How to Replace Dryer Glides

At some point during its useful life, you may find yourself needing to replace dryer glides. The telltale sign that you may need to replace your dryer glides will be if you begin to notice torn clothes coming out of your dryer or if your dryer squeaks excessively. The glides in your dryer support the rotating drum at the front of your dryer. If your glides wear out, the front of the drum will dip down slightly and can produce a pinched area near the top of the drum that can cause squeaking or can even tear your clothing. Fortunately, this is a repair that you can complete yourself with a little patience and attention to detail. Below you will find the steps to completing this repair yourself.

Step 1: Disconnect Power Supply

Since a dryer has many moving parts that are driven by electricity, you will want to make sure that you have disconnected the power supply line to the dryer before making any repairs. To do this, either unplug the dryer from the wall if it is plugged in, remove the proper fuse from your fuse box, or flip the circuit breaker switch that corresponds to your dryer.

Step 2: Remove Top and Front of Dryer

The purpose of this step will be to provide access to your dryer's drum and glides. Unfortunately, the process for removing the top and front panels of your dryer can vary significantly between different makes and models of dryer. Follow the manufacturer's recommended procedure for removing these panels in order to expose the drum. Typically, you should need little more than a screwdriver

Step 3: Remove Drum

Again, this step can vary from model to model, but in most cases removing the drum from your dryer should be as easy as loosening several screws and lifting the drum out of the dryer housing.

Step 4: Remove Glides

In virtually every dryer, the glides will be in the same position, so you should be able to find them and replace them relatively easily. Look on the inside of your dryer's bulkhead either near the top or the bottom of where the drum is connected to your dryer. Dryer glides are sometimes connected to the dryer in different ways, but the most common method of connecting them is with basic screws that can be unscrewed by hand or with an electric screwdriver. In some cases, however, the glides will be connected to the dryer with rivets. If this is the case, you will need to drill out the rivets in order to remove the glides. Just be sure to take note of how the glides are connected.

Step 5: Install New Glides

Using the opposite technique as you did to remove the glides, install the new glides you have purchased.

Step 6: Reassemble Dryer and Test

Reinsert the drum into the dryer and replace the front and top panels of the appliance. Once you have reassembled your dryer, plug it back into the wall and test to make sure it is working properly.