"paulfoel" wrote in message
oups.com...
Going to attempt to change the capacitor on my tumble dryer... Its a 8
micro-Farad one.

I think its dead anyway but I'm assuming I can check with a multimeter?
What sort of voltage/current is one of these likely to have?

Assuming it is still ' live' how do I discharge it to make it safe?


Does the motor have brushes and a commutator? If so, change the brushes
before you start looking elsewhere, they're seldom expensive and are a
consumable item. Capacitors may or may not last the life of an appliance but
brushes are certain to wear from day one and are usually the first suspect
in a misfiring/intermittant motor.

With brush type motors, the brushes wear down and consequently less pressure
is applied by the spring, causing a higher resistance/poorer connection
between brush and commutator. An arc is caused, which heats the brush and
can deform the casing causing the brush to stick, making the problem
increase exponentially. It also causes the commutator to become blackened
which makes matters even worse.

I'd take out the brush carriers and check the brushes move freely and that
there's plenty of length left on them. Also check the commutator is clean.

If the motor does not have a brush/commutator arrangement, I'd check all
connections are secure and check the control board for dry/cracked solder
joints before suspecting component failure.

Dave