ALE866SBW (PALE866SBW) Amana Dryer - Instructions

Shut off or unplugged dryer for safety.

Slipped thin blade putty knife up under bezel of switch to unlatch from the panel and pulled forward to remove the swwitch from the dryer. Unplugged the quick connect terminals (3) from the old switch and plugged them onto the new switch. one of the terminals had gotten quite hot and darkened the insulation so it was replaced with one that was supplied with the switch. that was a cut, strip, crimp process. Placed the new switch into the panel and snapped into place.

Not too difficult. Take out of box, insert into dryer slot.
Done

remove bottom section under door 2 screws remove door 2 screws remove switch by squeezing tabs install 2 new female ends on wires supplied with switch . put switch back in plug in wires .

Dryer would only tumble for ~15 min then stop. During this time it would be really loud. Turns out to be a bad Motor. To replace 1) Removed bottom kick panel by removing 2 screws. 2) Then removed upper front cover by 2 additional screws. 3) Disconnected thermostat (marking location of wires on paper). 4) Removed blower housing (3 screws)undid the rib belt from the drum by pushing the pulley wheel up so the belt could be loosened and removed from motor. 5)Removed the front cover of the dryer opening by removing 2 screws. 6) Lifted up and then puled it out to expose the drum. 7) Removed the drum w/belt from the dryer exposing the motor. 8) Removed 2 screws from the motor and disconnected the plug from it. Slid it all the way out. 9) Need to remove (3 screws) the metal faceplate from motor to access the blower wheel (plastic). 10) Unscrewed the plastic wheel and removed 2 screws to remove the motor from the frame. reversed the process for reassembly. Sounds tougher than it really was - only took 30-45 min. Suggestion - write down on paper location of any wires you disconnect - makes reassembly very easy. Also recommend vacuuming any lint in the dryer while it is completely accessible.

Replaced the recommended drum rollers, belt and tensioner, light bulb. Found repair manual online (bit of a hunt)made job easier still took 2.5 hrs. Then turned drum by hand no squeak. Turned it on and still squeaked. Isolated to motor. Replaced it (had to take dryer completely apart again but went quicker due to experience also had to disassemble the motor assy and rebuild. Took 1.5 hrs works like new now. The design of the dryer is not bad remove bottom front panel first, screws at very bottom of panel then two more screws are uncovered to remove front. It just lifts up and pulls out. then remove four bolts which hold front frame on (supports drum) all this has to be done to reach the replacement parts. drum wheels are held on by snap rings not the screws (real fun if you take them out) reverse to reassemble.

I believe the best procedure would be to start at the very bottom of the machine - there are two sheet metal screws in the bottom panel. Remove the bottom panel.

Now, there are two sheet metal screws at the bottom of the front door panel that need to be removed. Remove front panel by pulling down to dislodge from plastic pins aligning it to the top panel.

Now the air duct assembly is accessible. From outside machine remove two sheet metal screws holding lower air duct frame. From inside the dryer opening, remove three screws holding the upper frame. Remove old air duct assembly and vaccuum machine.

New air duct assembly is in one piece, so only three inside screws are needed to support it. Make certain the screws are seated well or clothes could get hung up on the screw heads. Reinstall front door panel and bottom panel.

Doing it this way should make the job around 20 to 30 minutes.

DIAGNOSTICS: Unplug dryer to reset controls. Remove lower cover. Plug back in. Start dryer. If flame starts and goes out in a few seconds, probably the cycling thermostat (located centrally near bottom of dryer) is bad. It fits in the center of the thermostat heater (not replaced). Use the on-line schematic. I reset the controls (as above) again and jumpered the cycling thermostat. This time the flame stayed on. I turned off dryer before High Limit Thermal Fuse could blow out. Only a trained electrician should do the above.
REPAIRS: Decided to remove main cover, to get better angle on thermostat screws. Unplugged. Removed door first. Be gentle with wires. Be careful with drum, it will simply fall out if jarred. Remove two screws for cycling thermostat. Remove wires, replace cycling thermostst. Reassemble. Be sure drum is still on rollers on back and anti-friction strips in front.
SHORTCUT: If you use an articulated socket wrench on the thermostat screws, you can save your self the trouble of removing the front cover, door, and possibly drum.

First I unplugged the dryer, then I removed the bottom front panel. Then the door I marked the wires to the shut off switch on the door and removed the switch from the door. Next was the lint screen housing and duct work that goes to it. Then I had to reach under the drum and take the belt off of the motor pully and tensioner so I could remove the drum. I removed the drum. I then marked all the wires I had to disconnect. I took the fan housing front panel off. I held the belt drive end of the motor shaft with the pipe wrench, i could have used an open end or an adjustable wrench also. I used a 7/8 six sided socket on the plastic fan nut on the front of the shaft so that if it was hard to loosen I would have a better chance of not rounding the nut. I removed the fan and the back of the housing, unplugged the motor, and removed it. The clips that hold the motor to the motor bracket are a little tricky, I used a screw driver to remove them. I then replaced the motor and put everything back together. One hint you should know is to make sure you mark the drum front so when you put it back in you get it right the first time. I fits in both ways and will go back together but it won't turn free and you'll have to take it all apart again. I tried it by hand both ways and was able to catch the mistake before I put it all back together, but I could have put it together wrong.

This was my first time repairing a dryer. If I knew when I started the project what I know now, it would have been an easy repair. First, you should know that the series number (used for selecting a wiring diagram) is the last two digits of the unit's serial number (not model number). In my case, the series number was 11. The hardest part for me was figuring out how to take the dryer apart. I made the mistake of starting with the top instead of the front. In fact, I removed the control panel and disconnected all the wires, labeling them carefully, and creating a diagram, so i could put it all back together later. I now realize I could have left that all together and just lifted the top up in the front without removing it. That knowledge would have saved hours of work, so I hope it helps someone (prop up the front a few inches and start by removing the panel on the lower front, then remove the screws on the main front panel, and then pull out the bottom of that panel toward you until the top of that front panel disengages from the top of the dryer - the rest is obvious). So it turns out there were two separate problems: 1) the blower wheel had broken completely off of the motor so it wasn't spinning - this is why hot air wasn't being pulled through from the heater in the back of the dryer; 2) the pulley on the spring-loaded lever arm attached to the motor was squeaking due to lack of lubricant. So the solution was to replace the blower wheel and spray WD-40 in the pulley (and also, for good measure in the roller bearings that support the drum in the back of the dryer). Most of the time spent on the repair was just due to my own mistakes. In particular, once I got everything back together after the repair, it stopped squeaking and there was good airflow, but it wasn't heating. I spent an entire day trying to troubleshoot the lack of heat. I tested and bypassed all of the thermostats and heater fuses and the heating element still wouldn't come on. I even managed to accidentally ground one of the leads from the fuse and had to replace a melted wire connector (trip to the Shack). In the end, it turned out that a wire which had been accidentally disconnected from the main power cord to the dryer, I had put back in the wrong spot. There is L1, L2, and neutral going into the dryer. I had the heater on the same circuit as the motor and other stuff. Once I traced the wiring diagram back, I realized this and corrected it by putting the heating circuit back onto L2. Now it "hums like a Singer". If everything had gone smoothly, instead of being a 2-day repair, it would have been a 2 hour repair. 2 hours instead of 1 because to get the leverage I needed to remove the old blower nut, I had to actually pull the motor assembly out of the dryer and move it to my workbench. Someone who is strong or more limber or has better tools might be able to skip that step, reducing the time by about 45 minutes. Good luck!

Watch the video. Very, very easy

First I removed the bottom front cover attached with two screws, then the main front cover attached with two screws. I then removed two more screws holding the top in place, detached three wires and raised the top lid. I held the top lid out of the way with a cord tied off to a cabinet above. I then removed four screws holding the front support panel in place and set it to the side with wires still attahced. Then I slid the dryer belt off the drum and removed the drum. Next I removed the cover of the fan wheel by removing several screws. This allowed me to unscrew the fan wheel (reverse threaded) by anchoring the motor shaft with a wrench and using a large socket to turn the nut end of the fan wheel (then was no snap ring). I then popped off the two clamps holding the motor in place and removed the motor. The only tricky part about assembly was putting the belt back on the pulleys once the drum was installed. You can't see the pulleys once the drum is installed so it is done by feel.

I looked at your on-line diagrams (exploded views) and basically used them as dis-assembly info.

I removed the bottom panel, followed by the front panel, the drum holders and drum.

Toughest part was the spring clips holding the motor in place,,,, but notes on your site from other folks doing the same motor replacement solved that one,,,,,, I used a flat bladed screwdriver and pliers to manipulate the clips both off and on

Removed 2 screws from dryer lower front panel and removed panel. Then removed upper front panel (no screws, just clips). Removed screws from existing duct assembly (2 for the duct assembly and 3 that held the top of the assembly to the dryer opening (and the reason for removing the upper front panel). Original part was a two piece assembly, new one is a single part, using less screws. New part is also deeper that original assembly. There was enough room for the extra size. Installed new part, replaced top 3 screws, top panel, and bottom panel. The replacement was very straight forward. Anyone that has done this before could do it in a few minutes but without prior knowledge or a manual, it took a full 1/2 hour to do the replacement.

First I put the square female end iof the door catch kit nto the square hole as snug as I could. Then I gently pushed the door against the piece until I heard it click in to place. That's it!! Sooooo simple--

Took off the four screws to get to the female clip and used pliers to squeeze it out. Next was using pliers to pinch out the male connector and place the new one in.