Hi, I have an ancient Frigidaire dryer that was in the house we bought 3 yrs ago. The wiring diag. on the back of the front bottom panel says Westinghouse Electric Model DGJ400.

When you turn it on it sometimes starts just fine. Other times, it will start to squeak like a pulley is slipping. When you open the door, and hold in the door switch, the drum doesn't spin. I guess the felt thing is bad - any other ideas - I'm not sure if I have enough info to get the right part numbers. Can you tell how old the dryer is? It has a pilot light and I Oil Co. employee told me they switched using those a long time ago.

Thanks in advance for your help.

-David.

Hi David,

I would guess 20 yrs plus. I couldn't look it up, but if it's a Westinghouse, it probably uses the flat style belt (No grooves). The idler pulley is located on the motor support (all metal) and the rear bearing (a metal ball that sits in a white plastic support), are all still available I think. It's one of those causing your problem.

Rick

__________________
SERVICE TECHNICIAN: BEEHIVE APPLIANCE....... 1985-1988
SERVICE TECHNICIAN: HANSEN REFRIGERATION. 1988-1998
OWNER/SERV TECH: RICK'S APPLIANCE REPAIR...1998-2001
SERVICE MANAGER:Used Appliance store..... 2004-PRESENT
ONLINE SERV TECH: ApplianceBlog.com ApplianceJunk.com
LINCOLN TECHNICAL INSTITUTE:..................... 1977-1979
CERTIFIED TYPE 1; TYPE 2.....REFRIGERATION SERVICE E.S.

One thing I forgot to mention yesterday is that once you have the door open and the switch pushed in, you can reach in and force the drum to spin it will then eventually catch and start to spin on its own. You can then let go of the switch and close the door quickly (to keep clothes from falling out). The dryer will spin fine after that. This behaviour makes me guess the felt thing on the front may be to blame since the drum is apparently "stuck" at a certain point.

BTW I found the serial number and the model number :
ser. J121946
mod. DGJ400W1

Thanks, David.

Hi David,

I tried that model number and still no luck. I doubt it's the felt seal. I think the idler pully is worn out and there's not enough tension on the belt or the belt is too streched out. That was a problem with the flat style belts. Look at your belt and see if it's smooth on both sides(no grooves).

Rick

__________________
SERVICE TECHNICIAN: BEEHIVE APPLIANCE....... 1985-1988
SERVICE TECHNICIAN: HANSEN REFRIGERATION. 1988-1998
OWNER/SERV TECH: RICK'S APPLIANCE REPAIR...1998-2001
SERVICE MANAGER:Used Appliance store..... 2004-PRESENT
ONLINE SERV TECH: ApplianceBlog.com ApplianceJunk.com
LINCOLN TECHNICAL INSTITUTE:..................... 1977-1979
CERTIFIED TYPE 1; TYPE 2.....REFRIGERATION SERVICE E.S.

Rick,

The dryer now barely spins without a load. I took it apart and verified that it has a flat belt. It was worn down narrower and there were lots of "filings" on the bottom of the dryer at the back. The belt had come off the idler pulley, I put it back on and re-assembled the dryer. (I could have skipped the dis-assembly to see the pulley and belt) Then restarted the dryer. The belt slipped right off the wide flat pulley. The spring seems fine. If I get a new belt will that probably fix the problem? Or is the belt slipping off because the pulley is bad? (it doesn't seem like it).

How do I order a belt if the dryer is so old you don't have it in your system? Should I cut it off and take it to an appliance supply store to verify the length? (and come back to make a donation to Appliance Blog )

Thanks in advance,

David.

It could be a bad pully or rear bearing or even front rollers. I wouldn't cut off the belt. Take it appart and visualy inspect everything. If you cut the belt and it turns out to be the idler pully, the belt might no longer be availble.

__________________
SERVICE TECHNICIAN: BEEHIVE APPLIANCE....... 1985-1988
SERVICE TECHNICIAN: HANSEN REFRIGERATION. 1988-1998
OWNER/SERV TECH: RICK'S APPLIANCE REPAIR...1998-2001
SERVICE MANAGER:Used Appliance store..... 2004-PRESENT
ONLINE SERV TECH: ApplianceBlog.com ApplianceJunk.com
LINCOLN TECHNICAL INSTITUTE:..................... 1977-1979
CERTIFIED TYPE 1; TYPE 2.....REFRIGERATION SERVICE E.S.

I have taken it apart, the other parts seem ok. How can I get a belt?

is Electrolux the owner now of Westinghouse? are there new model numbers?

thx

Here is what I've found so far. I called my parts house,they said the belt is still available but the idler pully is not however a later version or model is and will work. They said they found the information in a Gemline catalog.

__________________
SERVICE TECHNICIAN: BEEHIVE APPLIANCE....... 1985-1988
SERVICE TECHNICIAN: HANSEN REFRIGERATION. 1988-1998
OWNER/SERV TECH: RICK'S APPLIANCE REPAIR...1998-2001
SERVICE MANAGER:Used Appliance store..... 2004-PRESENT
ONLINE SERV TECH: ApplianceBlog.com ApplianceJunk.com
LINCOLN TECHNICAL INSTITUTE:..................... 1977-1979
CERTIFIED TYPE 1; TYPE 2.....REFRIGERATION SERVICE E.S.

Rick,

I found a warehouse with the belt and it's being shipped overnight. I had laundry plus spousal anxiety piling up, and needed to act; hopefully it's just the belt causing the trouble. The folks on the phone said they had to go to a card catalog to find the parts! Thanks for your help I will certainly look to donating for the great service you all provide.

Regards,

David.

Rick,

I got the belt and installed it to find that the belt rides only partly on the idler pulley. Half of it is slipping off. I attached a file that shows the old belt slipping off. Maybe there is something wrong with idler pulley?

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