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!
Thanks. Everything has checked out ok but still not getting enough heat to dry a regular sized load. Any other suggestions?
Claudia,
Here is a video that will show how to test voltage on a dryer.
-RR
I have a roper electiric dryer model # REX4635EQ2 that is not drying enough since I changed it from a three prong to a 4 prong. I have checked the continuity on all parts and they are all showing continuity and I cleaned out the vents and the back of the machine. How do I check if the machine is getting the right voltage from the wall without electricuting myself :)
Sarah,
Your dryer has a thermal fuse. Did the technician check the fuse or any of the thermostats? If so, and they were all ok, then that may be the reason he suggested that the timer may be faulty. Make sure thermostat and fuse is ok, as these are relatively cheap parts compared to an expensive timer.
-RR
My 6 years old Fisher and Paykel electrical dryer (Model # DE 09 USO) stopped heating after I cleaned lint box! The drum rotates fines. I called the repair guy. He said he checked everything and seems like timer may be the problem but doesn’t guarantee that timer is the problem. Can you please guide me how do I check timer is a problem? Since timer is very expensive, if it is faulty I would have to buy a new unit and want to make sure before spending lots of money.
Darian,
Check to be sure the heat setting is set on high. If you just replaced the element, was the reason because it was bad or you just assumed that was the issue? The hose being off should not effect if your clothes dry. It would actually dry your clothes faster if the hose was off (since the heat would not have to be pushed many feet through the wall or ceiling) but it would heat the house and lint would get everywhere. Your new element may not be the exact replacement. This may be the reason your clothes are not drying as fast as before. Make sure the vent hose is attached, set the dryer on high setting and longest heat setting and see what happens. If you still have issues it may be a thermostat issue.
-RR
I have a frigidaire stackable, dryer heating fine but clothes kept coming out damp, also wouldnt collect lint. Checked the back of the dryer and the hose was off the connector on the back of the dryer. Got it back on. Could that be the reason my clothes werent drying. No lint caught in the hose.. hose was just disconnected off the back of the dryer. Also just replaced the heating element. Thanks!
Ryan,
First, make sure the vent hose is not being bent or crimped when the dryer is slid back into place. The shorter the hose the better. You may also need to check with the manufacturer of the dryer to see the specific specs on the blower. You can purchase another blower that may give you a better airflow output. But know this, if the vent hose is long and bent or has many twists and turns because of length, then the blower is having to work extra hard to actually PUSH the air out. And be absolute sure there is no blockage WHATSOEVER in the wall. Meaning lint or other objects. Any slight blockage will cause you issues as you have described. Let us know what you find and get back to us. ALSO… What brand and model dryer are you having issues with?
-RR
My dryer seems to have low air flow. I cleaned it of all lint inside and out, checked and cleaned the vent hose to the outside, but it still does not dry. It does heat, and I replaced the thermostat that is on the air exit from the machine just before the vent hose attaches, the one indicated and sold by the local appliance repair part dealer when I described my problem. It WILL dry fine if I disconnect the vent and allow it to blow air into the room, which should indicate a clogged vent hose or vent on the outside of the house, and obviously that line is blocking airflow enough to make the dryer not dry. BUT, is it possible that the blower is just not strong enough, that it is broken somehow? It should be able to push air out a ten foot length of cleaned hose right? I tested the flow by holding a paper towel to the intake on the inside of the drum with it running, and it was very weak, though stronger without the hose attached, but even then, only equal to our other dryer -the one in question is for our tenants-, which is connected with a similar length of hose. Thoughts? should I replace the corrugated hose with smooth metal? Is there something wrong with the blower? It’s not particularly noisy. Thank you for considering. -Ryan
Craven,
Have you cleaned lint filter, checked vent hose for clogs, inlet in wall, outlet behind dryer? Also make sure your temp setting is not accidentally set to low.
-RR