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Thermostats Vs Thermal Fuses

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Have you ever thought about how hot your dryer gets? Thermostats and thermal fuses are put in dryers for your safety and if you don 't maintain them, you could be putting yourself, your house, and your family at risk.

Your dryer uses of a combination of heat and airflow to dry your clothes. The heat generated in your dryer is produced by a heating element controlled by a series of thermostats. If any of your dryer 's thermostats are defective, the results can be disastrous.

Safety Warning: Before performing any tests or repairs on your dryer disconnect the power source to eliminate the risk of electric shock. You can do this by unplugging the dryer, removing the related fuse from the fuse box, or flipping the appropriate switch on the breaker panel. …show more content…

However, if the dryer isn 't working properly for most of the heat settings, it 's probably a problem with your vent rather than the thermostats.

The hi-limit thermostat protects your dryer from overheating. This thermostat is usually found on the heating element, housing, or cage assembly. If the airflow in the dryer becomes obstructed by a plugged or improperly installed vent, bad drum seals, or a defective blower, the high-limit thermostat cuts power to the heating element. This means there are other problems with your dryer.

In conjunction with thermostats, dryers use thermal fuses as a safety device. Some dryer models may have two thermal fuses to detect extreme heat. If the hi-limit thermostat fails to cut power to the heating element and the element gets too hot, the thermal fuse blows and cuts all power to the dryer. This could mean that a thermostat is defective or something is wrong with your venting duct, filters, seals, or blower. You cannot reset thermal fuses so once they blow they must be replaced. Get the proper replacement fuse for your model and replace the hi-limit thermostat as well. Never bypass a thermal

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