DRYER WENT ON THE FRITZ - FRIENDS TO THE RESCUE

Currently in Peculiar MO (Low 50 Mostly Sunny High 72) 

Subtitled: Another great friends story

Our Splendide Artison dryer recently went on the fritz. Our friend Bob had an appliance repair business before he retired so he offered to take a look at it. He thought it was the door switch but to troubleshoot it took a lot of effort. We had to remove the louvered doors so we could pull it out.

We wish we would have taken in-process pictures but we didn't. First thing we noticed is that the flimsy vent hose was crumpled behind the dryer restricting the air flow. We set the dryer on the bed so we could disassemble so Bob could get his multimeter and test the door switch. First the top panel had to come off then the side panel. The door switch was OK. With the vent hose crumpled the air flow wasn't the best and the dryer overheated killing the high temperature fuse.

We then had the fun of calling RV parts stores and it turns out nobody stocks anything anymore so we ordered the part from the manufacturer and waited a couple of days. That gave us time to buy an improved venting system. We bought a Lambro Tite Fit Dryer Vent Duct that connects to the back of the dryer.

We also bought a more rigid vent hose, foil tape and clamps. The reassembly of the dryer went pretty well except we kept dropping some of the screws holding all the panels together and let us tell you there were a lot of them. We then had to attach the new duct to the back of the dryer which we did with cable ties and foil tape after cutting the new duct to fit. 

Every bit of space in an RV is conserved and the enclosure for the washer and dryer is no exception. We had to make sure that the new duct would fit before we bought it but there still was that uncertainty when you put it on the dryer and then slide it on top of the washer. Luckily we measured correctly and there was enough room for the louvered doors to close, but just barely. The brackets holding the dryer to the washer and to the side wall had to be moved forward about an inch.

Then we had to attach the vent hose to the new duct and to the vent to the outside and that was tricky in these tight spaces. First we had to remove the outside vent so we could reach through that hole from the outside to inside where the hose attached to the new Lambro duct. Then the hose was attached to the outside vent and everything tightened. The louvered doors were then reinstalled. If you didn't know that the dryer had been moved forward you probably wouldn't notice it.

It was quite the adventure but we know that we have a lot better flow from the dryer to outside so we are drying better. This is just another example of how great it is to have great friends.

Till next time,

Bob and Jo