Idler Arm Screw Sleeve

Pulled out dryer out from wall and gained access to back of dryer. removed small panel and there was part I replaced. released belt tension noting rout of belt. replaced parts and installed belt. before replacing small panel tried dryer. noise was still there. found fan on motor was problem. got fan from local parts store since they had i ... Read more t in stock. it was easy to replace also. removed front panel and front support. fan was right there. a small e clip and squeeze clamp held it in place. Reassembled and noise was gone. This seems to be a problem with this dryer. I suggest checking it before anything else when you have a noise and there seems to be no problem with dryer operation..

Once the dryer was apart, it was fairly easy to see the problem was the idler pulley wheel. The pulley wheel itself is plastic with a metal sleeve that rides on the metal shaft of the idler arm. The metal sleeve of the pulley seized on the metal shaft, and the plastic of the pulley separated and tore itself apart. I actually watched the v ... Read more ideo instructions on replacing the belt for my specific model to see how the dryer came apart. Once apart I watched the video for replacing the idler pulley. Repair was a breeze after watching the instructions. I ordered everything new that was involved in the idler pulley, and was very glad I did. I didn't realize that the metal sleeve was fused onto the shaft at first, but ordered a new idler arm anyway. I also ordered a new idler spring. Once I received the parts, I realized that the old idler arm would not have worked, and the old spring had no where near the tension the new one had. I made sure to lightly grease the idler arm shaft so the pulley could revolve on it without trouble. I used a flashlight to see the idler arm screw when removing and replacing the idler arm. The dryer was assembled and runs smooth and quiet now. Watch the videos, I don't believe it would have been so easy to disassemble, diagnose, and repair the problem without watching the videos first.

The repair was done by following the excellent video provided by this site. The video showed exactly how to do the replacement and gave tips to make it easier. All of the parts may not have been needed in my situation, but since I was taking the dryer apart, it made sense to spend a few extra dollars and replace all of the moving parts.