Dryer not heating or drying your clothing? If your dryer is all of a sudden not drying your clothes, then we have a few simple DIY fix tips you can try yourself. If the dryer is no longer drying your clothes then the first thing to do is to check and clean the dryer lint filter trap.
How To Fix A Clothes Dryer That Is Not Drying
Check Dryer Lint Filter
We were forced to add that as our first step as there really are some people who do not realize there is a LINT FILTER that must be cleaned before or after each use. Once that is cleaned out, check if the dryer is still NOT drying your clothes.
Check Vent Hose On Back Of Dryer
If that was NOT the cause of the problem, then you will need to inspect the vent hose on the back of the dryer. Commonly this HOT AIR VENT HOSE will become clogged, caked or full of lint that is constantly being removed from your clothing when drying. When this happens your dryer is unable to expel the hot air from within, therefore making it impossible for your dryer to actually dry your clothing in a timely manner or at all.
Common Causes For Dryer To Stop Heating
- The dryer lint screen (lint trap) has not been cleaned (poor or restricted airflow).
- A clogged or kinked (bent) dryer air vent hose (inadequate or no airflow).
- Drum has stopped turning, broken drum drive belt.
- Overheated or bad motor (possible thermal overload).
- Thermal fuse or thermostat (could be caused from dryer air vent hose lint buildup)
- Heating element burnt out.
- Loose electrical plug or power socket.
- Other mechanical issue, fault or malfunction.
Click here for a faster way to troubleshoot your dryer not heating
Clothing Takes Forever To Dry
If your clothes dryer is taking forever to dry your clothes or it is not drying your clothing at all (and you already thoroughly cleaned the lint filter screen), then the first step is to CLEAN OUT THE INSIDE OF THE DRYER VENT HOSE.
First, unplug your dryer from the electrical socket on the wall. Slide the dryer forward very carefully so you can get behind it. Locate the (usually silver colored) air vent hose, and remove it from the wall and the dryer (2 connection points).
Do this by squeezing the clip at both ends and pulling the hose outward. Using a long dryer vent brush or similar, clean out the inside of the air vent hose by removing all of the built up lint and dust looking material.
Clean the area on the back of the dryer and the hole in the wall where the air is vented out. Most of the time the lint will be built up in both of these areas.
Once all of the lint is cleaned out, reattach the vent hose and slide the dryer back in place. Make sure you DO NOT KINK the vent hose when repositioning the dryer as this will cause the dryer to NOT expel the hot air properly.
If you kink the hose the dryer will not function properly and your clothes will take forever to dry. Next, plug the dryer back into the power outlet and run a test. If your dryer is now heating and properly drying your clothes then you fixed the problem. If not, read on…
If you know what Dryer Replacement Parts you need, here is where to get them at a GREAT PRICE and most have FREE shipping.
Here is how much lint that can become stuck in your dryer vent hose.
This much lint in the hose or in the wall, will prevent your dryer from properly drying your clothes.
DO NOT LET THIS HAPPEN! Dryer air vent hose clogged with lint.
Clean your dryer AIR VENTING HOSE on a yearly basis!
It is the reason your dryer takes forever to dry AND can be a fire safety hazard!
Dryer Has Overheated
At times your dryer can overheat and this can cause the motor that turns the drum to stop working temporarily. There is a safety mechanism built into the motor that makes it stop working if it gets too hot. This is called a thermally protected motor.
Your dryer may seem to be running but the motor will not be turning the drum. If the drum is not turning then the clothes are not moving. Therefore they can not get DRY. So if your dryer motor is NOT turning on but the rest of the dryer works, such as the lights and other mechanical parts, then your motor is probably overheated.
For this, you need to just give the motor some time to cool down. If you suspect that this is your problem then give the dryer about an hour to cool down and run a test after that. If your motor has overheated then you may be overloading your dryer with too many clothes. Try running the dryer with less clothes in it the next time you dry a load and this should remedy the issue.
The solutions above are the most common causes for this specific malfunction. If the explanations above have not been your specific problem, then there can be a number of things wrong. If you feel comfortable you can remove the front panel of your dryer (while unplugged) and look to see if there are any obvious causes of the problem.
A possible loose wire, loose part, burnt area, pieces of the dryer that have come off, fried or burned mechanical switches, etc. If the problem is not visual and you do not know what the issue can be, we recommend going here and posting an appliance repair question to online appliance repair technicians. If all else fails then simply leave a comment or question below and we PROMISE to answer your question in a timely manner.
Other components that could be at fault would be the Thermal fuse, Thermal cutoff, Heating element, Operating thermostat, and High limit thermostat. You can check all of these for continuity with a multimeter. If any are determined bad, remove and replace.
How Does It Work? Basic Clothes Dryer Function
Dryer Parts Schematic Parts Location Diagram Chart
If you still need help, assistance, or answers to fix your Dryer Not Heating problem, ask your
questions over at our Appliance Repair Help page for free answers to fix your broken appliance!
I have a 5 year old Samsung Front Loading Electric Dryer. I’ve cleaned out vent hose and inside the dryer of all lint. I actually changed out the rear vent. The dryer heats up just fine but it seems that there is water build up in the vent hose. The clothes are moist and will not dry all the way and stays on for 3+ hours…It seems like my dryer is working fine because it heats up and tumbles just fine. Is there something else that is not within the dryer I should be looking at? Is moisture coming back into the dryer somehow? I am at a loss. Should I try the exterior vent? Please help…
Lori Laverone,
Is your Whirlpool dryer heating at all? If no heat whatsoever, check the thermal fuse on back. If you get some heat, it may be a lint issue in the wall, lint in the dryer itself or a thermostat issue. Try some further troubleshooting and see what you can find.
-RR
We removed all lint from inside of dryer, lint trap and vent hose and clothes still won’t dry. Any suggestions? 8 year old Whirlpool front loading dryer.
Drew,
Have you tested the thermal fuse and checked to be sure you are getting the correct voltage to the dryer?
-RR
I replaced the lower high temp limiter switch and had the heater coils tested ok. Dryer will still not heat up
Watkins,
Is the complete dryer without power or will it just NOT HEAT? If you have NO power at all and the breaker is ON, then have a look at the back of the dryer to be sure the terminal and wires are intact. Could also be an issue with the plug or cord from wall to dryer. Have you opened up the dryer with it unplugged to see if you find any obvious signs of an issue? What model number is your Samsung dryer?
-RR
My Samsung dryer appeared to be running fine, but after drying a load of laundry, it lost power. The unit will not turn on. It is about 4-1/2 years old and I have not had issues with it in the past. Outside of a paying a pricey repair bill, any ideas? I have already reset the breaker, cleaned the lint trap and reset all the GFIs that could be in the same circuit to no avail.
Phillip Breunig,
If the venting system is clean of lint… Then you may have an issue with a number of things. Does the dryer still turn but just will not heat? Or does the power to the complete dryer go out?
-RR
John Glenn,
This problem is most likely the igniter the thing that glows. That is what provides the resistance to provide the current for the coils to open in your gas valve. It is a $30 dollar fix and can be done with minimal effort.
-RR
Have a Maytag gas dryer replaced both coil valves and brand-new vent from the back of the dryer to the outside of the house cleaned and cleared everything of lint dryer will not heat up and dry it will glow and ignite but not stay on long enough to dry clothes. The lint trap and inside the dryer everything was cleared of Lint if we vent it into the laundry room it gets hot and will dry clothes so don’t know what else to do. Thank you