YE216KA Magic Chef Dryer - Instructions

Before ordering the part, I found this website by linking from a video on YouTube where several people showed how they did it. Simply two screws in the lint removel chute and pushed in the two clips holding the top and two inside screws holding the front panel. Held the machine tilted back onto a table and placed two 4" wooden cubes underneath it so it wouldn't come forward and one more 4" cube under the drum. After cleaning out the inside, I slipped the new belt around the drum (ribbed side down) and taped it in place with a couple of pieces of painter's tape temporarily. Hooked the idler wheel guide and looped the belt in it. Tested movement by spinning it by hand to check alignment and removed tape. Reassembled the front, side and top panels accordingly and tested it. Voila! This was my first attempt and I saved myself some bucks. The last repair was done by Se•rs and their service person took my credit card number for the invoice and promptly went out and charged over $3,000 on it. He was eventually caught. Great incentive to do yourself, huh?

- Unplug the electric dryer.
- Manually opened the top of the dryer.
- Unclipped the wire assembly attached to the front panel of the dryer.
- Removed two screws holding the front panel of the dryer, and remove front panel for access.
- Very Important!! Note how the old dryer is currently installed before proceeding.
- Rotated the dryer drum while working the dryer belt toward the rear of the dryer.
- Removed the dryer drum.
- Removed the old dryer belt.
- Put the new dryer belt around the dryer drum and put the dryer drum back onto the drum rollers and into the rear guides.
- Here's the hard part, lay on floor and reach into the pulley area and motor - wrap new dryer belt around these belt rollers as "noted" in the fifth step.
- Rotate dryer drum by hand to ensure the new dryer belt is exactly installed as the old dryer belt.
- Reinstall front panel.
- Reclip wire assembly onto the front panel.
- Manually close the top of the dryer.
- Plug in the electric dryer.

Step 1. Read all the comments about how to do this job in this forum. (i found them very useful)

Step 2. Read the directions that come with the dryer (they helped a lot)

Step 3. Don't forget to disconnect the power cord before reattaching the door switch wires (oucH! ) or doing anything with your dryer.

Removed the two screws holding in the Filter and removed the filter.

Removed the two screws holding the front onto the dryer.

Put the belt over the drum and proped the drum up.

Reseated the tension spring and pully in the proper slot. (On my machine it is the position closest to the motor).

Reassembled the dryer in the reverse order.

-Took top of by prying with screwdriver.
-2 screws and door wire to take off front panel.
-proped drum with 4X4 piece of wood.
-looped belt around drum where the mark for the old belt was.
-looped belt through tensioner and pulled with the screwdriver over the motors drive shaft.
-manually spun drum to make sure everything was right.
-put panels back on and was done.

You cant go wrong with the included directions and belt diagram. this is the first repair I've done of any kind that went flawless.

First, I unplugged the dryer. I pulled up the lint filter, then unscrewed the two screws there. Then pulled up the top panel. I had a helper hold it up since it couldn't lean against the wall. Then I had to take the front panel off the dryer. The idiots at Kenmore used screws, not pins, so I needed to use a socket wrench to get those two out of the top corners. Then I lifted it up and off. I removed the broken belt. I put in the new one. I replaced the pulley, which had fallen without the tension of the belt holding it in place. It was pretty easy to figure out how it went, but I consulted the online community for a diagram. I threaded the belt in place, replaced the panels, and viola! It worked. Easy.

Ordered belt, received it two days later. It was a perfect fit.
The top of my dryer pops up from the front where 2 screws will allow the front to drop to the ground. Lift the drum slightly to get the belt on. Had to wrestle with the idler arm for about five minutes, but I won.

First let me say that the video provided was wonderful, I followed the instructions on the video, & it worked great, no problems at all. Saved me from paying huge costs from a repairman.

Needed a belt. Only snag was for me was re-installing front panel (door)

Tools and materials:

#2 Philips head screw driver
Standard flat-tip screw driver
1/4" nut driver or ratchet
1/4" drive sockets: 1/4, 5/16
Something 3-4 inches thick to wedge under drum for support (i.e. scrap 4x4, soap bottle, books)

Replacement Procedures:

1. Unplug dryer from wall outlet
2. Pull out lint screen
3. Remove 2 Philips screws attaching lint trap to dryer top
4. Lift hinged dryer top panel near front and lean it back on wall. You may need to pry between side panels and top with flat-tip screw driver to get it started.
5. Disconnect plug from dryer door switch near front
6. Remove two 1/4" and two 5/16" hex screws inside front panel near top.
7. Open dryer door and lift front panel straight up to disengage tabs from slots near bottom of front panel.
8. While supporting drum with one hand, lift front panel and set aside with other hand.
9. Slip replacement belt around drum with ribs facing drum and position it where old belt left its mark.
10. Wedge something under drum to support it while installing the belt.
11. Re-position tensioner in two slots in bottom panel just in front of motor. On my model the bend in the spring will be on the right side with the idler pulley to the left, when viewed from the front.
12. Ensuring the belt isn't twisted, thread a small loop of it through the opening in the tensioner just below the pulley.
13. With the left hand, push against the tensioner spring while working the loop over the drive pulley.
14. While supporting drum with one hand, remove whatever you put under the drum to support it.
15. Replace front panel by aligning the slots with the tabs near the bottom and lowering it into place.
16. Carefully slip the drum opening over the flange on the front panel and replace hex screws.
17. Slowly roll the drum in one direction or the other until the belt aligns and centers itself.
18. Re-connect the plug for the dryer door switch.
19. Lower the dryer top and press until it snaps back into place.
20. Replace philips screws to secure lint trap and replace lint screen.
21. Plug dryer back into wall outlet, close door, set to dry, and press start.

I watch the video and played it again while I was working.
I am a 54 year young woman and I did it.

The repair was much easier than anticipated. Next time I could do it in less than 30 minuites.

Replaced the axel that holds the rollers as well as the rollers. Just rotate the left one 90 degrees and it slides out.

Probably what took the most time was puting the belt back on. It is old so I was being careful. It took a couple of trys to keep it on the rollers as I moved the drum into position. So easy I am convinced to buy another Maytag.

Wife was impressed so that's worth something!

I yanked up the front of the lid, the broken belt laid across the drum like a dead snake. Pulled that out, then removed the two screws holding the front. Using the pliers, pulled off the two wires snapped to the door switch.
Lifted out the front panel, and lifted the drum, (added a bit of a yank to get it out of the two rollers in the back).
Vacuumed out the dust and dead bugs, then tried to figure out how to thread the belt on the idler and motor. (This was the hardest part) the picture that shows the parts is an exploded view, and does not show the way that it goes together. After about half an hour, I asked for help, and we found a slight rubbing on the idler and figured out that the tensioning spring pulls on the lower part of the idler arm, not the top. Putting the belt on, and getting the spring into the hole in the base was tricky, but not hard. Reassembly was straightforward, and took less than 5 minutes. (put in the drum with the belt on it, hook the belt on the motor and idler, push the rear of the drum into the rollers, then put on the front panel, re-attach the door switch, and the two screws holding the front, and close the lid).

The website lists 2 wheels for this model, no info on the flat spot in the shaft. I ordered the less expensive wheel but it did not fit the shaft, got a refund, ordered the more expensive one, it fit with just a little tapping with a light hammer.

I googled 'replace dryer belt' and found instructions on the 'Virtual Repair Man' web site. After reading the instructions through twice I began.

First I removed lent filter and removed the two screws that hold the lent body in place. I rotated the top panel up and back and leaned it on the wall; proped up the dryer drum with some scrap wood pieces; rotated the front panel of the machine out enough to slip the new belt, groves down, around the drum; reinstalled the idler pulley under the drum; raised the drum slightly and reattached the front panel. Reattached the top panel and replaced the filter. Did a test run and worked good.

I got a price from Sears for the part and they were asking $45 just for the belt. I saved enough in parts and labor to take my wife out for a real nice dinner. thanks