"Nick Danger" wrote in message
...
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?

Perhaps some lubrication might help - for example, motor bearings,
idler bushings, etc. Don't really know, just an idea.
Bob-tx