FDES69RHW0 Frigidaire Dryer - Instructions

Replaced the heating element assembly. Problem was still there. Checked the electrical schematic to try to resolve. Everything checked out except the contacts on the motor M-1 to M-2 had no continuity. Removed the switch from the motor and exercised it. Works fine now.

This was a Sears Dryer, also know as Kenmore, This dryer can be stacked or side by side. In this case it was stacked. There are no directions on how to replace this part. For this model made in 2005 the lid of the dryer is held in front by two clips. You open the lid simply by prying the two front corners up with a flat head screw driver. The front of the top lid pops right up. You may have to remove the mounts in back if you cant lift the dryer lid enough to be able to get your hands in. UNPLUG THE DRYER I got a nasty shock. There are two wires on the switch, remember how they go and where they are, that's important. Turn the switch (from the front or back) so that it pops out. Remove and replace the wires put it back in (from behind/top) and twist a 1/4 turn into place. Plug, test and simply push the cover back down onto the clips. Done.

Very easy and straight forward repair.

Unplug the dryer and move it to a location that offers some room to work.

Use flathead screw driver to pop the front side top of the dryer up then lift the top of the dryer up to expose the drum.

Use phillips head screw driver to remove the two screws from the access panel on the rear of the dryer. Reach into the access area and remove the drum belt from the tensioner assembly. It's spring loaded so watch your fingers.

Disconnect the wiring harness at the right front of the dryer.

Remove the two screws that secure the front of the dryer to the sides.

Remove the front panel of the dryer by pulling the panel forward then up and off the two tabs at the bottom.

The felt strips and glides (which are worn off if you are doing this repair) are glued to the front panel of the dryer and now need to be removed. Removing the old felt will take some time and is the most difficult part of this whole repair.

Use some goof off or similar solvent adhesive remover to ease the removal of the felt. A putty knife will likely be helpful too.

Once the felt is off, wipe off any excess solvent and make sure the area to be re-felted is clean and dry.

Apply small serpentine bead of provided adhesive to the felt strips and glue the new strips on to the dryer. There is more than enough glue in the tube provided to get the job done. After applying felt strips, let them sit for about 30 minutes before reassembling dryer. You may want to use some light duty clamps to hold the felt in place while the glue sets but that's probably not necessary since the glue sets rapidly. Follow the directions on the glue tube.

Reassemble in opposite order.

Take the opportunity to vacuum out your dryer and give it a good inspection while you have it cracked open. You just might find those socks that disappeared.

Here are some "while your at it" ideas:

Replace both upper and lower felt strips.
Vacuum out entire dryer cabinet and the foam seal on the air box.
Replace drive belt.
Replace light bulb.
Replace bearing ball on rear of drum or apply some lubricant to the bearing.

I'm not saying do all these things, I'm just suggesting these items as things to consider based on the age and usage of your dryer.

This is an easy one person repair that requires no experience or special tools. Don't pay the repair man. Do it yourself.

I basically followed the video instructions on your website. Pretty simple but ran into an issue pre-threading the 3 self taping screws into the spindle bearing. The screws provided were blunt on the end and did not tap easily at all. I used the existing screws that were much more "sharp" and worked much better. Also, the new screws were Philips drive and due to the amount of torque trying to self tap nearly stripped them out. The old sharper screws were square drive which had a better bite. So basically, I used the old screws to self tap and then used the new screws for the final installation.
It took a long time to clean all the lint out from the inside of the dryer. The motor was completely embedded with lint and animal hair. You may want to suggest that a good cleaning may be needed so bring a shop vac...and also something to carefully pick the lint balls out from around the motor armature and bearing area. Overall the video instructions were really a big help!

i first looked up the diagram for this model and checked for the best way to take the front cover off the dryer. after removing the front cover i start looking for the wires that connect the door switch and remove the wires. the front cover also supports the weight of the drum, so carefully pull the cover until the drum comes loose. at this point you can visually see the parts of the parts that make up the workings of the dryer. i first noticed the drum was coming out with the front cover at this time i knew the rear drum assembly was broke. i then took the belt loose from tension pulley and slid it off the drum and removed both from the cabinet. after the drum was removed i also noticed the heating was broken in several places. i removed four screws from the heating element assembly and also removed two wire that were connected to the element. with all pieces removed i checked the thermal switches, there are three switches, one on the heating element, one on the vent side and one on the back panel of the cabinet. i then installed the rear drum assembly and the heating element assembly and connected the wires. i then slid the drum almost all the in place and put the new belt around the drum and dropped the rear drum into the bracket that supports the rear drum then run the belt around the tension pulley and around the motor pulley. i then placed the front panel back in place and connected the wires for the door switch and lifted the drum assembly up just enough to insert the front panel door support into the drum and placed the clips in place, checked all connections twice and connected power back to the unit and turned on and run it through all its settings.

Replace rear bearing, found Exhust tube seal broken. Went ahead and replaced Drum belt & Idler arm assembly. Works like New !

put the new one on

I remove the old lint filter and just put the new one in.

Removed the back panel and the exhaust hose.removed the heater element and changed the thermostat wire was melted cut damaged part of wire soldered and rapped with black electrical tap

popped the catch in existing hole and replaced the screws

I removed dryer exhaust hose.unsnapped top cover the clips are in front and exposed inside of dryer,remove 2 screws on inside of front cover and set aside. remove lower cover in back and push belt extender until belt is loose remove 3 screws on inside of tumbler. remove tumbler out the front of dryer be careful not to damage belt set aside remove ball plate by pulling up and out it will unsnap. Now remove 2 sets of wires that are connected to heater element plate remove 4 screws holding element plate in place. Since dryer was all exposed I cleaned everything out with a wet vac put back together following instructions in reverse. Good luck

I unplugged the dryer from the wall and removed the back panel to replace the switch. It only had two wires on the switch I pulled then off and placed them on the new switch and put the unit back together and replaced all the knobs with new ones and it looks new again. Thanks to Parts Select.

Unplugged the drier, a couple of screws, remove the wires (take a picture of the wires with your cell phone to remember how they go back, twist out the thermostat. Installation is the reverse. A piece of cake.

There are only three screws holding the drum in. However, to get it out I had to remove the front panels, and the top of the dryer part of the washer-dryer combo. The drum came out easily, but getting the new one in was pretty hard. I had to guess how the drive belt was routed around the motor pulley and idler pulley, since I couldn't see it until I'd removed the drum. Since the new drum wasn't exactly like the old one, I had to remove the glide strip from the front panel to get it to fit. At present, the unit is not completely reassembled, so I can't say I've been entirely successful. Tomorrow, I will put it back together, cross my fingers, and switch it on. Wish me luck!

Followup: The dryer part of this washer-dryer combo is back online. At first, the dryer made a squealing noise, but eventually quieted down. At present, the drum replacement seems to be just fine. It cost about $215, and, except for a few cuts due to sharp-edged metal, a dropped clip that disappeared into the depths of the bottom of the washer, it is actually REPAIRED. I could have used more specific help, but, all in all, it has been pretty easy, and pretty effective.

we simply screwed the new one in place