Sparks came from my dryer after running over power cable; doesn't work now

I have a Whirlpool thintwin washer/dryer combo. I was moving it back into place when I dragged part of the frame over the power cord. I was holding it from the front, but I heard a pop and saw sparks. coming from the right, bottom side of the dryer (assuming you're looking at it face on). The circuit breaker hadn't tripped, but the power cable had gash and a scorch mark on the floor.

The cord was easy enough to replace and I tried that. The unit isn't responding now. The dryer won't even start, for example. While I was checking behind the unit, I found what I think is the thermal fuse. If that's working, it should come up like a short, right? There were some round electrical devices that I think are the thermostats. I don't know a way to test with the multimeter, but they didn't look burst at all. In fact, I couldn't find an origin for the sparks at all.

Is there anything else to check?

Reply to
Adam Preble
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Updating my own threads as usual. I checked the outlet and I'm not getting any voltage across any of the terminals. The circuit breakers are clearly on; they had never reset. The only thing I can think of is to go reset it manually anyways. I don't have all my breakers labelled (find them as I go) so I'm waiting for everybody to go to bed before I start randomly turning off parts of the house. That just seems strange though...

Reply to
Adam Preble

turn circuit breaker all the way off and back on. sometimes they pop halfway. isn't now a great time to buy a $25 digital multimeter and continue troubleshooting? see also:

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Reply to
buffalobill

I'm ahead of you on both accounts. I've been testing the circuits with a multimeter. I don't think I got a forums account on fixitnow, but I have asked questions on applianceblog from time to time. Somehow I think I was navigating one site and wound up on the other.

Reply to
Adam Preble

If turning is all the way off, and back on again dont solve the problem, replace the breaker. It probably fried. The good news, its easier to fix than the dryer, Probably cheaper too.

Reply to
maradcliff

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Reply to
buffalobill

Or replace the outlet.

Reply to
Joseph Meehan

Did you try pluging the washer/drier into a different, working, outlet? I just fixed a problem like this in a ladies garage. She had shorted out the vacuum cleaner using an outlet in the garage. The breaker didn't trip but I found an open electrical junction further up the circuit. It was so badly made that it worked like an inline fuse. Another guy was out and told her the feed to the garage was out and she needed the yard dug up and the feed replaced ~ $1500. Richard

Reply to
spudnuty

It's an electric dryer that requires a 220V socket; there's no other sockets in the house that'll do.

I tested the circuit breaker today and it looks like all the breakers are supply power. I had no voltage across the bare wires of the main outlet. I had taken it out of the wall and tried measure across its wires to no affect. This is very strange to me. My circuit breaker box doesn't have any tied breakers, and I only have 20A breakers in there. When I got the house back in July, the inspector alerted me that I should change that so that I don't have only half the circuit break on me. We never determined which circuit breakers were actually handling the dryer, and I'm starting to think none of them are doing that. The house was built in the late 70's, and I doubt its had a second panel installed someplace. I'm a little confused.

I will test the breakers again tonight, but I might need an electrician find the path of that circuit for me. The dryer outlet and breaker box are both in the garage, along with my gas heaters. Is there any place else I should be looking to find the source of this circuit?

Reply to
adam.preble

According to :

The dryer will have three or four prongs on its cord. What did you test? Only voltage between the two "blade" connectors, or did you test between the blade sockets and the ground hole?

If you don't have tied breakers, one half may have tripped, and measuring across the 240V won't show anything. But measuring between each of the 240V pins and ground may show something on one of them.

Did you test for voltage on the breaker where the wires are connected?

_All_ the wires?

There may be a pony panel somewhere. Look in the garage where the wires enter it.

Reply to
Chris Lewis

I never heard that expression before "pony panel", but I agree. There has got to be another box somewhere if a every breaker is live in the main box. -OR- the wires feeding the dryer outlet are spliced somewhere (hopefully in a box) and there is a bad connection. The OP needs to start at the dryer outlet, make sure all the wires are attached to it, then work backwards, following the cable all the way to the main panel. -OR- Just run completely new wiring.

I don't quite understand why the OP can not find the dryer breaker. There are most likely only 2 or 3 Dual Breakers (240volt) ones in the panel. That is assuming this dryer is an electric dryer (I am not sure what he has)....

Reply to
maradcliff

Dryer should be a double 30 amp breaker.

Reply to
EXT

It's an electric dryer. The problem is that there are no dual breakers in the circuit breaker box. There are no 30A breakers for that matter.

Reply to
adam.preble

Yes, nothing in the dryer should be damaged by sparking in the cord. Verify that the receptacle is still working. It probably sacrificed itself to save the circuit breakers. (Receptacles are very brave, and have received more Medal of Valor's than any other electrical device. Viva la receptacle! Viva la outlet!!)

Remove NOPSAM to email me. Please let me know if you have posted also.

Reply to
mm

Except for carefully testing whether you have power, you had better stop working with 220 until you are able to disconnect the power,

I don't do this for a living, so bear that in mind :) but last year my dining room chandelier stopped working. I spent a lot of time measuring the voltage in the socket that the lighbulb fit, and after there was no voltage, I spent a lot of time checking for continuity from the wall switch and the neutral wire in the switch box, to the socket. And I just got more and more confuse.

Finally I had the sense to check for voltage at the base of the lightbulb socket, where the wires come in and are riveted, with those rivvets that have a hole in the middle, to the socket. There was voltage there, but none inside the socket. Something was wrong with a rivet.

So don't assume that if you put the meter probes in the slots or the other holes and get no voltage, that you can safely touch the entire outlet.

It can still be very hot in the back.

But once you find that it is hot in the back and not int the front, you've found your problem.

And it's likely that an outlet would fail when there has been a short circuiit in a cord and high current through it.

But before you do all this, look for that second breaker box. Maybe you just need to reset the breaker.

And while your at it, turn on all the lights and something in every other outlet and have your wife help you find out which one is which. You're young, you're still in love, now is the time to do it. :) Just kidding.

Remove NOPSAM to email me. Please let me know if you have posted also.

Reply to
mm

Final update on my own thread. I found a second breaker box. It was outside. There was a 30A breaker in it that was tripped. I reset that and now everything works again. Thanks to everybody for the help.

Reply to
Adam Preble

OK, then you MUST have another panel somewhere. You have to have 220 to run the thing. Unless some idiot used 2 separate breakers (bad thing to do). Can't you trace the wire from the outlet back, or is it all buried in walls and stuff? The cable SHOULD be a 10-3. Is it? Can you read anything on it?

Is there a 10-3 cable at your main breaker box?

I know if I was there I could figure it out in no time, but it's hard to do online. Whatever you do, dont start tearing things apart till you know it's shut off. OR, pull your MAIN disconnect, and BE SURE there is only ONE Main. 220 is nothing to mess around with. However, nothing will get hurt if you start following that wire back from the outlet. Look in basement under it, or attic above it, etc. Assuming its a 10-3 cable, it should be easy to spot, because thats likely the only 10-3 cable in the house unless you got a central air conditioner or electric water heater. You probably do not have the new color coded cable (which 10-3 is orange), but the older white cables always had different manufacturing marks on them, so try to find cable that matches throughout the house. If you see ANYTHING that looks like a breaker or fuse box, investigate it.

When you are looking to trace a wire, always point from the outlet toward the main breaker box. While some electrician may have done something goofy, it's most likely that the wire goes in the direction of the main panel.

10-3 is quite a bit thicker than most other wire, so look for THICK !!!

Mark

Reply to
maradcliff

Glad you got it working. Why is the box outside? I suppose you have the same question..... Thats a weird place for it. I hope its a weatherproof box. You may want to consider moving it indoors in the near future.

Reply to
maradcliff

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