How to Replace a Drum Baffle in a Dryer
The Drum Baffles are an important component in your dryer, but do you know what exactly they are?
Every time you put clothing in the dryer, you interact with them, but perhaps you’ve never known their full name.
The sets of “fins” inside the drum of your dryer that are called “baffles” are typically three or four in number and are evenly spaced out.
During the tumbling process of the dryer, they assist with airflow and fluff up your garments.
They accomplish this by removing clothing off the dryer’s side and placing it in the airflow.
Without baffles, your clothing would remain clumped together in the dryer and wouldn’t dry completely.
You risk having your clothing snagged or caught by them if they get loosened or broken.
The baffles on a drum may occasionally break free or separate from it after prolonged use or drying of goods like shoes.
To avoid permanently harming your clothing or your drum, it’s crucial that you take care of that issue as soon as you can.
It’s time to inspect one of your baffles if you notice that it has gotten loose or is beginning to rattle.
The procedure for inspecting and repairing your baffles should be comparable, even though the dryer we’re using for our demonstration might not be the same model as yours. Before doing any repairs on your dryer, make sure to turn off the power to it.
If your dryer is gas-heated, you should also turn off the gas supply.
You can watch the video below to follow along while we do this repair.
To access the drum, remove parts.
To access the hinges, the dryer door must first be opened. Lift the door to remove it completely from your dryer by removing the screws holding the hinges to the dryer’s body.
Place the door away from your work area in a secure location.
The screws holding the front panels in place must then be removed. We can then access the mounting brackets for the main top once those are out of the way.
Once those are gone, we may lift the dryer’s top, giving us access to the drum’s exterior.
The Baffles: Examine, Remove, and Replace
Now that the main top has been raised, we may rotate the dryer drum such that the damaged baffle is located at the dryer’s “top.”
We can take out the screws keeping the baffle in place from the outside of the drum.
All you need to do to fix a baffle that has just gotten loose is tighten the screws. You will need to replace the baffle, though, if it is broken off completely or is otherwise damaged.
In our case, we found that the screw holes were stripped, making it impossible for us to tighten our baffle to the drum again.
In order to remove the baffle, support it within the dryer with one hand (to prevent it from dropping and potentially harming the drum), then remove the two screws from the outer drum. Now is the time to check the other dryer baffles for damage or to tighten them.
Use a larger washer when replacing if the holes on the drum have any damage to ensure they stay nice and tight.
Close up The Dryer
It’s time to put your dryer back together once you’ve examined, changed, and tightened up each of the baffles.
Lower the main top slowly, making sure it clicks into place.
The mounting brackets, front panels, and door hinges need all be replaced.
Keep an eye on any loose baffles to prevent the tearing of your clothing or damage to your dryer.
Be aware of the condition of your baffles. Aim to keep heavy, bulky goods like sneakers off the dryer’s baffles so they don’t fracture or break.