To repair or not to repair?

[BlueKota]

My dryer has been making awful noise. It sounds kind of like a car side swiping another car. It's been going on for about 2 and a half weeks. It would stop after a few minutes, so I didn't worry about it too much, and between my left eye still off from the injection, and lot of other unexpected things I didn’t call anyone.

Monday the noise got constant and louder and the dryer stopped drying all together. I have a repair man scheduled for Wednesday. My cousin stopped by this morning to see if it was anything simple that he could fix, but he thinks it is something to do with the drum and probably best left to a professional.

So watched some You Tube Videos of the same model making noises, but none were even close to being as bad as mine. Also while a few of the repairmen in the videos, said there's a few minor problems that could cause the problems, there also might be a major problem too expensive to fix like a cracked drum, so getting a new dryer might be the way to go instead.

I'm torn. Do I spend $130 dollars just to have the repair person come to determine whether it can be fixed or not, only to find out it can't be fixed? Then I am out $130 towards a new one. On the other hand if it turns out it is just an easy thing to fix, then I will have spent money on a new one I really didn't need!

Opinions on whether to fix or go straight to a new one? Will appreciate any suggestions.

[Ocelot II]

1. Depends on how old it is, but I had a recent problem with a washer

that was about 12 years old. Fixing it would have involved taking the damn thing apart and replacing the drum, and I'd still have a 12-year-old washer. So I bought a new one.

[BlueKota]

9. It's 9 years old

[bullimiami]

27. 9yrs. I'd buy a new one.

I just fixed my older than that Duet Gas Dryer.
Just a belt. Regreased the rollers and idler which were fine.

I wouldn’t have paid someone.
By the time you pay for service and parts your likely at 250. That’s if it doesn’t need expensive parts or more time.

[lastlib]

2. Personally, I think I would just buy a new one.

Very few major appliances seem these days to have relatively cheap easy fixes; most often, when they break down, the repairs are significant and costly. That's saying nothing of the down time when you're without the thing.

YMMV.

[The Blue Flower]

3. Agree

Could be an expensive repair, and it would still be old.

[BlueKota]

10. I think it might be major given how bad the noise is

[Joinfortmill]

4. If it's old, I'd just get a new one. If it's relatively new I'd take a chance on the repairs.

[BlueKota]

11. It's 9 years old

[brush]

24. Consider a home warranty contract. Mine is $69 a month.

Last edited Sun Jun 16, 2024, 10:32 AM - Edit history (2)

It covers all the appliances and systems in a home from fridge to washer/dryer to AC, heat, plumbing, electrical, garage door, hot water heater, oven/cooktop...even microwave.

Anything goes wrong you call them, they assign a local repair company who will come out and fix or replace it with a new one for a service fee in the range of $60-$70.

Over the years I've found a home warranty contract well worth it.

[BlueKota]

25. Thank you! I will look into that.

[Arne]

5. My 15 year old Roper needs repair once a year.

I've learned it's so easy that I have all the parts in advance
for all of my appliances, even the 2.5ton AC.
But that's because I fix things.

If you had found the noise early you would have been ok.
Now it's probably more serious. They really are simple
machines and lucky people find used ones for less than your repair estimate.
New is the other way to go, kinda pricy
but I'm cheap that way.

[Haggard Celine]

8. I usually buy used cars and often used appliances.

I buy refurbished items from Amazon as well. I usually have good luck with them. Lasts me about as long as a new one.

[BlueKota]

12. My late Dad was like that with

cars. He was a mechanic, and said the newer stuff wasn't built as good.

[essaynnc]

6. While dryers are easy to repair..

If the dryer is old, go to Lowe's, look for a scratch and dent and get a new one that's on sale. Unless this dryer is very special or fairly new, and it makes the noise you're talking about, it's probably not worth fixing. Well. They're definitely easier to repair than washing machines, if it's that bad, get a new one.

[BlueKota]

13. It's 9 years old.

They have a Whirlpool on sale for $528 at Lowes.

[Joinfortmill]

15. I just googled it. Average life is 9-12 yrs.

[BlueKota]

17. Thank you, so it is getting up there.

[Ocelot II]

26. They don't make appliances like they used to!

My grandmother's refrigerator from the early '30s, the kind with the big round compressor on top, lasted until about 1985. The only thing wrong with it even by then is that it vibrated so much that it would slowly creep across the floor and periodically it would have to be shoved back against the wall.

[captain queeg]

7. I will add my 2 cents. I'd just buy a new. If it's $130 just come out it's going to be a lot more to fix

Even if it’s the bearings and not to hard to change it’s still a pretty good chunk of time and money. As everyone points out it’s still old. Things like the heating element and fan have seen a lot of use. I bought one a couple years ago and I think it was about $500 but there were cheaper ones. And the store will deliver & install and haul the old one away.

[BlueKota]

14. It's 9 years old.

Lowes does have a Whirlpool on sale for $528.

[captain queeg]

16. It's not a small expense but there's the hassle factor

And I don’t know if you are a handy person and have tools. I’ve torn into a lot of things over the years but to be honest I’ve gotten lazy or whatever you’d call it. Crawling around on my hands and knees is something I prefer to avoid, but I don’t ignore the costs and I’m more willing to try to fix something if it’s going to be a big expense. If I understood you correctly it made a lot of noise and finally seized up. I’d say at a minimum some bearing(s) need replaced. And seizing up could possibly mean other damage though probably not. There should have been some electrical safeguard protecting the motor. I think it’s probably a belt drive from the motor, maybe the belt is damaged.

[BlueKota]

18. I am not handy at all.

My late Dad was a mechanic, and he used to fix a lot of our home appliances. I didn't inherit his skills at all.

My cousin said he fixed a few of his family dryers, but this model was different than what he was used to.

Yes first it was the noise, then while the drum still rotated the clothes were damp and there was no warmth even though it had signaled the cycle was finished.

[captain queeg]

19. Sorry. The prognosis is not good.

Besides the obvious mechanical issue the heating element or sensors (that would tell the load was dry/done) have something wrong.

[BlueKota]

22. Thank you.

I will most likely be going with a new one.

[Wifes husband]

21. Roller bearings

Sounds like the roller bearings that support the back of the drum. They used to be easy to replace but that is after you get the drum out. Could be front bearings. Still have to remove the drum, get parts. Repairman is going to have to charge for that.

With parts and labor, can get expensive. Then you will have a 9 year old dryer with aging motor, timer, and heating element.

I kept a dryer going for years about 30 years ago, because my wife liked it. The thing is, I was also 30 years younger, could get get parts without ordering, and had a good repair manual, and a place to work on it.

These appliances are just not easy to fix anymore. They are designed to be easy to make. You have to order parts, get parts diagrams, etc. Just not worth it anymore.

[BlueKota]

23. Thank you.

My cousin said you used to be able to open the back but he couldn't do it on this one.

[JoseBalow]

20. Nuevo es bueno!

[Kali]

28. are you in an apartment or otherwise have reason to not use a clothes line?

sun and air are free.

[CloudWatcher]

29. Don't trust me, I'm a computer software guy

I don't do this for a living, and I don't normally fix stuff like this, but .. I happened to tackle a few problems with our dryer over the years and was able to fix them all with only a set of sore knees and scraped fingers. Beer helps. Enough disclaimers yet?

If you want to keep the dryer, I'd suggest two repairs:

- The main belt. It wraps around spring-loaded pulleys by the main motor and then goes all around the drum. If it has stretched then it's likely slipped to a new (incorrect) position on the drum and is pulling on the drum at a funny angle. Hence the loud noises It's a cheap part ($20?) but takes some contortions (and a skilled set of hands) to replace. Especially if you go in from the wrong side like I did (learn from my mistakes, go in from the back to get easy access to the belt path). The noise of this thing slipping can be impressive.

- The blower fan. It's another cheap part ($20 or so), it breaks because it's cheap plastic and gets brittle and fails. It's got a "D" hole in the center that's supposed to keep the fan turning as the motor turns. If the D has worn (or broken) to look more like a circle, the fan's not going to turn as the motor shaft turns. Mine knocked as the drive shaft slipped and caught and slipped and caught. When it completely stops turning the lack of air flow kept the clothes from drying.

Between the two of these issues there was no shortage of noise. I seriously doubt your drum needs replacing, but note the disclaimers I started this off with!

I also had the main motor fail, a more expensive part but I was able to replace it without too much lost hair or electrical fires. Not something I'd suggest to anyone to repair without some decent electronics background. The symptoms of this was the dryer electricals just refused to even try to start the drum turning. Really quiet. Again the youtube videos were enough to figure it out.

Also -- make sure your exhaust path isn't blocked. If it's full of lint you won't get any air flow and the clothes won't dry. But given the noise, I don't think this is what you're seeing. But fyi and something to keep clean and check while you're looking at things.

Humor: trying to get mine repaired was not an option. I couldn't find anyone willing to come up to the mountains to fix a moderately cheap machine. So it was repair it myself or buy new.

Bottom lines:

1) if you have no shortage of time, patience and beer, you can successfully spend less money by fixing it yourself. The YouTube tutorials were enough for this old software guy to figure things out. But it took its toll on my knees and beer budget.

2) if you have a repairman you trust, get both the belt and the blower fan replaced. The failures are common and you should get them to show up with the parts needed for the repair. You could ask about replacing the rollers the drum sits on, but I certainly didn't need to repair those (ofc, your experience may vary).

3) if you want a quick and certain outcome, get a new one. At least it'll be shiny and quiet!

Good luck!

[Bayard]

30. We ended up just buying a new washer

We would have saved a lot of money in repairs if we'd just done that to begin with.

I had my old set of GE's for 30 years. This washer was only 5 years old. Planned obsolescence from manufacturers now.

[bucolic_frolic]

31. The drums are turned by long belts driven by a motor.

The lint from clothing is all over the place internally. I removed the back one time, but it wasn't making noise. I just wanted to clean it.