DDC0385LE General Electric Dryer - Instructions

I discovered that the High Limit Thermo was in place, but had been bypassed years ago. After lifting the top up, I finally found the HLT on the top left side in the back. I removed it, then put the new one in with its 2 screws. I put new lugs on its wires and put them back on. The dryer tested GOOD. No more potential Bar-B-Que! I did print a picture of the wiring diagrams that were on the back of the unit. This gave me the color code of the wires, where they were to be found, and what they did. This also helped. This GE Dryer is at least 26 years old! Newer Dryers in the Videos actually require more work removing things to get to the Thermostat. When I finally found it, the job went quick.

first I removed the screws with the nutdriver at the bottom of the dryer at the back..then I could see the belt was broken...next I took off the 2 nuts at the back that hold the top on ..then opened the dryer front door and unscrewd the 4 screws holding the top on....then I lifted the top up and to the side...then all I had to do was take out 2 screws one on each side of dryer front and the the front was open enough that I could slide the new belt on dryer..then screwed the front back on...then placed the top on and went to the back of dryer and put belt on pulley using the diagram I found in the instructions inside the dryer top...really a lot easier than it sounds...easy fix saved me from buying another dryer

After opening the front door there are screws that are holding the top to the door. Take those screws out using a Phillips screwdriver. The top should lift up and rest at a near 90 degree angle.

The door has two screws at the bottom that need to be taken out. Once those are out there are two screws on both sides at the top holding it to the frame. Remove those as well.

Before you remove the front you should document the wiring for the door light switch. I took these off to give the door a little extra room so I could rest it on a toolbox without taking all the wires completely off.

Once the door is free, on the back there is a metal plate with two screws in it roughly in the middle of the unit. Unscrew the top completely but leave the bottom screw in and just slightly loosen it. This will allow it to swing down out of the way without the need to completely remove it and have one more part to put back together in the end.

What this plate is covering is the center of the drum. There is a small metal tab that you can push on and it will push the drum out so it can be removed. Gripping the drum, you can lift it out by guiding it through the notches on each side where the drum protrudes.

With the drum removed you'll see the motor and idle pulley. On my model the pulley was attached to a metal rod that was spring loaded. The pulley is held on by a small tension washer that was easily removed with pliers. Installation was somewhat more difficult but mostly just getting it lined up and started. Once on the rod it was easy to push it into place.

With the new pulley installed it's time to install the new belt. To do this first put the belt over the drop and then replace the drum back into the frame. Once the drum is pushed back into the hole it will support itself.

Now you need to remove the panel on the back to get access to the motor and pulley. This panel has a lot of screws. Once that's off you can then guide the belt over the motor and get the idle pulley to put tension on the belt.

Once that is complete just replace all the screws you removed, plug it back in and watch as your new belt moves the drum once again.

Took apart the entire dryer. Cleaned and vacuumed all parts.
Removed drum assembly and threaded new coils in insulators.
Connected new heater coils to supply terminals and then reassembled dryer. Key to proper assembly was having threaded keys to properly allign the dryer drum during assembly. Dryer was tested and it works like a new dryer now. Old dryers have higher quality motors than newer dryers.

Removed 3 torx screws on the control panel. Removed two more regular screws from the dryer opening. This allows removal of the top. Removed some panels from the back to access where belt feeds through the motor. Found the belt snapped in two inside.

Now that I knew what the problem was I found partselect.com on Google. Ordered the part friday morning with ground. The belt arrived SATURDAY MORNING! I didn't even know fedex would deliver ground shipments on Saturday. Less than 24 hours later I had it. AWESOME.

Removed the front panel by removing two hex bolts to allow me to drape the belt over the drum. Not having seen how the belt was originally around the tensioner and the bad diagrams included with the dryer, it took some figuring to get it back on right. But we did it and we're back in business. I will absolutely buy from PartSelect.com again!

After identifying the issue, the biggest issue was trying to identify how to get the belt around the drum tumbler. After looking through the back hatch, I figured the best way was through the top. I removed the top just enough to work the belt in between the drum and the front sheet metal. Then I turned it on its side and worked the belt from the back hatch. I pulled the pulley back on the tensioner and slipped the belt under neath. Put it back together, been working great.

Unplug the AC cord. Open dryer door and unscrew 4 small Phillips screws that hold the top panel to the front panel. Tilt up the top panel.
To remove the front panel: Look on the inside of the front panel, disconnect all the wire connections that go to/from the front panel, such as the light and door switch. Remove 2 screws that attach the top of front panel to the side panels using a 8mm or 5/16" wrench. Undo or loosen 2 Phillips screws at the bottom of the front panel, one at each bottom corner. Remove the front panel. Go to the back of the dryer. Remove the 8 screws holding the lower access panel (8mm or 5/16"). Remove the access panel. Also, remove the 2"x4" access plate in the center of the back panel (2 8mm/5/16"). Reach inside the small panel opening with a needle nose pliers and remove a Cir-clip and washer that holds the rear drum bearing shaft in place. Now you can remove the drum straight forward. Clean, clean, clean the insides. Replace the worn drive belt, follower wheel and front slider pads as needed. Reverse the procedure to reassemble. Plug in and test. Drink beer.

Per suggestion of "Parts Select", I replaced the "high limit thermostat"....very simple task on the dryer: 1 - unplug from power source; 2 - remove screws securing top to front (open door, screws located beneath lip of unit); 3 - tilt top up allowing access to everything; 4 - remove connections to 'thermostat' (note which wires go where); 5 - loosen screws securing thermostat to unit and remove thermostat; 6 - vacuum any and all lint while unit is apart; 7 - install new thermostat and put everything back together; 8 - test dryer to see if repairs worked!

Took the top and front off. DO NOT TAKE DRUM OFF!! Lifted drum slightly and worked belt around drum. Replaced front and top. Took off rear panel at bottom near vent pipe. Put belt around motor and then tension pulley. Buttoned everything up and that was it!

I removed the 2 screws and lock assemblies from both sides on the back. Then i removed 4 screws (two from each side) on the control panel and lifted that up as i tipped the cover forward to disconnect the wires from the door switch. I found the wiring diagram inside the control panel cover, which included a belt routing diagram (very helpful, being the belt was laying in the bottom. I then removed 3 torx srews holding the drum to the bearing, and removed the drum. Let the fun begin! i proceded to put the belt onto the motor pulley and around the tensioner. i needed some help from my wife to set the drum back in as i held the belt up around it. once the drum was back in, i found the beld had fallen away from the tensioner. I lifted the front of the drum up just enough to get both arms below it and move the tensioner back to slip the belt over it correctly. With the new belt on i started to put the screws back in the drum. This got very frustrating, as you have to correctly line up all the holes again, while holding the drum in the correct angle to start the screws. this was the hardest part, not physically, but wears on a person's nerves quickly! Once all the screws were in and tight, i took a deep sigh of relief before i tipped the front cover up just enought to get the wires hooked back up for the door. I turned the unit on to verify the repair before re-assembly. Yep! works again, for well under $20.00! Thanks PartSelect!

Found excellent instructions and diagrams online by searching under the model number. Best of all was the service from PartSelect. Belt arrived 24 hours after ordering. It was the right part, it was easy to install, and the dryer is running beautifully.

I follow the easy instruction by a user in your web site to reach the problem area and discoverd the drive belt was broken.
As it turned out, the problem was compounded when I discovered also that the Heating element needed replacement.
At this point I decided it was time to let go and got a new dryer, choosing the same brand that lasted 25 years: GE

I searched the web and found a site that explained how the unit came apart. Took it a part almost according to instructions (I thought I saw a short cut that wasn't).
Unplug
Remove top, torx screws above door, tilt top back, lift front (swing to the right).
Remove clip from back of drum, and slide the drum out(watch the belt or remove tension first)
Remove wires and restring
Slide belt on to drum.
Slide drum back into dryer.
Reinstall front and top.
Retension belt.
Plug back in.
I took the time to remove the duct and cleaned out the unit before reassembly.
Also it helps if you can get easy access to all sides of the unit. I could not, the owner had stored stuff around it to the point that it would have added several hours to the repair to gain easy access. So I had to do some gymnastics to get to all the area's to work on the maching. It is my Dad's dryer and that is enough to write a novel about.
If I had followed the above, it would have saved me an hours worth of time.

First I took the lower bottom off the back of the dryer (bolts), pulled the old pulley off the idler and put new one on. Second, I took the screws out in front (under lip of top) and then removed bolts from bottom of the front. Then lifted lid up and swung front to the side. I was then able to take the drum out and clean it before putting it back in with the new belt. The put everything back together.
Dryer ran for ten mintues and then quite again. Seems to be in the motor and not the less expensive parts I found to be worn.

First I shut off the gas and unhooked the gas line. Then opened the door and removed the screws that hold the top down in the front. I then tipped the top back so I could get to the top of the drum. I removed the screws ( 4 ) inside the door opening and slid the felt seal back. Next I put the belt in the drum and feed part out the crack between the drum and the dryer frame, being careful not to cut the belt. I woorked the belt around the crack and pulled it toward the drum. When I got the belt through it was all the way around the drum and I just put the belt over the motor pully and pulled the tensioner back and wrapped the belt over it. Put all the screws back in and the back on and fired it up. Works as good as it ever did.