PSA: I was wrong about replacing thermal fuses on dryers, a $6 fix beat a $180 board
For years I turned my nose up at guys who swapped thermal fuses on dryers. I figured it was a band aid and the real fix was always the control board. Then two Tuesdays ago a woman in Mesa called me about a Whirlpool that quit mid cycle, and she had already paid a different shop $180 for a board that did nothing. I tested the fuse with my multimeter and got no continuity, so I grabbed a $6 replacement off the truck and it fired right up. I sat in my van after and felt like a jerk for all the boards I upsold over the years. The fuse blows when the vent is clogged or the blower wheel drags, so now I check airflow first and explain it to the customer instead of just billing them. Has anyone else had a callback where the cheap part was the actual answer and you had to eat your words?
Buddy of mine swore up and down it was always the board too, until a $7 fuse on a Kenmore proved him wrong in front of the customer. He still catches crap about it at the supply house.