Personal & toysYou will see this often
Hair dryer
Also called blow dryer.
A fast universal motor or a small DC motor, a nichrome stack, and two thermal protections. The thermal fuse is why many of them died.
A donor is the dead machine. The parts below are what is still worth removing from it. “Leave it” is a part that is physically in there and should stay in there: too dangerous, too worn, or only useful as part of a repair you are not doing.
Wall power goes through a switch, a one-time thermal fuse, and often a resettable thermostat, then the element. If you remove the fuse because it is open, the element can stay on after something else has already failed. That is how the donor caught fire the first time.
Why it is in the trash while the parts are not
No heat, or no air. No heat is often the fuse. No air is the motor or a clog of hair, which is also how the fuse opened.
Before you open it
Do this while it is still unplugged, cool, and not leaking. Unplug. Hair in the intake is flammable dust.
Where the dead machine usually is
- Bathroom — In the house
- Bulk trash day — Curb
Not a wet-area rebuild. Take the parts out of the bathroom.
How it comes apart
Clamshell screws, often Torx or a triangular bit. The mica stack is fragile.
Tools: Phillips, Security bit, Meter.
Words on this page
- thermal fuse
- A one-time safety link that opens when it gets too hot and stays open. It is not a switch you can reset. Replacing it with wire removes the protection.
What to take
The table is the short version. The notes under it describe that part inside this machine, not only the general description.
| Part | Call | How many | How often | Where to look |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Universal motor | Prize | 1 | usually | The nozzle end. |
| Bridge rectifier | Bonus | 1 | sometimes | Handle, on DC-motor models. |
| Nichrome wire | Worth pulling | 1 | usually | On mica. |
| Thermal fuse | Worth pulling | 1 | always | In series with the element. |
| Bimetal thermostat | Worth pulling | 1 | usually | Beside the fuse. |
| Panel switch | Worth pulling | 1 | usually | Handle. |
| Mains cord | Bonus | 1 | always | Handle. |
Prize
Or a low-voltage DC motor with a bridge in the handle on newer small dryers. Read which.
The nozzle end.
Spin it. Hair wrapped in the shaft is the usual seizure.
Brushes wear.
Worth pulling
Two heats, taps on the coil.
On mica.
Keep supports.
Brittle.
Stamped temperature.
In series with the element.
Continuity.
Often open.
Resettable limiter.
Beside the fuse.
Test the click.
Good.
Heat and speed. Mains.
Handle.
Map it.
Good.
Bonus
Mains rectifier for the motor.
Handle, on DC-motor models.
The diodes are the part.
Good.
Flexes until it breaks at the strain relief. That may be the fault.
Handle.
Inspect.
Often tired.