Arrgh, I’ve been without a dryer for several days already, waiting on a new switch to arrive from Amazon. It was supposed to arrive today, but I just got a notification that it was delayed and won’t be here for posssibly another few days. Meanwhile, laundry is piling up.
I assume there is a way to remove the switch and just ‘jump’ it for the time being? I’m not sure about the internal circuitry of the switch, though.
It’s this one.
Any ideas?
How many wires go to the switch? Are all 3 wires connected?
Were all three terminals connected? Zooming in on the picture shows labels of COM (common) on the post on the right, and NC (normally closed) and NO (normally open) on the posts on the left. Assuming it’s just making and breaking the main power circuit (which I’m assuming because of the ginormous current rating its got) then I would have expected leads on the COM and NO terminals and nothing on the NC terminal. Short those two leads together and you’ve got yourself a power circuit. Make sure you unplug the dryer before messing with this, as there looks to be 240VAC at this switch. Also make sure your splice is going to be safe wrt the voltage and current it’s going to be seeing. Also make sure there’s no chance of the splice shorting to the chassis, as that would be a BANG/FLASH/SPARK/tripped breaker.
This switch to me looks like it sends power from the right conductor to either the top or the bottom conductor, depending on whether the door is open or closed.
If you had a working switch and a multi-meter you could easily figure it out.
Probably all it does is when the door is open, the power goes to the light inside the dryer, and when the door is closed, it energizes some relays for the actual dryer machinery. (the motor, heater relays, etc)
Probably you can bypass it by simply putting a spade conductor through probably the wire on the right and to the wire on the left, probably the lower one.
Have the dryer unplugged when you do this. Plug it back in, and the light should not be on with the door open. If you got it the wrong way, the light will be on.
There is a third possibility that you get the wrong input wire (there is no reason the switch has to use a particular terminal on a particular side for a particular function) and you’ll need to try a couple more permutations for it to work.
Obviously you will be able to run the dryer with the door open after you do this.
Don’t get shocked. Also whatever you use to jump the connection, make sure it is a good conductive piece of metal - don’t start a fire. It is possible that all of the power for the dryer motor goes through this switch, given the current rating I suspect it might.
And keep in mind that electrical tape may not be an adequate insulator, it may melt, you might have to use a piece of heat shrink or something over your temporary repair.
Well shoot thanks for the replies but the terminal thing is moot! I hadn’t looked closely at the broken switch, it’s just 1 terminal in and 1 terminal out. Simple enough. I electrical taped the spade connectors together to test it and sure enough that worked.
Is there such a thing as a connector to put two females together?
Guess I need to find the right part number now.
It should be just a simple on/off permissive. There should be a circuit diagram glued inside the back of the metal housing for the dryer. You will need a double spade connector which is probably harder to find then the switch. Try Home Depot or an auto parts store. Or put the two wires on the “common” and “NC”.
Dryer circuit diagrams rend to be quite simple and any type of permissive is just in series with the power. Like the door switch, over temp, flame roll out, etc.
Dennis
A short piece of wire (the same gauge as the existing wires) with a male spade on each end will make an adequate jumper.
You could probably jury rig something, but…
https://www.digikey.com/products/en/connectors-interconnects/terminals-adapters/405?k=&pkeyword=&sv=0&pv166=676&pv167=704&sf=0&FV=ffe00195%2Cfff40016%2Cfff8043e&quantity=&ColumnSort=0&page=1&pageSize=25
What if I get two male terminals and crimp them on either end of a short piece of 12AWG wire, and use that as my jumper for now? Are the ones I’ll find a Lowe’s going to be rated sufficiently for that?
Actually I’m not sure that the entire ‘operating’ load runs through those wires. They are only 18 AWG.
Just a comment, but a dryer is not *required *to do laundry. Depends on the layout of your house, but you can usually put damp clothing on the backs of chairs, put it on hangers and hang it in the shower or underneath various surfaces, etc.
It’s majorly inconvenient and it generally takes about a day for clothes to dry this way but it works…
Also they sell drying racks at walmart.
You beat me to it while I was downstairs looking at it again
I take your point, but I’d estimate that we’re probably 4-6 loads behind at this point.
So just a thought, the part I’m replacing only has one ‘out’…but if the one I mistakenly ordered fits in the mounting bracket, there’s no reason I can’t use it and just attach the outgoing wire to the NC terminal, is there?
Right, except you have it backwards and want to use the COM and NO terminals. “Normally” in this case means while the switch is unactivated, i.e. plunger out, which is the state when the door is open. You want the switch to be open in that case, and closed when the plunger is depressed.
As best I can tell, the one you’re replacing is a NO SPST momentary contact switch - normally open single-pole single-throw switch that is closed only while the plunger is depressed. The one you’ve ordered is a SPDT momentary contact switch - single-pole double-throw. There is no functional difference between your old switch and the new one using the COM and NO terminals. EXCEPT!!! The NC terminal may be energized while the door is open. It needn’t be - if the unswitched lead is connected to the NO terminal and the switched lead is connected to the COM terminal, the NC terminal will never be energized. But you may not know which lead is which and get it the other way about. To be safe, ensure the NC terminal is protected from making contact with anything. An insulated female spade connector on that lug with no wire attached should do the trick.
Slightly off the subject, but not too far off:
I’m amazed how many people don’t realize that many dryer doors are reversible; the poor souls are jamming themselves and their wetwork into a tiny space between door and wall when the door can be flipped over to open against the wall. Want to make someone’s day? Flip that door. There are YouTube clips to show you how, of course.
Awesome, thanks. This is why I love to fix this type of thing myself. Get to learn new stuffs.
That, and you can likely get a working used dryer from craiglist for less than an appliance repair technician would charge.
Hate to admit it, but $18 for that switch, and I’da jumpered it permanent, like.
I got assigned that job last time I visited my friend with ALS. I was Hero For a Day.
And, No. I didn’t unplug it first. 
Still a l lot cheaper than an appliance repair service or even a used one!
I probably would just leave it jumped, but 14- and 9-y/o use it quite a bit.
I could have sworn I had an assortment of spade connectors but I can’t find them. So for now I “mated” the two female ends on top of each other, inside a split piece of sheathing from some 12/2 cable, wrapped it tight with tape, and tucked it safely away from the drum. Should get me through a few loads.
I’m picturing you chasing laundry flying out the dryer door.
Some dryers don’t need to be unplugged to reverse the door because the switch stays put. The catch needs relocating is all.
Hey, OP, did you try shooting some WD-40 into the old switch, then click the plunger up and down several times? It might work; weirder things have happened.
BTW folks, some refrigerator/freezer doors can be flipped, too. Beware your food defrosting; it takes a while to accomplish. Your wife will appreciate it. You will, too, when you blunder down to the ice-box at 4:00 AM for a drink and don’t run face-first into the door.