MDG21PDAGW Maytag Dryer - Instructions

On my maytag dryer I took the door off with two screws, took the front panel off with four srcews, lifted the top panel up a little bit and removed the belt from the "tub" and pulled the tub out. I could easily then access the idler arm and pulley wheel. Due to the age of the dryer, I also replaced the tub belt while it was apart. Reversed the process to put it back together, alot easier than I thought.

Warner

Following the instructions I pulled off the door and front panel. After rotating drum so the broken baffle was at the bottom I used a socket to remove the two screws on either end. I removed the broken baffle and inserted the new baffle in its place. Reinserted the screws, front panel, and door. I do strongly suggest having the manual handy to view the steps. It's available in PDF format.

Just unscrew the front of the dryer the Igniter kit is on the right side of dryer unscrew one bolt then replace with new Igniter kit very easy fix make sure to unplug dryer first that way you don't get a shock by touching exposed wires before putting front panel back on clean out any lint that may be in or around bottom of dryer.

Went smoothly. Took the opportunity to vacuum out entire cabinet. Also removed tumbler vanes inside dryer as coins had made their way into them. The only other suggestion I have is that I didn't notice cabinet screws were different lengths till I started reassembly. Might be smart to label and separate them

At first I thought I could just replace the pulley, but on closer inspection I found that the pulley had become seized on the shaft. I ended up removing the entire bracket (which I should have purchased also) and cutting the shaft off. I manufactured a new shaft from a bolt of the appropriate size and tack welded it to the bracket. It took a little more time than I anticipated. My advice to anyone doing this would be to spend a little extra money and buy the entire bracket and pulley. That would make this about a 15 minute job.

Disassembled dryer and replaced drum support roller and shaft. That took care of the noise but I still replaced the belt and idler pulley while I had it apart.

Removed door, then brackets holding top panel to side exposed after removing door. Lifted top panel to expose dryer chamber. Rotated chamber to access outside screws holding broken baffle. Removed and replaced baffle. Closed top lid, reattached to side. Replaced door. When reattaching top lid, do not tighten H/W just yet. You'll have to maneuver the hooks into place for the door to reattach. Then tighten when in place.

Followed the directions on the video. I recommend changing both tumbler wheels and idler pulley when you have unit apart as well as the drive belt. When I opened the dryer cabinet I immediately saw what my scraping noise was being caused by. A screw holding a baffle in the dryer tub had backed out and was scraping the cabinet wall on each rotated pass. Like I said, when you have the cabinet apart you might as well change parts that are going to fail. The repair was very easy and now I have many more years of service with my dryer. Had I opened the dryer before to see what parts I needed I would have seen the loose screw.

This should have been a simple repair, but turned out to be time consuming and moderately difficult. I hope these instructions will help anyone who encounters the problems described here.

After a period of the dryer not being used, the idler pulley wheel froze on the shaft of the idler pulley arm, so I needed to replace both parts. After mounting the new wheel and two washers on the new arm and securing with a retaining ring, I went to install this assembly by going in through the small access panel at the rear of the dryer. I slid the belt off the old idler pulley wheel and unhooked the spring from the idler pulley arm; the arm was mounted on a sleeve fastened to the motor bracket by one screw. All that should have been necessary was to back out that screw and replace the old idler pulley assembly with the new one.

That is where the trouble started. Backing out the screw with a socket driver, I found it would go a few turns, then start to bind. I tried turning it in and out to get the threads to engage, but it kept binding. Eventually I gave the screw a hard turn, and then it would turn freely but not move in or out.

Looking on the internet for advice, I found a video that asserts for another model Maytag dryer using the same type of mounting for the idler arm, that there is a design flaw. You can find the video by searching for “Maytag dryer idler pulley defect”. According to the video, the sheet metal screw used to mount the idler pulley arm can gradually loosen due to the pressure and vibration, and begins to “waggle” which eventually damages the threads. I believe this is what happened to my dryer. The video suggests replacing the sheet metal screw with a machine screw and nut for a more durable union.

So now I understood how the screw could be stripped just sitting in the dryer, but that didn’t help me get the screw out. Working through the rear access panel, I tried pulling on the screw head with several types of pliers, pushing the point from behind with a piece of wood while turning the head with a socket driver; eventually I was able to use a pry bar under the screw head and sleeve to apply pressure while turning the head, and with that method the screw backed out. With the screw removed, it could be seen that the threads in the middle part of the thread length were almost completely worn away.

The screw sleeve got somewhat deformed in this process so I ordered a new one, along with an exact replacement sheet metal screw, hoping the threads in the hole were still intact. With the old idler pulley arm now removed, I could transfer the old idler bracket spacer to the new idler pulley arm. When the ordered parts arrived and I tried to mount the idler pulley arm, the new screw would go in only a couple of turns before binding. Rather than risk winding up in the same situation by forcing the screw, I decided to use a machine screw and nut instead.

The original sheet metal screw was a #10. A machine screw the same size would not fit through the hole, and I could not fit my drill into the dryer cabinet in a position to enlarge the hole, so I used a #8 machine screw with a nut and lock washer. First I put some grease on the contact areas of the screw sleeve and idler bracket spacer, then inserted the machine screw through the hole and put the lock washer and nut on the other side of the mounting. The space around the nut is very limited, and most of my tools were too large to hold the nut while the screw was tightened. It was too small for a socket or adjustable wrench, and the clearance from the exhaust duct was too small for the handles of most tools. Eventually, I found a needle nose pliers with short handles that did the job. A thin open end wrench might also work. Then I reconnected the spring and belt to the idler pulley assembly, and closed the access panel. So far the dryer works, but if the #8 screw turns out to be not strong enough, I could get an extension for my drill and enlarge the hole to fit a #10 machine screw and nut.

Looking back on the job, the most difficult part of this repair was removing the damaged screw. This and several other steps might have been a lot easier if I had removed the motor bracket (where the idler pulley arm is mounted) from the dryer and worked outside the cabinet. Part Select has an excellent video “Replacing the Drive Motor” that shows how to do this. It would be a lot of disassembly work, but for someone with good assembly skills could be easier in the long run.

Hopefully most folks out there who replace the idler pulley arm on a dryer will find an easier situation than I did. But for any who have to deal with a stripped mounting screw, I hope this summary will help you resolve it.

This is the dryer of a 28 year old Maytag laundry pair. I had replaced the glide kit 8-10 years before. Did them again because they were worn in half again but this time I added the 2 roller kits and the belt, really just guessing. I was surprised how full of dust and lint the inside was, especially the blower fan blades. I ordered the screw because the belt idler pulley assembly was very wobbly and I hoped that was the screw anchoring it to the motor housing was the problem but it wasn't. Turns out the threaded hole in the housing was stripped, due I guess to years of vibration. It was too tight to get a tap and dye in there so I drilled the hole out and replaced the screw with a bolt and nut and lock washer. Before drilling it out I tried a few strands of wire and JB Weld, like the trick with stripped wood holes where you break off toothpicks in the hole and fill with wood glue. But that stripped out too so I drilled and used the bolt. Turned out I didn't need that $7 screw. Probably should have known comparing it to the old one which looked the same after I cleaned it. Anyway, it sounds fine again.

Replaced damaged parts and recommended parts normally causing the problem. Dryer is working again like new. I expended $112 rather than $600 for a new equipment. Good deal!

I had replaced belt, but the noise continued. Ordered new rollers and washer. Removed the front panel by tipping the dryer back against the wall and removing two screws at the bottom of the panel. Tipping the dryer makes it easy to remove the front panel. Removed the front drum support by removing four (4) screws. I was then able to just move the drum enough to have access to the rollers. Didn't even have to remove the belt. Replaced the rollers. Needed special pliers to remove and replace the retaining rings. Put the drum back into position and mounted the front drum support. Tightened four screws and then put the front panel back on. Plugged it in and tested it. Problem solved. Took about 35 minutes. Thanks

i removed the 2 screws holding the door hindges on. then i removed the 2 adjasent screws to remove the front door panel. i rotated the drum to aceses the screws holding the baffle and installed the baffle .

My Maytag gas dryer model MDG7600AWW is about 12 years old. Everything else works fine except it takes 4-5 drying cycles instead of 1 to completely dry my clothes properly. The flat igniter was simply cracked but not broken so it only worked some times. My gas dryer igniter and the 2 ignition coils work hand in hand so I replaced all 3 parts. The ignition coils provide a solid and consistent power supply to the igniter for proper burner tube function. Disconnect power cord from wall outlet. Shut off gas supply by turning the wall gas valve off. Remove 2 small philips screws to detach front panel door from dryer frame. Remove 2 additional philips screws on left front side panel inner door frame. Gently pull front dryer panel off beginning at top and put it aside. Igniter and the 2 ignition coils are plainly visible and easily accessible at bottom right corner of dryer. Igniter is attached to the burner tube and facing into the heater housing assembly. The 2 ignition coils are attached just above the gas valve on the rear of the burner tube. The ignition coils are simply attached to the rear of the heater tube with one bracket using 2 small philips screws. First, disconnect igniter plug wire harness. Next, I recommend using a small open end applicable size wrench (5/16 perhaps) to remove attaching igniter screw. A small 1/4 ratchet with applicable socket size may also be used. Handle the igniter only from the white ceramic part when installing. You don't have to completely remove the igniter screw from the burner tube. The igniter has a white ceramic horse shoe shape slot in which the attaching screw goes through for tightening to the burner tube. Just unscrew generously for removal and replacement of the igniter. Do NOT over tighten igniter screw as the white ceramic plate may break from over torqing. Reconnect igniter wire plug harness. The igniter part I used was PartSelect Number PS373025. Next, remove the ignition coil bracket by unscrewing the 2 small philips screws from rear of the heater tube frame. Remove only 1 ignition coil at a time by removing the wire plug harness and simply lifting upward. One coil will have 2 prongs while the other has 3 prongs so you can't go wrong when reconnecting the wire plug harnesses. I used the PartSelect 'M' Series New Style Coil Kit (2 coils included)which was PartSelect Number PS334310. Replace the front dryer panel back. Attach the front door to the panel and dryer frame using the 2 philips screws. Attach the 2 left side inner door front panel philips screws to dryer frame. Turn on the wall gas valve. Reconnect power cord to wall outlet.

Graet