Dead Dryer and Noisy Refrigerator

Two appliance issues I've fixed lately, not super interesting, but may be useful anyway. I don't fix appliances very often, so I usually do some head-scratching at some point.

1. Kenmore Dryer - A friend bought a new (used) washer and dryer to replace their old, non-functioning ones. after hauling the old ones up the side of a hill and the new ones down it, they discovered the dryer did nothing. Not wanting to haul it back up, they called me. I had him check a few things over the phone, but really didn't learn anything from that. It didn't appear to be getting power.

In hindsight I should have checked the door switch sooner, but I was stuck on a no-power train of thought. It only took a few minutes anyway, thankfully they're not as complicated as cars.

• With the back cover off I verified the thermal fuse was OK and I definitely had power there. 
• After a great deal of head scratching I thought it seemed like something had come unplugged, the door light wasn't on when the door was open and the wires to the switch were the only ones I couldn't see. 
• Most dryers you pull forward and then up to open the top. They swing up on little spring clips that let it move forward enough to clear the front clips. Popping the lid up it became apparent that somehow the wires going to the door switch had come apart at the connector. I really don't know how it separated, it clipped back together firmly enough I didn't think it just popped apart on it's own. But,it's working now.
• Model # 110.76642500 or 110.7163102 - I have two model numbers written down, not sure which is right.

2. Freezer on bottom refrigerator - My grandparents refrigerator started making funny noises, I thought sounded like bad fan bearings (I could hear it over the phone, sounded really bad).

• At first I thought it was the fan on the outside, underneath the machine, but besides being very dusty, it make no unusual noises. 
• That one eliminated left the one inside that circulated cold air through the refrigerator. After removing everything that blocked access to it (and there was a lot in the way) I could see the fan. It's bearings were also OK. So I plugged it back in, hoping to see something change, and did I ever. 
• It seems that ice builds up in the passage between the refrigerator and freezer. Every once and a while it breaks free, falling back down the passage onto the fan, which flings it at my face. 
• I'm blaming it on a spell of high humidity and poor design. If something deflected the ice away from the fan it wouldn't have to grind it up with it's little plastic blade. or if the fan was located at the top the ice would fall away from it, like a freezer on top model. 

Dodge 46RE First and Second Gears Only

A friend got a deal on a older Dodge 4x4 truck. It ran great, drove fine except it wouldn't shift past 2nd.
The possibilities are as follows: 

• Speed sensor
• Electrical Wiring
• PWM Solenoid / pressure sensor (typically replaced together)
• Computer
• Internally broken parts

A little background:
The Dodge 4xRE RWD transmissions are descendents of an earlier design. Before computer controls they used a centrifugal governor and throttle cable to control shifts. When GM and Ford went to computer controls they used a PWM (pulse width modulation) solenoid for mainline pressure and solenoids for shifting, eliminating the throttle and governor systems. Dodge left the throttle cable, and replaced the mechanical governor with a PWM solenoid and a pressure sensor controlled by the computer. With the exception of 4th, as it is independently controlled by the computer via it's own solenoid, the 4xRE's all depend on the governor pressure to know which gear to be in.

Diagnosis:
We were fortunate to have a 44RE core to steal parts from.
First was getting it here, it would be a long drive in 2nd, so I had him pull the electrical connector off, hoping for third. I didn't know if this would work or not, depending what was wrong, but fail-safe is third so it was worth a try. It worked, so the actual transmission was OK, just something in the controls. (Note: even with the electric off, if it was still stuck in 2nd, it could still have been the governor solenoid stuck)

1. The speed sensor is a 1 minute swap, we had one, so that was the place to start. But it made no difference.
2. A visual inspection of the wiring showed no problems, and we didn't have a spare computer to try (that would be #4 anyway).
3. The Governor solenoid / pressure sensor combo is a very common problem with these transmissions, what happens is over time they get fine metal shavings in them until the solenoid sticks (it is a magnet). This was my guess from the start, but you have to drop the pan to get too them, so don't overlook something obvious. We dropped the pan, swapped them with the ones off my junk tranny (Note: these are such a common problem it is recommended to replace with new every time. He didn't have the money for new, so used it was) That solved it, had 4 forward gears and he was happy.

Notes:

1. While you have to drop the pan to get to the sensors, they are east to access, being bolted to the bottom of the valve body, on their own little block of aluminum. 
2. KEEP IT CLEAN! Any dirt is very bad inside a valve body.
3. USE A TORQUE WRENCH ON THE VALVE BODY! They are particularly sensitive to that sort of thing. (35in lbs. I think)
4. There is an alternative setup for this using a GM PWM solenoid. They claim it stops this sort of thing from ever happening again. I haven't tried one yet, but definitely would, especially on a tranny that has given me problems.
5. Don't overlook the obvious, Yes, I was right this time, but it could have been something else. Like the speed sensor, and if I'd gone with my gut and been wrong, I'd have spent an hour fixing something that would have taken a minute.
6. Most vehicles fail-safe to third (actually direct drive, could be 4th in a 5 or 6 speed auto tranny) in drive, and the manual 1st, 2nd, etc. still work. You can manually shift these to prevent damage - Fail-safe third is third all the time, you will eventually damage something if you don't.
7. The background may be over-simplified, but contains enough information for my purposes.

Breckwell Pellet Stove

My Father recently acquired a non-working pellet stove. It's a Breckwell p24fs Pellet Stove 1992-1996. manual (propane torch) ignition. I believe I have diagnosed it, but it hasn't been used much yet.

Symptoms

• Auger won't feed automatically. 
• Light comes on, 
• Manual feed button works. 
• At first the breaker blew when plugged in. (someone had some wires mixed up)

Diagnosis

• The previous owner had 2 diagnoses: Their book said: Bad auger control therm-o-disk ($15) and "The guy who works on them" said: Bad control board ($250). 
• Jumping the thermodisk had no effect so that leads to the control board. 
• Although not noted anywhere there is a 3/4amp fuse on the control board. You have to disassemble the front (switches, knobs) to access it. Be careful of the stop ring on the fan control switch, it fell off and I had to figure out which hole it goes in. 
• With a new fuse we still get the same exact symptom. Sounded bad for the board. Now however jumping the thermodisk results in a properly working auger motor!

Synopsis
Both diagnosis were correct.

• A new auger therm-o-disk is needed.
• If a repair man had come he would undoubtedly have replaced the control board. (although it only needed a $0.50 fuse) 
• Time will tell if there is an underlying problem or if we can blame it on the switched wire or an unknown cause.

Notes: at some future point (1997 perhaps) they changed the design of the control board. the fuse(s) are now accessible without disassembling the board. just pop the control module out, fuses are on the back. Smart folks, why wasn't this like that? I wonder how many control boards are replaced for a fuse?

2005 Saturn ION no crank, no start.

I just finished repairing a 2005 Saturn Ion that broke down (conveniently) in my driveway. My brother drove it in and a couple hours later it would not crank.

The Symptoms
These cars are known for a ignition switch malfunction, but the symptoms were slightly different (the security light did not flash*).

• Everything seemed to power up but would not crank.
• PWR STR, SERVICE VEHICLE, and COOLANT errors were displayed on the dash.
• I was unable to connect to the OBD2 bus.

The Diagnosis
The Battery is located in the truck. There are 2 positive wires running from the battery forward. the big main one to the starter motor and fuse-box and a smaller one with an inline fuse holder several inches from the battery which apparently goes directly to the ECM.

• The spare tire compartment had about 1" of water setting in the bottom which submerged the connector just after the inline fuse.
• The wire corroded off both sides of the connector, shorted and blew the fuse.

The Repair

• Twisting the wires together and replacing the fuse resulted in a running car. The wires were soldered.
• The Check engine light was on however with a code p0315 Crankshaft Position System Variation Not Learned. According to most websites, solving this requires a "CASE Relearn Procedure"on GM's Tech2 scan tool. Apparently it will never clear itself. However there are several aftermarket scan tools that can do this. I happen to have a TriCAN from www.obd-2.com. I love this tool, it does a huge amount of things many expensive hand held units don't. It has it's downsides though, it requires the use of a laptop, and in this case I could enable the CASE Relearn, but had to figure out what to do next from forums, etc.

The CASE Relearn procedure

• Bring coolant temp up to 158F+
• Shut off car
• Wait 10+ sec
• Start car
• Hold foot firmly on brake from now on
• Enable CASE Relearn
• Steadily increase RPM until it hit's the (lowered automatically by the test) rev limiter at 4000RPM
• Remove foot from throttle immediately at the first blip
• MIL should go off at this point
• Clear code (stays as historical)

The Moral
Always check the simple stuff, I spent several days hunting for problems up front because the truck was so full of junk I couldn't even look at the battery. I assumed that as long as i had power up front the battery area was fine. How wrong I was...
Oh, wiring diagrams are your friend.

* If your security light is flashing you probably need a new ignition switch, they are a very common problem.

An Introduction

This is a brief introduction of Steve's Fix it Shop

I've had a knack for mechanical, electrical, and miscellaneous troubleshooting as far back as I can remember. As a child i really enjoyed tearing things apart and trying to figure out how they work, I never quite outgrew that. So now I build and fix things.

It occurred to me that others may find some of the lessons I've learned useful. Thus I intend to document my adventures whenever possible. This will serve both as a reference for me and anyone with a similar problem. I don't warrant that anything described here is safe or correct, but I will try my best to achieve both. I also have an strong interest in alternative energy, Linux, dogs, organic gardening, and about a million other things. Some of these will undoubtedly end up here as well.