I have a 20-year-old gas dryer that stopped rotating its drum, so I opened
it up to have a look. I found that the belt had apparently stretched, as it
had no traction. I bought a new one and found that it was the same length as
the old one. I installed it and the problem was still there. There is no way
the drum could have been dislocated, and the motor is firmly bolted down. I
finally concluded that there was only one way to get everything to fit and
operate properly. I have to increase the diameter of the idler pulley a
little bit. I wrapped a lot of duct tape around it and now it works- but
with a lot of noise. The only explanation I can think of is that the idler
pulley has worn down. But when I look at pictures of one online, it looks
just like the one I have - not thicker. I don't see a pile of white plastic
sawdust inside the dryer. But I can't think of any other explanation. Does
anyone else have experience with this? Do idler pulleys just wear down to
the point that they belt loses its tension? Is there some other explanation?