dslreports logo
 
    All Forums Hot Topics Gallery
spc
Search similar:


uniqs
29429

datguy11
@verizon.net

datguy11

Anon

Gas dryer not igniting replace coils only or entire valve?

Click for full size
I have Maytag Neptune Stacked Gas Dryer

I believe the problem is the "coils" the igniter glows and shuts off as no gas is being "pushed" into it.

Actually, if i listen for the "click" I can blow at the right moment and get the flame to come on and produce heat!! So for the past 2 days I just blow into the igniter at the right moment so that I can dry laundry.

So question is, do I replace the entire gas valve assembly or do I just replace the 2 coils??

robbin
Mod
join:2000-09-21
Leander, TX

robbin

Mod

Sounds to me like the igniter is failing.
MrFixit1
join:1999-11-26
Madison, WI

MrFixit1 to datguy11

Member

to datguy11
Just a few points to consider :

First and foremost , if the OEM provides the replacement part (gas vale ) as a complete assembly , replace it as such !
Even if you can find the components ( coils ) someplace else , do not just replace them !
Just too easy to goof up repairing a gas control component , and gas has this nasty habit of going boom

Second , if you can get it to light by blowing on it when you hear the " click " ( sound of vale opening ) , it sounds like the valve is working .
The question then becomes one of why the gas is not igniting .
Since it lights when you blow on it , sounds like the coil is hot enough , which it would have to be for the valve to open in the first place .
So what else changes when you blow on it ?
The dispersion of the gas .
Maybe check to see if there is any dust buildup in the nozzle area that is keeping the gas from hitting the coil ?
This is assuming that the flame is normal when it does light ,

StillLearn
Premium Member
join:2002-03-21
Streamwood, IL

StillLearn to datguy11

Premium Member

to datguy11
I don't know the cause of the problem. Could you bend the igniter mount to put the igniter a little closer to the gas stream? That would be my first choice.

Not knowing which is the problem, I think I would opt for the igniter because it is easier and cheaper to replace.

The thought on the igniter is that it is not putting out as much heat as it should, so the radius that it will ignite is smaller. On the other hand, it looks like it is lighting up pretty darned well in your photo.

Interesting that you figured out to blow on it to start the fire!

IowaCowboy
Lost in the Supermarket
Premium Member
join:2010-10-16
Springfield, MA

IowaCowboy to datguy11

Premium Member

to datguy11
After the massive gas explosion in Springfield (MA) that was powerful enough to demolish a large commercial building, I would not mess with it. Just use a clothesline until you can get a certified and licensed (if required by your jurisdiction) gas technician in there to repair it.

I feel comfortable messing with electrical panels and doing wiring but I would not touch gas piping/appliances if we had them.

Gas explosions are powerful enough to send your whole family (and possibly your neighbors as well) to the cemetery.

Jan Janowski
Premium Member
join:2000-06-18
Waynesville, NC

Jan Janowski to datguy11

Premium Member

to datguy11
Removed by me, as the problem is something else

bryank
join:2000-03-23
Plainfield, IL

bryank to datguy11

Member

to datguy11
Had the EXACT same problem with my Maytag...replaced both coils and worked perfectly.

ArgMeMatey
join:2001-08-09
Milwaukee, WI

ArgMeMatey

Member

said by bryank:

Had the EXACT same problem with my Maytag...replaced both coils and worked perfectly.

I put in new solenoid coils, probably more than five years ago, on my 1980s-era Maytag. Still going. You can test the coil resistance to see which one is bad or just replace both. I can't remember if I changed both at once or just fixed one and did the other when it failed.

jack b
Gone Fishing
MVM
join:2000-09-08
Cape Cod

jack b to datguy11

MVM

to datguy11
How come the primary air shutter on the burner is all the way closed?
Too rich a gas-air mixture will not light so well. Try opening the shutter half way.

In fact while you're at it, it might be a good idea to blow all the lint out of there.

datguy11
@verizon.net

datguy11 to ArgMeMatey

Anon

to ArgMeMatey
Actually I just found a video that showed my exact problem, if anyone is interested:

»www.youtube.com/watch?v= ··· H6aKf7uQ

fifty nine
join:2002-09-25
Sussex, NJ

fifty nine to IowaCowboy

Member

to IowaCowboy
said by IowaCowboy:

After the massive gas explosion in Springfield (MA) that was powerful enough to demolish a large commercial building, I would not mess with it. Just use a clothesline until you can get a certified and licensed (if required by your jurisdiction) gas technician in there to repair it.

I feel comfortable messing with electrical panels and doing wiring but I would not touch gas piping/appliances if we had them.

Gas explosions are powerful enough to send your whole family (and possibly your neighbors as well) to the cemetery.

That's nuts. I service our dryer and our other gas appliances. We use the dangerous kind of gas (LP). As long as you use common sense and check for leaks you'll be fine.

robbin
Mod
join:2000-09-21
Leander, TX

robbin to datguy11

Mod

to datguy11
said by datguy11 :

Actually I just found a video that showed my exact problem, if anyone is interested:

Didn't see anything in the video showing that blowing on the ignitor and having the flame light is a sign that the coils are bad?

tp0d
yabbazooie
Premium Member
join:2001-02-13
Bulger, PA

tp0d

Premium Member

A solenoid coil either works, or it doesnt. Its a coil of wire, no moving parts to fail..

If you blow on the burner area to get it to ignite, I would say the igniter is weak and not getting hot enough to light the flame without outside help to push the gas to a hotter spot.

You can test all of these with an ohm meter. Turn off the dryer, let the igniter and coils cool for at least 5mins. Then test the resistance of the igniter, and each coil seperately. (there are 3 coils typically) The igniter should be a max of 100 ohms cold, and each coil should be in the range of 1000-3000 ohms. One coil pack is a double, has one common and two seperate inputs.

Cant hurt to change the coils out while yer in there.. Theyre a whole 20-30 bux max.. A universal ignitor is about the same. If either of those parts are over 5yrs old, they should be changed.

-j

IowaCowboy
Lost in the Supermarket
Premium Member
join:2010-10-16
Springfield, MA

IowaCowboy to fifty nine

Premium Member

to fifty nine
said by fifty nine:

said by IowaCowboy:

After the massive gas explosion in Springfield (MA) that was powerful enough to demolish a large commercial building, I would not mess with it. Just use a clothesline until you can get a certified and licensed (if required by your jurisdiction) gas technician in there to repair it.

I feel comfortable messing with electrical panels and doing wiring but I would not touch gas piping/appliances if we had them.

Gas explosions are powerful enough to send your whole family (and possibly your neighbors as well) to the cemetery.

That's nuts. I service our dryer and our other gas appliances. We use the dangerous kind of gas (LP). As long as you use common sense and check for leaks you'll be fine.

I can remember several high profile incidents over the years involving gas explosions. At the very least, an incident involving gas will send you to the burn unit at the hospital. And most burn units are at the larger hospitals (like Mass General in Boston). Ever burned yourself while cooking and you get a painful 1st, maybe second degree burn. Imagine surviving a gas explosion and having to recuperate from third degree burns over 70 percent of your body.

Even though I am good mechanically and could do gas work myself, I just see the cost of hiring a certified gas technician as cheap insurance against having to endure a very painful recovery at the burn unit at Mass General.

Gas will demolish your home a lot faster than faulty wiring. At least with faulty wiring, you have time to get out provided you have working smoke detectors. Gas explosions, BOOM your done and hope you have a good life insurance policy.

I've been by the area where the gas explosion occurred and its not a pretty sight. It's a miracle that nobody was killed thanks to the Springfield Fire Department evacuating the buildings in time. And I'm about 5 miles from the explosion and I felt it, I thought it was a thunderstorm or another car accident but I turned on the 22 News (WWLP-TV) and they were reporting live from the gas explosion and one of the reporters was hit with debris. I dodged a bullet with that one as I just came through that area on the bus an hour earlier.

Four months later the area is still a mess, many of the surrounding buildings had to be condemned due to being damaged structurally.

fifty nine
join:2002-09-25
Sussex, NJ

fifty nine

Member

Then in that case, remove all gas service to your home and convert to all electric appliances. Gas is dangerous, professional or not.

ropeguru
Premium Member
join:2001-01-25
Mechanicsville, VA

ropeguru to fifty nine

Premium Member

to fifty nine
said by fifty nine:

That's nuts. I service our dryer and our other gas appliances. We use the dangerous kind of gas (LP). As long as you use common sense and check for leaks you'll be fine.

Wow, I did not realize that LP was the only dangerous gas. Guess we no longer have to worry about the leaking natural gas in the home. Leaks away!!!
TheSMJ
join:2009-08-19
Farmington, MI

TheSMJ to IowaCowboy

Member

to IowaCowboy
A natural has explosion happened in a city about 30 miles from me a couple of weeks ago. One guy died and lots of homes/businesses were damaged.

»www.wxyz.com/dpp/news/re ··· oyal-oak

robbin
Mod
join:2000-09-21
Leander, TX

robbin to IowaCowboy

Mod

to IowaCowboy
said by IowaCowboy:

After the massive gas explosion in Springfield (MA) that was powerful enough to demolish a large commercial building, I would not mess with it. I feel comfortable messing with electrical panels and doing wiring but I would not touch gas piping/appliances if we had them...I've been by the area where the gas explosion occurred and its not a pretty sight.

If you don't feel comfortable working on gas appliances then don't. And you obviously don't have knowledge to help the OP. However, I consider your post to be scare mongering. The type of explosion you have described isn't caused by an improper repair on a residential gas dryer. Leaking gas mains create major explosions such as the one you describe. The difference is akin to a weekend mechanic not doing their own brakes because there was a brake failure on an 18 wheeler carrying gasoline.

datguy11
@verizon.net

datguy11

Anon

Im a pretty handy guy to a certain extent and safety consciense.. I have a smoke detector and a CO detecor within 5 feet of this naturual gas dryer.

In any case, I will clean out the lint in the area..

And I will swap out the coils, I mean, its plug and play.. 2 screws to remove the strap and swap em out, plug em back in..

Worse case-- same problem..

I cant see an "explosion" happening from doing this that.

Now, if you would have seen the guy that maytag sent the last time I had a repair, using his cell phone as a flashlight, you would understand this wasnt rocket science, I doubt he was a "professional" that would keep me safe, in fact he left his phone inside the dryer and had to drive back for it!!

Warzau
Premium Member
join:2000-10-26
Naperville, IL

Warzau to datguy11

Premium Member

to datguy11
I had the same issue with my Maytag and was kicking myself when I saw the tech do it literally 5 mins.
schmuk
join:2005-08-04
Cleveland, OH

schmuk to datguy11

Member

to datguy11
Had an issue recently with our dryer as well. After research I narrowed it down to the thermistor. It basically is the temp sensor that tells the gas to kick on and off based on the temp reading. When I went to go buy the part the guy at the counter said it sounded like the gas coils and talked me into replacing those. Did that and still had the same problem so back I went for the thermistor, put it in and it worked. Luckily both parts were only about a little over $30 each. Also if there is auto sensing moisture probes, it is recommended that you clean those as well. All in all everything took about 15 to 20 minutes.
agtle
join:2013-03-09

1 edit

agtle to robbin

Member

to robbin
said by robbin:

said by IowaCowboy:

After the massive gas explosion in Springfield (MA) that was powerful enough to demolish a large commercial building, I would not mess with it. I feel comfortable messing with electrical panels and doing wiring but I would not touch gas piping/appliances if we had them...I've been by the area where the gas explosion occurred and its not a pretty sight.

If you don't feel comfortable working on gas appliances then don't. And you obviously don't have knowledge to help the OP. However, I consider your post to be scare mongering. The type of explosion you have described isn't caused by an improper repair on a residential gas dryer. Leaking gas mains create major explosions such as the one you describe. The difference is akin to a weekend mechanic not doing their own brakes because there was a brake failure on an 18 wheeler carrying gasoline.

+1

Another analogy would be, being terrified to do electrical work because you saw any number of the arc flash videos on youtube. No smoke detector is gonna save you from that.

Electricity or gas, both will kill you equally dead if you are stupid or careless. Respect the danger, don't fear it.

Edit to add: To the OP: A good cleaning of the lint may fix the problem; gas/air mixture is important for ignition, and lint accumulation can affect that. The fact that it goes and works fine when you "blow" on it indicates so; it would cut off shortly if any of the thermo-sensors were bad (high limit, cycling, etc.). Replacing the coils isn't a bad idea in any event - it may resolve the problem; the coils are a "wear" item - that is why they are readily available, relatively cheap, and easy to replace. Given the age, it is probably time, and preventative maintenance is always a good thing. Let us know how it goes.

tp0d
yabbazooie
Premium Member
join:2001-02-13
Bulger, PA

tp0d

Premium Member

said by agtle:

said by robbin:

said by IowaCowboy:

After the massive gas explosion in Springfield (MA) that was powerful enough to demolish a large commercial building, I would not mess with it. I feel comfortable messing with electrical panels and doing wiring but I would not touch gas piping/appliances if we had them...I've been by the area where the gas explosion occurred and its not a pretty sight.

If you don't feel comfortable working on gas appliances then don't. And you obviously don't have knowledge to help the OP. However, I consider your post to be scare mongering. The type of explosion you have described isn't caused by an improper repair on a residential gas dryer. Leaking gas mains create major explosions such as the one you describe. The difference is akin to a weekend mechanic not doing their own brakes because there was a brake failure on an 18 wheeler carrying gasoline.

+1

Another analogy would be, being terrified to do electrical work because you saw any number of the arc flash videos on youtube. No smoke detector is gonna save you from that.

Electricity or gas, both will kill you equally dead if you are stupid or careless. Respect the danger, don't fear it.

RESPEK!

nuff said

-j

datguy11
@verizon.net

datguy11

Anon

Problem fixed!

Turns out it was the ignitor.. Asked for help on an appliance repair site and they thought that me having to blow on it meant there could be a hairline crack or something

So ,I ordered a replacment factory original whirlpool ignitor for $12 on Amazon.... Installed it and now she starts up no problem

My thinking is that it got worn, and the entire element wasnt glowing (heating up) so by me blowing, i blew the gas past the unheated part of the element

Lurch77
Premium Member
join:2001-11-22
Green Bay, WI

Lurch77

Premium Member

You mean like many of the first replies you got here?

daguy11
@verizon.net

daguy11

Anon

Well, actually, it happened again!

I have to blow on the new ignitor..so obviously thats not it.. Weird because i tested it a few times after install to see it would ignite on its own and it did...

back to the coils i guess

StillLearn
Premium Member
join:2002-03-21
Streamwood, IL

StillLearn

Premium Member

said by daguy11 :

Well, actually, it happened again!

I have to blow on the new ignitor..so obviously thats not it.. Weird because i tested it a few times after install to see it would ignite on its own and it did...

back to the coils i guess

When you blow, what could be happening? Your breath is so powerful that it vibrates the valve housing letting the gas turn on completely? If the coils were "weak" somehow, I guess replacing the coils could help. Is the valve itself a bit stuck and your wind lets the internal valving move? In that case, I don't see the coils helping. In either case, gently tapping the valve case with a pencil etc should have as much effect at your blowing.

It seems more likely wind is setting up air movement that blows the gas released into the air closer to the igniter. In that case, either the valve flow is reduced, or the igniter is bent a little farther from the gas flow than optimum.

I suggest lightly tapping the valve housing (without causing significant air movement). If that solves the problem, the coils may solve the problem. Maybe use a screw driver to tap this time to give even more vibration than a pencil.

If wind-free gentle to moderate tapping does not cause the fire to start, then I doubt that new coils will help.

datguy11
@verizon.net

datguy11

Anon

Hmm.. that makes sense..When i replaced the ignitor i was obviously touching some of the parts and maybe jostling the valve just enough to get it to work again for a short while..

I will test out your theory.. thanks!

Lurch77
Premium Member
join:2001-11-22
Green Bay, WI

Lurch77

Premium Member

It's hard to tell in the photo, but is the primary air shutter open? If not you may be trying to light a gas mixture that is too rich. Blowing on it adds oxygen and brings the gas mixture below the upper explosive limit (UEL). Just a thought.

jack b
Gone Fishing
MVM
join:2000-09-08
Cape Cod

1 recommendation

jack b

MVM

I mentioned that, ten days ago. Go figure.