DDC0385LE General Electric Dryer - Instructions

Remove the bottom cover of dryer to look at the motor, see belt hanging remove broken belt. Remove screws from the top and front, slide belt over drum put small piece of tape to hole belt in place replace screws go back to the rear pull belt over the motor pulley close back panel

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

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.

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 unscrew the two screws at top to disconnect the control panel. Lay unit on the back. Remove door(be careful not to lose washers and hinges). Remove four screws to lift off top. Wiggle drum, slip belt over drum. Replace door, then put Four screws back in place.Stand unit upright.Remove back panel, you should see belt hanging.Pulley wheel is in front of you.Follow instuctions sent with pulley wheel.Reattach you're ready to roll, make sure you sllip the belt on the drum until the drum spins.

We removed the lid to the dryer. The drum had to come out so the back access was removed and the belt taken off. The drum then slid out the front. The dryer had two elements both were broken. The new ones were stretched to the proper length and laced through the ceramic brackets. The new copper leads werre installed and the coils attached to them. We cleaned the dryer as much as possible and reassembled it. Works like a charm (for now)!

Removed Front of Machine, removed access panel on back of machine, reassembled after installing belt and cleaning out machine. Pretty Easy, hardest part is getting around the front of the drum.This machine has been going since 1978. 31 years, 2nd replacement belt and thats all, not bad, the washer that was bought at the same time went around 6 years ago, havent had the same luck, since then, two machines and the latest one is giving me problems already. They dont make them like they used to.

Backwards to start- here's the correct way.Disconnect power and vent hose-tip onto front-remove bottom plate allowing access to bottom of dryer and the belt pulleys-remove the small plate in center and under that is a C-clip holding the drum shaft in place-remove the clip and washer-sit dryer upright - open the door and remove the 4 screws under the upper lip which hold the top of the dryer in place-lift up top and secure or have someone hold it up.-inside the top front on both sides are 2 screws per side and there are 2 screws at the bottom under the kick area, remove all 6 of these screws and the front of the dryer will come off-watch the wires-with the front off you can pull the drum forward to allow installing the new belt. - hold the new belt in place with a couple of pieces of tape-reverse the procedure to put drum back together and then thread the new belt onto the drive pulley and under the idler tension pulley.- reinstall back plate, vent hose, power and you're ready to go have a beer.

First of all unplug the dryer, move it to a location that you have room to work around it. Remove the top and then take the two screws out that are on the inside of the dryer close to the top and then loosen the two bottom front screws only. Remove the front of the dryer and then look in the back of the dryer in the center of it and there is a square hole with a cover, remove the cover and behind it is a c-clamp, remove it. At this time release the tension on the dryer's belt and then pull the drum out towards the front of the dryer. Once this is done you'll be able to see the heater coils. You have to remove the bolts that the wires are attached to and cut the wire so you can pull the old coils through the glass rings to get the old coil out. Open your package and have a 48" yardstick or a tape measure and stretch the coils to the lengths in the instructions. Thread the new coils through the glass holders and then you have to remove the three heater wires that go through the wall of the ring so you can connect the new wires to the new bolts provided with your kit. One idea is to take a picture with your smart phone before you take anything off if it seems you can't remember what when where so you can see how the wires and bolts go back together. Once you have the bolts and wires connected you just reverse the process and put the dryer back together. *********** If I knew what I know now I would order a few of the glass holders because two of mine were burnt and I would have replaced them if I had them; I'd buy 4 to 6 of them to make sure I had enough.

Parts arrived within a couple of days,the repair went fairly easy.

I got to supervise - my son did it for me!!!! Went very well!

Removed the top, front and lower rear section of the dryer. This being my first experience replacing a dryer belt I naturally missed the tensioner pulley first try, then installed the belt on the wrong side of the pulley and found I didn't have enough tension. After some thought and a long hard look I realized my mistake and the third time was the charm. Next time I need to replace a dryer belt it should be a snap and go a lot faster.

Unplugged machine and turned off the gas. Removed top panel,4 screws along inside top edge of door opening. Used a wooden shim to pry the drum away from the surrounding "lip with felt padding. Slipped belt through.the trick is getting the belto around the entire drum. First I got it over the top of the drum, and fed it around the bottom by turning the drum and pushing the belt through the opening made by the shim between the bottom of drum and the lip with felt. It was kind of like feeding a bicycle chain onto a sprocket as you turn the wheel..
Removed back panel and vent hose, removed old belt laying on floor of machine, fed the belt onto the motor pulley and the tension pulley. Tension pulley presses on top side of belt. Belt should be in same position on drum as old belt, you can see a friction mark all around the drum from the old belt.
Replaced panels and vent hose. Put felt padding back into place wherever it slipped out. Very important because if you don't it scrapes the drum when turned on and makes a loud sound.
Dryer works perfectly again.

First I checked on-line "how to change a dryer belt" and followed the instructions. Remove front panel and slide belt over drum, in the back, put belt around pulley and hand trun the drum. on-line instructions had pictures to ensure proper install. It was easy.

Started with removal of rear inspection plate on rear of drier,rotated drier drum by hand to look for any visible problems. Found that drive belt with age had lost sections of teeth and every time the bad sections would go past motor they would "thump".
1. Removed belt from tensioner. Done simply by moving tensioner to unload belt.
2. Slipped belt off motor drive and moved belt to front of drum.
3. Opened drier door and removed 4 screws from under the lid or top of drier ,raised lid for access to belt once belt had been slid to front of drum.
4. (steps 4 and 5 are the hardest parts)Worked drive belt between drum and felt insulators keep in mind there are many stamped steel pieces and sharp edges can be present.
5. Removed belt by feeding a small section past felt and drum and worked rest out from frt. top of drier.
6. Installed new belt in reverse order as removal.
This was done without aid of instruction manual and by someone having major back surgery 4 months earlier. No idea how much this saved me but the price of the belt and time and effort involved made it woth my while I'm sure.