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TheTompkinsHouse · Sep 8, 2007, 11:39 PM

Hi,

I just got a Maytag Neptune Dryer a week ago. I have it plugged in to our old dryer outlet (which was replaced less than a year ago) which is 3 prong. The dryer voltage is 240 volts and I am running it on a 30 amp double pole breaker. The problem is, this is new electrical wiring and a new breaker box. Yet the breaker keeps tripping and it is hot. The back of the dryer seems hot also. We have checked for a loose connection.

What could be causing this to happen? Do I need to replace the breaker? The owners manual stated something about connecting a ground wire. Could that be causing a problem, since we didn't do that?

I am just lost. My father who passed away in January was a Master Electrician and did everything in our home and I don't have anyone to ask this stuff anymore. I hope someone can help me.

Thank you,

Angela

tkrussell · Sep 9, 2007, 05:06 AM

Can I have the model number of the dryer? I want to check the amp or wattage draw. Or if you can find that on the namplate would be great.

Mike4942 · Sep 9, 2007, 05:14 AM

Originally Posted by TheTompkinsHouse

Hi,

I just got a Maytag Neptune Dryer a week ago. I have it plugged in to our old dryer outlet (which was replaced less than a year ago) which is 3 prong. The dryer voltage is 240 volts and I am running it on a 30 amp double pole breaker. The problem is, this is new electrical wiring and a new breaker box. Yet the breaker keeps tripping and it is hot. The back of the dryer seems hot also. We have checked for a loose connection.

What could be causing this to happen? Do I need to replace the breaker? The owners manual stated something about connecting a ground wire. Could that be causing a problem, since we didn't do that?

I am just lost. My father who passed away in January was a Master Electrician and did everything in our home and I don't have anyone to ask this stuff anymore. I hope someone can help me.

Thank you,

Angela

If you have already checked for a loose connection, check for a nick in the wire at the receptacle or the breaker. I have seen this cause excessive tripping with breakers in the past because it causes a hot spot. If this does not work try switching the breaker with another one in the panel (assuming you have another 30 amp, 2-pole). As far as a ground or not, as long as the receptacle and wiring match the plug on the dryer you should be okay. Some are 4-wire and some are 3-wire. The older 3-wire use the neutral to provide the grounding. If your dryer has a 4-wire plug however, you should provide one back to the panelboard.

TheTompkinsHouse · Sep 9, 2007, 07:45 AM

Originally Posted by tkrussell

Can I have the model number of the dryer? I want to check the amp or wattage draw. Or if you can find that on the namplate would be great.

Thank you, the model number is MD55. It is the Maytag Neptune. I am looking at my user guide and it doesn't show any other numbers. It is so frustrating, cause the breaker only supports the dryer and it trips in less than a minute, with the bottom half of the breaker getting extremely hot. I am going to go to Lowe's or Home Depot today and purchase a new breaker to see if it might just be a bad breaker, although the breaker is less than a year old. We put a new service in the house, so all the wiring and breakers are brand new.

Thank you kindly for your assistance, it is truly appreciated.

tkrussell · Sep 9, 2007, 08:23 AM

Well that did not work out, the only Neptune dryer I can find at Maytag is a gas dryer, and they need more that four characters to search for a model number, so MD 55 did not get me far. To find the full model number and load data I attached the Find the Model Number from the Maytag website.

A defective breaker is a possibility, but I wanted to check the load first before suggesting that, since I assume the outlet and circuit had been used by the previous dryer, and the problem arose with the new dryer.

A nick in the wire at the outlet could cause a hot spot at the outlet, not at the breaker. If the wire was shorted the breaker should trip. A nick would not cause a breaker to trip in a minute, unless there is a short.

As far as grounding, the new dryer is probably set up for the new 4 wire system. You must have installed a 3 wire cord on it to use the 3 wire outlet. This is fine, as long as you follow the instructions to connect the neutral to the ground screw on the frame of the dryer, usually at the terminal strip connection in the dryer.

Since the breaker gets hot so quick, it is either a load issue, or more likely a bad breaker. I would really like to know the load before you just start replacing parts.

And since you state the breaker trips after a minute, and you state the back of the dryer gets hot, this concerns me.

TheTompkinsHouse · Sep 9, 2007, 09:27 AM

[/QUOTE]Since the breaker gets hot so quick, it is either a load issue, or more likely a bad breaker. I would really like to know the load before you just start replacing parts.

And since you state the breaker trips after a minute, and you state the back of the dryer gets hot, this concerns me.[/QUOTE]

I looked and I found this on the dryer, Model MDE5500AYW and Serial 73902734LL... I really hope it helps and thank you so much for your quick response, I am heading to town soon and would like to pick up a new breaker if that is what it needs. I truly appreciate this.

tkrussell · Sep 9, 2007, 09:50 AM

OK I see the manual calls for a 30 amp breaker, so sounds like the circuit size is fine. Assuming there are no loose connections at the wire termianls of the breaker, let's assume the breaker is defective.

Pay close attention to the tabs that the breaker plugs onto in the panel. One or both of these may be burnt or corroded to cause a loose connection. Any loose connection at the breaker will cause heat, that will migrate into the breaker and cause it to trip.

Try a new breaker, check all the connections, and see if this solves your problem.

Who is going to open the panel and replace the breaker? May be best to shut off the main so the interior live parts are dead to replace the breaker safely.

TheTompkinsHouse · Sep 9, 2007, 10:36 PM

Originally Posted by tkrussell

Try a new breaker, check all the connections, and see if this solves your problem.

Who is going to open the panel and replace the breaker? may be best to shut off the main so the interior live parts are dead to replace the breaker safely.

I just wanted to say thank you so much for your time and assistance on my electrical problem.

It was a bad breaker.

I bought a new one today, for less than $10.00 and my husband put it in for me. He shut off the main and took the panel off and removed the bad breaker and put the new one in, and since then, I have done 3 loads of laundry in my new dryer and not once has the breaker tripped.

Thank you again, I truly appreciate your effort in helping me solve my problem.

Angela

amss1516 · Jul 7, 2010, 10:36 AM

Confirmed that this was my issue as well. Even the same Dryer. When I went to Home depot I was able to learn that if the breaker has a burnt smell it is faulty. There is your TA-DA

Missouri Bound · Jul 7, 2010, 06:10 PM

Angela. Shutting off the main before replacing the breaker was a very smart thing to do... also the proper way to do it. Glad you got it fixed.

deniosis · Feb 20, 2012, 07:57 AM

By reading the solutions of your problem the expert was correct on every aspect and it was to helpful to me and resolved the problem I was having.