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Old 06-13-2014, 11:28 AM   #7
DickR
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With a gas dryer, you have the burner assembly, fed by the gas line, with a valve next to the assembly. This is located usually in front, behind a small removable panel; pull the top side edges to swing the panel down.

You will find an electrical connection to an igniter, and downstream of that will be some sort of flame detection device (thermocouple, or perhaps IR sensor). When you turn on the dryer, power to the igniter will be switched on, and it will glow red hot within seconds. Think of it as a glow plug in a model airplane engine. When the downstream sensor verifies that the igniter did indeed get hot, the gas valve is turned on, and the igniter touches off the gas. If the detector later determines that the flame has gone out, the valve is closed.

Most likely either the igniter or the sensor has failed. I'd bet on the igniter first, and it's easy to remove and inspect. They can be fragile and easily broken. Look along the metal coil that gets hot when power is applied, and you may see a thin break in it.
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