WT945 Dryer doesn't dry

I have a WT945 washer/dryer that washes excellently. As we don't need to use the dryer often, every winter we need the repairman to come out and fix that the dryer fails to actually dry. Ultimately the machine will get an error (The Washing LED starts flashing) and when you stop the machine, the clothes are still wet and the unit is not warm/hot. The last time the repairman came out, he told me that it was the fan at the top of the unit that had siezed and that if I removed the top of the machine and lubricated the siezed fan next time all would be good. Since winter has come around again (for us), I tested the dryer and found it to fail (as usual). I then turned off the machine, took his advice and lubricated the siezed fan. The fan works moves freely, but the dryer still does not work. Does anyone know what can be done to fix what appears to be a very simple problem? Any information on what the error actually represents would be appreciated!

David Gee Jun 30, 2007

Thanks for all the assistance. My dryer is now working as well. I would have posted solved sooner but it has taken me some time to get the opportunity to wrestle it away from the family wash loads for testing.

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Getting the Lid Off -White "Buttons" on the sides 3 inches from the front. With a fingernail or bit of plastic pull the white plastic buttons off. Under these plastic covers are the screws you need to take the lid off.

Posted on Aug 25, 2013

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Hi, I had the same problem! Your solution - pushing the small button in the black sensor, solved it! 2 minutes work!

Posted on Jan 02, 2010

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Our fan was also stiff to turn because the condenser was blocked with washing powder etc - we removed the hot air extractor channel (the grey metal box on top of the drum), by removing the two 13mm bolts at the front and the two 10mm bolts at the rear. With this moved a little to the side we poured a mug of boiling water into the metal body of the condensor. The fan then ran freely and with the thermal cut out switch depressed, the hot air extractor channel replaced - everything worked fine again :-)

Posted on Jul 23, 2009

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Thanks a million! I have had exactly same problem since last two years. But your fix saved me money. Thanks for sharing this tip. You are a star!

Posted on Jun 12, 2009

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We had same problem and your solution fixed it for us, saving us £100 call out fee. Many thanks.

Posted on Nov 08, 2008

Anonymous

Thanks for the advice - I've just saved myself a fortune in callout costs for a 2 minute job.

Posted on Nov 21, 2007

Anonymous

I had exactly the same problem yesterday and fixed it thanks to the tip above. The $64,000 question is: where is the thermostat/thermal cutout which has tripped due to the lack of airflow and overheating caused when the fan was seized? Answer: there is a large rectangular metal casing right in the centre of the machine lying on top of the outer drum - I am guessing that this is the dryer's heater unit. This has several electrical sensors/terminals on its right hand edge all connected to the wiring loom. About half way along there is a black plastic sensor unit about an inch in diameter, with two wires connected to it. At the centre of this sensor there is a small rectangular button to reset the 'tripout' mechanism. Push this back in with a small finger or tool. Mine 'clicked' but did not actually stay in - don't worry, it's done the job. Now try a test drying (eg 20 minutes timed). Hopefully the fan will spin and the heat will arrive quickly - easy to test as the top of the rectangular casing gets very hot after a few minutes (presumably normal), so beware oif burns! Thanks to toneavenger for giving me the confidence to take the top off and save £99 callout, and to Miele designers for fitting high quality accessible components that enabled an easy fix. Good luck! Bill W

Posted on Jun 28, 2007

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Check that the lack of air flow hasn't tripped out the thermostats. bypassing them will confirm the element hasnt blown out. but do not keep them bypassed as a "repair"

Posted on Jun 06, 2007

Anonymous Jun 06, 2007

and when repaired -try to use the drier at least once a week for 10 minutes or so to stop the fan seizing up again!!!

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Why does WT945 have a flashing light at the end of a drying cycle?

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May 29, 2014 • Miele WT945 Front Load Washer / Dryer

tip

An excellent instruction set. I've been doing this lot for 4 years now. It is...

STAGE 3: THE ‘PROPER’ FIX (4 hours)

Unfortunately, if you want to go further the next stage of disassembly is horribly inaccessible. The Miele man rated it as probably the most difficult job on the machine, but said it was feasible and that he would personally undertake it if it was his machine rather than move to Stage 4. The challenge is to get the fan box itself off, which extends deep down into the rear of the machine where it eventually plugs into the back of the drum. And the back panel of the machine does not come off or swing out like the front does – the back and the sides are one piece of sheet metal. So you’re stuck with manipulating the thing at arm’s length in a very narrow gap, and to add to the fun there are some very sharp edges down there.

I've now personally done this job - it's a two-person task, took us around 4 hours but is feasible.

So (omitting some of the obvious smaller tasks like disconnecting wires and cable ties as needed), in addition to Stage 2 disassembly:

- undo a further Torx bolt holding the fan box to the drum, just to the left of the outlet hole you worked on in Stage 2, and loosen another bolt near the motor which holds a slot in the fan box casing to the drum

- remove the fan motor (held by two bolts, one low and invisible on its mounting bracket)

- remove the fan box's air inlet from the hole in the back of the drum that it slots into. This is right at the bottom of the fan box and thus very inaccessible. Eventually I found a long piece of sturdy wood (around 4 x 1cm section) could be poked down to this point (between the rear of the drum and the front of the fan box) and then gently pulled forward to lever out the air inlet.

- using Corbin-type pliers on the clips, remove the four hoses that connect to the fan box (best to do this once the air inlet is free from the previous step, as you can then lift the fan box up a little with the hoses still connected, which makes access to the clips a lot easier.

- remove the fan box from the machine, and unscrew the Torx screws holding the white plastic cover (which includes the condensor unit) to the metal casing. Go very carefully here - corrosion can cause stiff and maybe sheared screws. Best to soak the screws with WD40 beforehand where they thread into the metal casing.

- remove the fan rotor by undoing the nyloc nut on the shaft. It (the rotor) is a tight fit on the shaft and may need some gentle encouragement with a hammer. Pause again to be amazed at the amount of fluff. Clean everything out fully (fan rotor, metal fan housing, white plastic cover/condensor unit, black rubber strip which seals the two halves of the fanbox together, hole at the rear of the drum which the air inlet plugs into.

- replace the plastic cover using some fresh silicone sealant around the edge, on top of the black rubber strip, to make it watertight.

- reassemble everything in reverse order. When it comes to reinserting the air inlet to the back of the drum, wet the inlet and the rubber gasket with copious soapy water. Even so the fit is very stiff indeed - just pushing with a thumb from the rear will not work. Solution: remove the white plastic cap from the inspection hole on the rear panel. Find a sturdy short cylindrical object (a large spark plug socket from a socket set is ideal) which will fit through this hole and press on the bottom of the fan box acting as a drift. Then rig up a lever (perhaps a horizontal wooden batten levering against a door frame) which will allow you to exert controlled pressure (a lot of it!) on the drift. Pack another wooden batten down the front of the drum to lock it in place, otherwise you will be wasting effort pushing the drum forward against its springs. You should feel the inlet push back into place. Look down from the top with a torch - if you can still see the sharp flange around the inlet tube, it's not pressed home enough.

STAGE 4: THE OFFICIAL MIELE FIX – FOR INFORMATION.

Miele technicians will only replace the fan box, not open, clean and refit it as described above. So the ‘official’ fix is to pay the callout charge, plus the infamous £400 for a new fan box,

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you may try cleaning the inlet screen by removing the fill hose.then pry the ccreen out with a small screwdriver.

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May 05, 2014 • Miele WT945 Front Load Washer / Dryer

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After a long period drying the clothing is still very humid. The cloth does become very warm. I?ve already checked the drain but its not clogged.

I've published some 'Tips' on the WT945's dryer problems. Hope these help, particularly stage 2 - you may have a buildup of fluff inside the dryer fan, which reduces drying power, even if the fan itself is still turning properly.

http://www.fixya.com/support/r4177912-miele_wt945_dryer_problems_stage_stage

http://www.fixya.com/support/r4177920-miele_wt945_dryer_problems_stage_1_fix

http://www.fixya.com/support/r4177928-miele_wt945_dryer_problems_stage_2_fix

http://www.fixya.com/support/r4177934-miele_wt945_dryer_problems_stage_3_4_fix

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Nov 03, 2010 • Miele WT945 Front Load Washer / Dryer

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I've published some 'Tips' on the WT945's dryer problems. Hope these help. Best to read in order.

http://www.fixya.com/support/r4177912-miele_wt945_dryer_problems_stage_stage

http://www.fixya.com/support/r4177920-miele_wt945_dryer_problems_stage_1_fix

http://www.fixya.com/support/r4177928-miele_wt945_dryer_problems_stage_2_fix

http://www.fixya.com/support/r4177934-miele_wt945_dryer_problems_stage_3_4_fix

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