MDE8400AYW Maytag Dryer - Instructions

My 20 year old reliable Maytag 512 lgp dryer was not heating anymore. At first the heating element would glow red but not hot enough to ignite the gas. I replaced the element and it worked for a few loads but then stopped reigniting after the first cycle.

After some research and diagnosis (checking connections, amperage flow on each electriical part, etc.) I determined that the two coils were faulty. I ordered parts and replaced them (easy to do) and it worked again, for another few loads. Then nothing worked. The coil did not get hot and I did not hear the clicking sound that initiates current flow to the ignitor through the coils.

I checked the coils and ignitor again, they were fine. Frustrated, I called in a repairman to diagnose the problem. $55 and 15 min later he narrowed it down to the High Limit Thermostat. To demonstrate he bypassed the thermostat by directly connecting the two leads together and the ignitor fired right up.

His price to replace the thermostat? $45 part plus $130 labor. I bought the thermostat online for less than half his parts cost and the labor took me 5 minutes. Simply unscrew the small screws with a small socket set or nutdriver and replace the thermostat. Just two connectors, real simple.

All in all it was very easy to replace the parts, just tricky to diagnose unless you are good with electrical work.

I just inserted the door catch, which by the way fit in perfectly. Thanks. Took 5 seconds to repair.

We tried replacing the door switch first, still didn't start. Next we tried the thermal fuse and it turned on and has worked ever since.

After changing all the rollers in the dryer (which didn't fix the problem) I decided to take apart the blower. Sure enough, that was the problem. As the dryer heated up, the damaged wheel would swell and start rubbing the housing. I replaced both and fixed the problem. The repair was pretty easy, since I had taken the dryer apart several times replacing the rollers.

Opened front panel .Tested both coils on gas valve.
Found no continuity on one of the coils. Replaced coil,
dryer works like new.

popped out old female clasp on dryer itself with screwdriver, undid 2 screws on dryer door and door handle with phillips screwdriver, popped in new male clasp part, put door knob back on and put the two screws back in door and it was all set to go. Less than 15 minutes to do. Better than new and wife is happy. No more duct tape holding door closed now.

I tried a new dryer timer first upon the recommendation of a local appliance place. They stated that since the dryer was not working in either timed dry or Intellisense dry modes, more thank likely, it was the timer. That did not fix the problem so I tried the sensor assembly next. Simply removed the housing by removing the three screws, snapped out the old one, snapped in the new one and everything works.

Well, I had to find out just how the dryer came apart. Most of the time, the back comes off but with this particular Maytag, it is the front that has to be removed. Once the four screws from either side are removed, the front pops off and the canister that holds the heating element is right there on the bottom. Cleaning away years of lint was fun but the heating canister was removed quickly using two screws and removing four wires that attached to the unit. Once the screws were removed (top back and bottom front) and the wires removed, the replacement unit slid right in without any problems. The regulator on the old unit had to be transferred to the new unit before installation. I closed up the front, put the four screws back in and snapped the front closed and the dryer worked perfectly.

Took out two front Panel screws and removed the panel. Removed Gas solenoid coil holding bracket by removing two phillips head screws. Disconnected the coil leads. and removed the coils. Connected the new coils to the leads and set in place. Replaced the holding bracket and the two screws. Replaced the front cover and the two front cover screws. Piece of Cake!

pulled the motor and replaced it and not having any issues since.

Switch can be removed from outside of dryer and your video described the repair as having to work from inside dryer. But since wires were still attached to old switch, it could be popped out and wires switched. Since there were three wires on new switch to allow it to turn on and off a circuit, it was useful to check the resistance of the switch compressed or released to be certain I was attaching the two wires to the right two poles of the new switch. But that all required only a couple of minutes. Thank you.

replaced timer and pull knob. easy and work great.

Unscrewed 4 screws,pulled off front of machine.Unscrewed 2 screws holding coils on,unplugged coils,installed new coils,plugged in coils,reinstalled 2 screws for hold down brace.Reinstalled front cover,plugged dryer into outlet(remember to unplugged dryer before working on it).started up,instant heat,works great.thanks Partselect for helping me out!!!

After replaceing several parts including the thermostats the last part I replaced the coils were the defective part. I originally metered out the themostats and they appeared to be okay but since this was my first time I thought I might have been mistaken. It turns out the last part I thought it could be was the part that was defective. I will say that it is very simple to replace any of the parts involved. The hardest part was trying to open the dryer itself. But after having to do it 3 times, I'm now a pro. I also replaced the drum belt and since I had it open I also replaced the belf idler with a newer modified idler rolller.

Putting the belt back on is easy, but it helps to view the video or a picture to understand how the belt goes around it.

I removed the two screws holding the access panel, and removed the access panel. Then removed the lower air duct. I then checked the burner, The solenoid was not opeing the valve for the gas. I order the coils, in two day I had the coils and installed them. The dryer is working great.