broken tumble dryer is this true?

Hi I have a hoover tumble dryer which stopped heating. It still blew cold air. It was the overload/overheat protection device that failed(do not know the exact name for it but it was open circuit) I have been told that the reason it failed was because I use a vent hose out of the window and because the tumble dryer has to push the air through a 90 degree bend then up 6 feet then through a window and then pointing down through about 150 degrees this is why it failed. Also it was very windy when it packed up. I have been advised to cut a hole through the wall and vent straight out so that there are no bends in the vent hose. Before I start drilling through the wall is this advice correct or is the repairman talking a load of rubbish? Thanks Jackie

Reply to
Jackie
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On Tue, 20 Sep 2005 10:46:47 GMT, "Jackie" scrawled:

There may be a slight element of truth in what he says but it I wouldn't go so far as to say it was _the_ reason. Take it with a pinch of salt, but I would get it vented through the wall anyway for convenience more than anything.

Reply to
Lurch

Rubbish.

Provided there is passage for the air to leave the machine in sufficient quantity, it's fine.

Holes in the wall can lead to far more convoluted pipe paths than stuff out a window.

Reply to
Ericp

Speaking as a one time washing machine/drier repair man, I would say that your man's advice is very sensible. I lost count of the number of times I experienced problems with this type of set-up. What happens is that when the rising moist/warm air meets the cold air from outside, it condenses, turns back into water and runs back down the tube. The water then either runs back into the drier, or the weight of the water makes the outlet tube form a 'U' bend, and ( after a period of time) the collected water acts as a trap, just like your kitchen waste. Now you have no air movement which = no drying = no cooling = overheat. I'm not saying for 100% certain this is your problem, but it's certainly the first thing I would have recommended.

Reply to
Partac

I'd also say that it's a distinct possibility.

In addition to the moisture that accumulates, the longer the tube the more resistance there is to the air flowing up the exhaust tube, the air moves slower and the result is the machine overheats.

Most ducted air conditioners and ch boilers have strict restrictions on flue length for this very reason. I'd assume dryers are the same.

However, heaters do have a finite life so it may have blown due to age.

(if buying a new dryer I'd suggest a condening one btw.)

sponix

Reply to
s--p--o--n--i--x

I have a Hoover drier which has performed perfectly satisfactorily with a flexy hose stuffed through a window for 25 years or so. Whilst the objections to this system may have theoretical (and slight) objections, and provided the discharge path is not blocked by fluff or other foreign bodies then it is a perfectly acceptable means of venting the drier. Indeed the user is encouraged to use this system by many manufacturers in the inclusion of the necessary accessories to permit it.

Regards

Pilgarlick

Reply to
Pilgarlick

6 feet is a bit excessive and may cause a problem, as noted elsewhere.

We simply had a hole cut in the window nearby, and fitted the relevant plastic boss (a piece each side) into which the hose fits. Been like that for 11 years...tumble dryer has only failed due to broken belt so far!

Reply to
Bob Eager

On 20 Sep 2005, Pilgarlick wrote

But as described, the potential problem wasn't about whether the hose vented through the window or through the wall: it's that the current venting hose has a 90 degree turn, followed by a 6-foot rise to the window, then and points back down on the other side.

I can well imagine that that has meant that there *isn't* "a passage for the air to leave the machine in sufficient quantity", and that the repair guy's therefore giving good rather than rubbish advice.

Reply to
Harvey Van Sickle

Looks like the design of the product is defective, ie it's not customer proof and the overheat stat should have reset unless faulty. It may be advisable to reroute the vent pipe to shorten the path length for this product, or throw it away and buy a product which will work under your conditions. Has the lint filter blocked? I've known the overheat switch to drop out under these conditions, but then reset. Why didn't the heater thermostat reset when the machine had cooled down?

Regards Capitol

Reply to
Capitol

Hang on a minute, the replies above are all good advice but I'm not so sure they answer the real issues. The OP says "the overload/overheat protection device failed". Every dryer I've seen is arranged such that there is an operating thermostat and a safety "overheat" thermostat. In normal operation the element is turned on and off by the operating thermostat with the mark/space ratio varying during the drying cycle and with other factors such as the airflow. Blocking the outlet reduces the cooling of the element (almost completely!) and normally that just means that the element is on for a very short time and off for a long time, all controlled by the operating thermostat.

The safety (overheat) thermostat is only there at all so that when (if) the operating thermostat fails the dryer doesn't catch fire. It is normally resetable but deliberately designed so that resetting it is non-trivial, like you have to reach around the back of the machine. This tends to make people deal with the underlying problem rather than ignore it.

The OP was told that the safety thermostat had failed and I take that to mean that it had gone open circuit and was not resetable. In my experience both the operating and the safety thermostats are prone to simply falling apart. They are after all in a pretty harsh environment and generally they seem to be built around a flimsy cardboard like material (I know it's not really cardboard but that's what it looks like).

So Jackie, was the dryer working OK up to the point of failure? If it was then your outlet arrangement is probably just fine. Did the repairman replace the cutout or just reset it? If he replaced it because it had actually failed then the outlet arrangement may not be perfect but it can't cause the cutout to *fail* so again your outlet arrangement is not to blame. If he simply reset it then something else caused the dryer to overheat in the first place, maybe a faulty or becoming faulty operating thermostat. I guess the only other consideration is the age of the machine. My experience is that up to say 3 years of daily use I'd be surprised to see a thermostat fall apart. By about 10 years I'd expect to have replaced both thermostats (and the element) at least once.

I hope that helps you to analyse the problem and I'd certainly think hard before going to the effort of making a hole in the wall unless you want one anyway.

Reply to
Calvin

I just had this on mine. It has two safeties, an "otter" (I think so called, because "it stops it getting 'otter") and a thermal link. The otter is actually a bimetallic thermostat.

First time the otter blew, and took the link with it. I replaced them both, and it ran happily for another six months, then the thermal link went again. The parts people wanted 15 quid for another link - which consists of two connectors, a bit of heat-proof wire, and a thermal fuse. A trip to maplins, 75p, and a bit of crimping and it's running again.

I assume that the otter doesn't turn the heat off soon enough to suit the thermal fuse. I could fiddle with the temperature range of the thermal fuse, but I feel a strange reluctance to do so.

Andy

Reply to
Andy Champ

Personally, I've given up on vented dryers. They always seem to overheat as it is very difficult to get the hose outside without kinks. Also, I don't want a whopping great hole in the side of my house. Go condensing and you don't have to deal with all this.

Christian.

Reply to
Christian McArdle

Best brick up all the windows and doors then.

Reply to
Rob Morley

I've closed off those holes with glass and wood instead.

Christian.

Reply to
Christian McArdle

I was going to counter with "so fit an automatic louvre", but I don't seem to be able to find any without taking a Vent-Axia fan apart :-)

Reply to
Rob Morley

Use a cooker hood louvre.

Reply to
Matt

Or just buy a condensing dryer, so you don't have to have a hole in the wall, which is ugly, inflexible and probably not compatible with next year's model.

Christian.

Reply to
Christian McArdle

The BSS folk

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stock in-line backdraft contraptions that basically are one-way valves to allow air to flow out but to prevent reverse flow. The description of these items include the word "damper" if anyone is attempting a search.

For the tiny cost of these, and where they are easily concealable, I'd recommend fitting them to any exterior-vent.

Mungo

Reply to
mungoh

......or a washing line which works when the power stations run out of gas to burn.

Reply to
Matt

Don't they rely on air pressure from the fan?

Reply to
Rob Morley

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