call to install a part, because they had trained them. They knew the skill level of the customers, so if they were comfortable with the level, and it was a problem they knew the customer could handle in the future, they would just show and explain as they were doing the work. There was more than enough work to keep them busy, and their family financially secure, so it was not the same as a large number of anonymous companies that are competing for business and need all of the repeat service calls they can scrounge.

Go ahead and tell people their skills are too "amateur" to replace a dryer fuse. They might have completely dismantled and rebuilt tractor engines, while still in high school, and think you are quite comical.

My comments weren't personal at all, gyr, I'm sorry you need to go in that direction. I hope you don't blush, I think you've barked up the wrong tree.

life outside your little pocket - an unnecessary personal comment

unsurprised if you discount it all anyway - Thanks. I do because I found nothing in your comments that suggested there was anything wrong with what I'd previously said.

Blah, blah, then

too "amateur" to replace a dryer fuse - I know nothing about dryers but would guess it's a part with a wire that clips on, and it either screws in to something or is screwed on. I wouldn't know where to find it or what it looks like. Knowing now it was a thermal fuse suggests it's a protection against overheating, an important part. If it needed to be replaced, that may mean the dryer was overheating. Why? Did the cause of the problem get identified and fixed too?

As I said before, how does an untrained person know what it is and that that's what the problem is? And not something else or also something else? And you ducked my question - do you engage untrained and unskilled people to work on your home appliances? If you do while being able to afford skilled services, I'd suggest that's a foolish practice.

They might have completely dismantled and rebuilt tractor engines, while still in high school- Sure, I think farmers try to look after their own machinery, it's traditional, especially on family farms. They have the time and not necessarily the money to do otherwise. It's not all that hard, I'm sure most can develop adequate skills for tasks learned young and repeated annually and through the year. Does repairing a tractor mean they know how to repair a home heating or HVAC system? Or a clothes dryer?

There were no tractors where I grew up. Is that part of my being in a different pocket than you?

I did dismantle and rebuild a car engine. And did several brake jobs - all were drum brakes at the time. And rebuilt a starter motor. And did the simple stuff - lube, oil change, tune up, adjust timing, etc. Cleaned a carburetor (that was tricky). In high school auto shop, a class I elected to repeat several times to broaden my skills. And, some years later, balanced dual carbs on my own English sports car that a mechanic was having trouble with. Are you chuckling now or laughing at me? Have you done any of these tasks?

You're suggesting there's a large, truly rural middle class that earns its living where it is and doesn't commute into more populous areas? Not counting those who desired an escape from cities or suburbia or can work from home or are retirees? Where?

MY EARLIER POST: lol Mr Fudd, I cannot decide if you are so uncomfortable repairing appliances that you think no one should, or that you are proficient at repairs, but think no one else, barring a professional repair person, could possibly be proficient enough to safely take on the task. My suspicions lean towards the former.

YOUR REPLY: Neither. My views are as I described, with nothing else in mind. Certainly it's not at all as you speculate.

YOUR LATER POST: I know nothing about dryers...

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I didn't think I ducked any of your previous questions, but it has been a long day, and maybe I missed one. Don't know why it would matter, you just say "Blah blah..." and discount everything anyway. It was a sincere effort on my part. I cannot fathom why you posted more questions.