MDE13PDAGW Maytag Dryer - Instructions

I happened to come across a repair story posted by Wayne From Minneapolis MN about how he reinstalled the tumbler, plugged the dryer in, and started it up but forgot the belt and realized that it was the blower wheel that was loose on the shaft. As soon as I read that, I said, "Yes! that's it!" So I ordered the blower wheel and a belt. I decided to replace the belt since I saw it was slightly frayed. After all, the dryer is almost 20 years old!

First, switched off the power to the dryer or disconnect it from the outlet. Took the front panel off by removing the two screws near the bottom of the dryer. Pulled the bottom of the panel out and the two clips on the top just disengaged easily. Be careful, there are two wires connected to this panel. Just rotated it to the left and let it rest vertically. If need be, the two wires can be removed easily.

Next, I removed the four screws to take out the front tumbler and the tumbler. Set them aside. Then I removed the belt. You might want to pay attention as to how the belt goes around the motor pulley and the idler pulley before removing the belt.

After nearly 20 years, I'm surprised that it wasn't full of lint and dust. Gave it a good vacuuming and clean up.

Next, I removed the blower cover, the retaining ring, the hub clip, and the blower wheel. Installed the new blower wheel, hub clip, and here's the challenging task without the proper tool - putting the retaining ring back on the shaft! It took me about 5 minutes to put it back on the shaft with a small flat-head screw driver and an awl. Reinstalled the blower cover.

Next, I put the new belt over the pulleys and loosely hung the belt on the back tumbler to hold it up. Then I put the tumbler back in and worked the belt over the tumbler. I let the belt sat in the groove of the tumbler first and then when the tumbler was in position, I worked the belt over the two pulleys in to the proper position. Then I moved the belt to strap over the top of the tumbler. At this point, I just rolled the tumbler with my hand when part of the belt was out of the groove and on top of the tumbler. The motion took care of getting the rest of the belt out of the groove and on top of the tumbler as it should be located. Reinstalled the front tumbler and then the front panel.

Powered it back up and started the dryer and viola! the rumbling noise was not to be heard. Just like it used to sound - a low humming noise. Thanks Partselect.com for the helpful repair stories and the speed in getting the parts to me.

Remove the two screws that hold the front cover. Remove front cover and disconneted wiring to door switch.Remove the cover ( lower right hand corner )back of the dryer to gain access to belt idler pulley/tensioner. Remove old belt and slide new belt on the tumbler.

First I unplugged the dryer. Then, I took off the front cover, then a piece that holds the tumbler on. I put the new belt on and took a few minutes to make sure the belt was placed correctly. Lastly I put everything back on and plugged it back in. She started right up.

The service from PartsSlect was outstanding.
Parts arrived next day and where OEM. I had the
dryer cleaned and operational in 1.5 Hr's
Keep up the great service.



Thank You

discovered it was a broken latch. Ordered the latch, only took 2 days to arrive and all I had to do was remove the broken latch and snap in the new one. I saved myself a service call. I'm very happy!!!!!!

I took out the old worn out part and replaced with the one I order.

Removed power and front panel, removed broken latch, pushed in new latch and replaced the front panel and power. Done

repair was pretty easy, actually took more time removing the door and the front housing that actually changing out the rollers

Received parts within two days of order. thank you

With the parts in hand, and after disconneting power and shutting off gas line, I again removed the door, front panel and front tumbler frame to expose the blower wheel. I discovered that the blower wheel was not damaged, but that compressed pieces of lint and other items where stuck to the wheel. I removed the pieces and vacuumed the the whole thing clean, tested it, and the sound stopped. Since I had the unit open, I replaced the front glides by drilling out the old rivets, removing the old glides and then riveting the new glides in place. A very simple procedure overall.

Make sure you keep track of where the different screws go and keep them inside something so you don't lose them. I also used my cell phone to photograph various areas and screws for later reference.

repairmen said to buy a new dryer! or replace the motor! DO NOT EVEN THINK ABOUT IT!

It was the spring washer that was rubbing against the metal that was causing the very loud noise. The fiber washer that is used on the shaft on both sides of the roller had worn though and allowed the metal-metal contact. The fiber washer wore out! The fiber washers are very cheap!!!! in comparison to a motor or new dryer!


The drum rollers that support the rotating drum eventually wear out the fiber washer.
UNPLUG THE DRYER, DISCONNECT THE VENT
Remove the two screws on the lower front of the dryer panel, probably after you have tilted the unit backward. Remove the front panel by tilting out the bottom as there are two clips at the top. AFTER DOCUMENTING the CONNECTIONS - Disconnect the wires from the switch which is mounted on the front panel.
Carefully put the dryer on its back - be careful of the dryer vent to avoid damaging your floor or dryer vent!
Carefully pull the dryer drum up out of the dryer - as this is done the belt which moves the drum will fall away from the drum. I suggest before you remove the drum to eyeball the way the belt is tensioned and wrapped around the motor driveshaft, guard and tensioner. This will be the most difficult part of reassembling the machine. Some visual understand, maybe even pictures will help you later to get it installed correctly back into proper position... and it is NOT intuitive!
Once the drum is removed, the rollers are accessible. Rotate each and find the squeaker!
I recommend you replace the fiber washer on both, even though only one may be squeaking at this point (the other will be close to being worn out as well!).
I will not document the replacement of these parts as the assembly seems well documented elsewhere. I suggest you remain using the spring washer if there - as the after factory replacements do not seem to provide spring washers.
I would also suggest replacing the dryer drum belt, it is worn, after this many years, and putting in a new one will keep the dryer running for many more years. KNOWLEDGE IS POWER - USE IT

Forget about the instructions about mounting the belt from the front. Remove the front and Slide the belt over the tumbler from the front per the instructions then open the rear access panel. It is a piece of cake once the belt is in the proper position. The rear view drawing helps a lot.

Found the answer online, ordered the blower from here. I used a pair of scissors in place of a snap ring pliers. Otherwise went smoothly.

I followed the instructions given by other DIYs. The rubber band for the belt was a great suggestion, however having no rubber band nearby, I used a zip-tie that worked out perfectly.

The only tool that I wished I had is a pair of split ring pliers. Not having a pair, used a pair of needle nose and a very small screw driver to provide the leverage to remove the washer.

After following the instructions that came with the belt on how to properly align it to the motor wheel and tension wheel, I plugged everything back in and started it up. Sounded like it was brand new.

I decided not to replace the rollers or drum guides as they looked to be in good shape.

I removed the two screws located on the front panel close to the bottom. I took the front panel off. Then I removed the four screws holding the framework in place in front of the tumbler. Then I removed two more screws, each located on the upper inside of the front of the top. Then I took the top off and set aside. Next, I took out the tumbler and put some oil on the rear rollers. I installed the belt around the pulley system located at the rear left side of the dryer. Then I stretched the belt around the tumbler, aligning it about 2 inches back from screws located towards the back of the tumbler. Afterward, I put everything back together.

Removed front cover screws at the bottom, using a stubby screwd river and a 2x4 under the front. Killed the circuit breaker at the panel, removed two wires on fron door. Removed 4 5/16 inch hex screws from drum front cover. Removed 6 1/4 inch hex screws from the cover over the fan blades. These are hard to reach in the back and left sides. I had to use my pliers and the nutdriver socket and my fingers to get them out. Using the pliers I removced the retainer clip from the old fan blades and use the tips of my long nosed pliers to remove the C-clip from the end of the motor shaft, ruining my old pair of pliers. ($15 for a new c-clip retainer removal tool.) removed the old fan baldes, pushed the new blades onto the motor shaft,using a bit of force to pop it on. Replaced the C-clip and the new retainer clip. Replaced 5 of the 1/4 inch hex screws. The screw closest to the drum would not line up, being about 1/4 inch off. Didn't seem to make any difference. Made sure the drum was seated on the rear rollers and replaced the drum front cover, making sure the air tube was seated in the front of the fan assembly. Replaced the 4 5/16 inch hex screws, routed the front door wires behind this piece and replaced the wires on the door switch. Pushed the front door up into the upper cover, lowered the bottom into place and repalaced the two front screws. Reomved the 2x4 and reset the circuit breaker at the panel. Tested the dryer, noting that the noise had stopped. Totat time about 40 minutes.