Dryer Not Heating

If your dryer tumbles but the clothes come out just as wet and the air inside is cold, a part in the heat circuit has failed. That’s a different problem from a dryer that heats but takes forever. If yours is warm but slow, see Dryer Takes Forever.

First, gas or electric?

Electric dryers need both legs of a 240-volt circuit. If one breaker in the pair trips, the drum can still turn with no heat. Check that both breakers are on before anything else.

Gas dryers need gas at the valve. Make sure the shutoff behind the dryer is fully open, especially if someone recently moved the dryer or worked on the water heater.

Most common causes, electric

• Thermal fuse blown. It’s a one-time safety part. It blows when the dryer overheats, usually because of a blocked vent. We replace it and find out why it blew.
• Heating element open. The coil breaks and the dryer goes cold.
• High-limit or cycling thermostat failed.
• Control board or relay not sending power to the element. This is less common.

Most common causes, gas

• Igniter cracked or weak. It glows, but not hot enough, so the gas never opens.
• Gas valve coils. The igniter glows, the flame lights for a few seconds and then goes out, or it never lights.
• Flame sensor failed.
• Thermal fuse, the same as on electric dryers.

What’s safe to check yourself

• Both breakers (electric) or the gas shutoff (gas)
• That you’re not on an air-dry or wrinkle-guard setting
• The lint screen. A packed screen can trip the thermal fuse.

Leave the rest to a technician: testing 240-volt terminals, the igniter or gas valve coils, or bypassing a thermostat. If you smell gas, turn the dryer off, open a window, and call PG&E or your gas utility.

What we do

We test the heat circuit part by part, with the right check for electric or gas, so we replace what actually failed. Then we check the vent airflow. If the fuse blew because the vent is blocked, a new fuse will just blow again.

Call (415) 585-5900, Monday to Friday, 8 to 5, or book online. The service call is $219, and it’s free if you go ahead with the repair. We’re licensed & insured, California BEAR #46247.

Brand pages for common laundry badges: Whirlpool, Maytag, GE, Samsung, LG, and Bosch.

San Francisco scheduling: San Francisco dryer repair.

Related repair pages: Speed Queen appliance repair