I have a 20-year-old gas dryer that stopped rotating its drum, so I opened it up to have a look. I found that the belt had apparently stretched, as it had no traction. I bought a new one and found that it was the same length as the old one. I installed it and the problem was still there. There is no way the drum could have been dislocated, and the motor is firmly bolted down. I finally concluded that there was only one way to get everything to fit and operate properly. I have to increase the diameter of the idler pulley a little bit. I wrapped a lot of duct tape around it and now it works- but with a lot of noise. The only explanation I can think of is that the idler pulley has worn down. But when I look at pictures of one online, it looks just like the one I have - not thicker. I don't see a pile of white plastic sawdust inside the dryer. But I can't think of any other explanation. Does anyone else have experience with this? Do idler pulleys just wear down to the point that they belt loses its tension? Is there some other explanation?
- posted
15 years ago