Shoutout to the old timer who showed me a trick with a multimeter

I was at a job in a basement in Akron, trying to figure out why a dryer wouldn't heat. I was about to order a whole new heating element, but this retired repairman who lived next door came over to see what was up. He had me check the thermal fuse with my multimeter set to the 200 ohm range, and sure enough, it was blown. Saved the customer a big bill and me a return trip. Anyone have a go-to brand for those fuses that seems to last longer?

3 comments

3 Comments

noah_smith1mo ago

Akron, Ohio? That basement humidity alone could be a real killer for those components. I'm surprised the old guy didn't mention checking the lint trap path first thing, because a clog there is what usually cooks that fuse.

faithgonzalez1mo ago

Yeah, that thing about basement humidity from noah_smith is so real. It reminds me of this one time I was helping my uncle in his crawlspace, and his old voltmeter just went totally nuts from the damp air. We had to let the thing sit in a bag of rice overnight like a phone, it was that bad. Makes you wonder how any electronics survive down there.

ruby_reed481mo ago

Honestly, how often do those thermal fuses actually go bad on their own? (I mean, it happens, but not that much.) Seems like there's usually a bigger problem, like a blocked vent making everything overheat. Fixing just the fuse might be a short-term win before it blows again next month. Gotta wonder if the old timer mentioned checking for proper airflow while he was over there.