Halo of Heat Element

The heating element is one of the few weak spots in the Classic Maytag dryer design. The heater element and its reflector are located behind the front panel of the cabinet and around the door. Metal objects such bracelets, necklaces and pins can drop down in the space between rotating drum and the front of the cabinet. If they lodge between the heater coil and the grounded reflector, sparks will fly and sometimes the coil is burned open. Other times the coil opens up due to old age, but in all cases, will eventually have to be replaced.

It is not obvious how to get to the heater coil to replace it. The trick is to remove the entire cabinet in one piece and then the coil becomes more accessible.

Maytag Replacement Part Number: 3-11946.  You can order it from our website by clicking here.  Order 311946

Heater Coil Replacement Procedure

1. Unplug and disconnect the dryer and move it to an area where you have some room to work on it.
2. Remove the back panel.
3. Tag the location and color of the wires leading down to the thermostat on the blower housing and the motor down in the lower left corner. Remove the wires.
4. Remove the three screws down each side of the cabinet. The cabinet is now free of the frame and can be lifted off and rested face down on a rug or carpet scrap.
5. Locate the heater coil and verify that it is burned in two - usually on the bottom.
6. The standoff insulators are fragile!! Carefully remove the old coil from its terminal studs and the little round insulators.
7. String the new coil in from one terminal stud and thread it through the round insulators until you get it to the other terminal stud. Replace or tighten the terminal stud nuts. This concludes the coil replacement.
8. Position the cabinet back over the dryer frame. It's easiest to replace the center screw first and then the other two.
9. Replace the thermostat and motor wires. Replace the back panel and test for proper operation.