Gas Dryer Question

[ragingfish]

My parents have a Whirlpool Duet Washer/Dryer setup. We've had it since maybe December. Worked like a charm (very recommended I might add! These puppies rock the party!) BTW, gas dryer setup.Anyway, we noticed tonight that when running, there is a very strong odor that smells of lighter fluid used on a BBQ -- my first instinct was a cookout when I smelled it -- coming from the exhaust.We aren't sure if it's something we should be concerned about? I know jack about gas, so I don't know if maybe it isn't properly combusting, if it's just something in the system? Should we be concerned? Should I tell them to call for repairs? Thanks all...

[Vibe Rater]

Did you use anything unusual in the wash water? Like a stain remover that might be oil based? Any additives to the wash cycle?

[ragingfish]

We first noticed it after running my load of work clothes...only things i used were Tide and Clorox Oxygen Action...both of which I used before, no problem...99% sure there was nothing on my clothes that would give off that kinda smell...

[rasermon]

Mercaptan is an odorant that smells like rotten eggs. It is added to natural gas as a safety measure to allow natural gas to be easily detected. If smell that turn the gas valve off right away and open your windows.

[ragingfish]

Nope, no eggs, just lighter fluid.And it smells mainly form the exhaust, can't smell it indoors really.

[rasermon]

Quote, originally posted by ragingfish »Nope, no eggs, just lighter fluid.And it smells mainly form the exhaust, can't smell it indoors really.Well, thats good.Your work close get very greasy from the cooking there?

[ragingfish]

Not really...never cooked until a few days ago...got lots of batter on me, maybe it was that....but pretty sure no grese. Interesting though though. We've run a few dryer cycles, does seem to be dissipating, so I'm guessing whatever it was had to do with something I washed...Just for S&G, here's what we got, in case anyone's in the market, these machines are SO cool...and worth every penny! They can do 22 towels in one load! Now THAT'S capacity!

[Sputnik]

I'd love to get those for my new place, however I have to have stacked, and the duet series is twice as much. So i looks like stacked cheapies for me. Oh well at least I'll have my own washer/dryer!

[ragingfish]

Pretty sure the Duets can stack...as for price, yeah, you're right...they are a bit pricey...but my 'rents figured, this was the first time they had to replace their machines in 24 years...they hope to get another 24 outta these...

[Sputnik]

I'm trying to decide if I buy the new washer/dryer now, or buy a new glass topped cook range instead.

[ragingfish]

Oooooh...tough decision!

[Sputnik]

Yeah! I've only got two appliances in my current apartment (Fridge and stove), but my condo has 5 (washer,dryer, stove, fridge, dishwasher). I'd say all but the fridge, which looks almost brand new, need replacing fairly soon. I'm kind of leaning towards the stove first, just because I'll use it more than the washer dryer... although a nice washer dryer combo would be great too. i'm selling my beanies on Ebay trying to get more money so I can get two instead of only one thing.

[ragingfish]

Which stove did you have in mind? I'm not very familar with glass tops...at least not modern ones...

[Sputnik]

I don't have any particular brand in mind. I just like the glass topped stoves for cleaning purposes, and the fact that the elements can be expandable. Oh yeah I also want it to be self cleaning.

[ragingfish]

Elements expandable?Not sure what you mean...

[Sputnik]

Well the element can either be used for a large pot, or a small pot. If you select small pot, then it only heats a smaller area. If you choose the large pot, then it heats the larger area. So one element may be 9 inches in diameter or 6 inches in diameter, depending on what you select to use.

[ragingfish]

Oh I see...My parents current stove (25 years old, still kicking *knock on wood*) has that feature, it's called "sensi-temp" but only works on one burner. Pretty nifty...though we never really use it except when using the griddle for french toast...in which case we set it to "griddle" mode (not sure how that changes the element heating)...Didn't realize that was such a hot feature (no pun intended)! Makes sense though!

[Sputnik]

The glass top stoves are more flexible than the coil element stoves. Some have "warming" elements to keep food warm while other food cooks.

[ragingfish]

Ooooh...purty....

[cohocarl]

Not quite sure what the lighter fluid smell would be. Hopefully it was just sealant or something during assembly of the dryer that will "burn off". We bought a new washer/dryer back in Sept. when we moved into our new house. Since this house has a well/septic, I talked the wife into a front load washer since it uses a fraction of the water. During the spin cycle, they turn over 1000 rpm which eliminates alot more water from the clothes, which makes the drying time alot less also.I wanted to buy the pedistals to raise them up about 12", but they were around $100 each, so I made a super strong box frame out of 2 x 4s, and put plywood on the top, front and sides (3/4" on top), then glued white formica type paneling on it, and put some wood trim on it. Looks & works great for about $40. Makes loading and unloading alot easier.

[Sputnik]

Are the front load washers much quieter than the top load washers?

[ragingfish]

Well, it's not necessarily quieter, but certainly no louder. We think they installed ours wrong though, because whenever the washer hits the spin cycle, the thing vibrates violently...prolly needs to be leveled...but we haven't gotten around to getting the guys out here again...

[Stang2Vibe]

That washer/dryer set looks pretty cool! My mom has the extra capacity Maytag Neptune washer and dryer and man, those things are big! They do a great job, too. They're great for washing my hockey equipment because they are so big. The dryer has that Intellisense sensor drying feature, and the washer has features like super duty wash, extra rinse, warm rinse, etc. I was checking them out at Sears right after I moved into the house and saw the pricetags and thought to myself, holy crap, they better walk up to my room to gather and sort the laundry too for that price.

[Sputnik]

I decided not to start a new thread on the "dryer" issue, but my question is not about gas dryers. I bought a stacked front load washer and dryer from Sears which is scheduled for delivery April 30th. We pulled the old (30 years!) stacked washer and dryer out of the closet and discovered that the only power source behind it was the standard household three pronged outlet. Now my new dryer, I've been told, uses a bigger outlet - like 220v/240v or something. So I've been trying to decide what to do - get permission from the condo board to have an electrician come in and wire me the right outlet, or go to Sears and ask them if they have any that will work in std outlet and ask them if they'll do an exchange. So my question to you knowledgeable Vibe folks is, when the dryer says its power requirements are 120 or 115v, will this work in the outlet I currently have? Sears website has compact dryers with these power requirements, but I'm a electrical dummy. Just as an off topic question - whats the chance that Sears would let me exchange the dryer for a compact one since I haven't taken delivery yet...? They're closed right now, or I'd call and ask.

[ragingfish]

Quote, originally posted by Sputnik »I decided not to start a new thread on the "dryer" issue, but my question is not about gas dryers. I bought a stacked front load washer and dryer from Sears which is scheduled for delivery April 30th. We pulled the old (30 years!) stacked washer and dryer out of the closet and discovered that the only power source behind it was the standard household three pronged outlet. Now my new dryer, I've been told, uses a bigger outlet - like 220v/240v or something. So I've been trying to decide what to do - get permission from the condo board to have an electrician come in and wire me the right outlet, or go to Sears and ask them if they have any that will work in std outlet and ask them if they'll do an exchange. So my question to you knowledgeable Vibe folks is, when the dryer says its power requirements are 120 or 115v, will this work in the outlet I currently have? Sears website has compact dryers with these power requirements, but I'm a electrical dummy. Just as an off topic question - whats the chance that Sears would let me exchange the dryer for a compact one since I haven't taken delivery yet...? They're closed right now, or I'd call and ask. 115/120 is traditional household outlets. If your dyer needs a 240, I say get the outlet brought up to date. I'm not sure about stacked units, but my standalone dryer uses a traditional 3-prong. I sense, though, by having 2 units pull current off one line, it needs a 240, probably won't be able to find one with a traditional plug. But I haven't a clue for sure...

[Sputnik]

Hmmm... I called the condo board pres last night and gave him my email addy so that he could email me so that I could then email the property management company, I guess to get permission to put this outlet in my condo, but the guy never emailed me the info - so to me it would seem easier to just get the dryer exchanged for one of the 120v ones that Sears has on their website.

[ragingfish]

Even some 120v outlets use non-traditional plugs...sometimes the blades will be horizontal instead of vertical (it will look like - - instead of | | )...double check before you go buying another one!

[Stang2Vibe]

I've never seen plugs with the blades facing the wrong way unless the plug was meant to be plugged in sideways. Regular three prong household electrical outlets are 110v/115v. Usually, modern appliances with high current draws like washers, dryers, electric stoves, etc. have the larger plug with the big blades for the 220v outlets. They are safer to use for these newer high current draw appliances. If it were me, I would do whatever I had to do to get the outlet and wiring updated for the washer/dryer. It would really suck to have the place burn down over something so relatively trivial. Also, if the appliance is rated as 110v or 115v, then it should use a traditional three prong plug. Sears should have no problem with exchanging one washer/dryer set for another before delivery. They may have to reschedule the delivery, but they should gladly do an exchange.

[ragingfish]

At work, several of our 115v appliances have horizontal blades. Toasters, microwaves, etc. Granted, their commerical appliances, but I have seen those kinda plugs upon occasion in residential appliactions...But I agree, it may seem a hassle, but upgrading the wiring is the safer bet.

[joatmon]

You can probably get a dryer that will plug into a standard household outlet, but it wouldn't be very powerful, and you may be stuck with small loads and long drying times. if the old dryer only used a standard household outlet, it must have been pretty wimpy. Most electric dryers take 220 volts. The typical three prong outlet is only rated for 15 amps, my 220V dryer sucks more current than that. There are 115V outlets that can handle higher currents, but they are uncommon.What model sears washer/dryer were you getting?if the new dryer takes 220 and there's only a 110 outlet back there, you'll need more than just a new outlet. You would need to get a 220 volt circuit breaker, outlet, and wiring to connect the two. I don't know what electricians charge for such things these days.

[cohocarl]

Personally, I'd get a quick estimate for having 220V wired and installed. May not be as bad as you think. (hopefully) It would probably be better in the long run also.If it would be outrageous for it to be installed, then I'd call Sears and have it changed to a 110 unit.

[Sputnik]

Quote, originally posted by joatmon »What model sears washer/dryer were you getting?if the new dryer takes 220 and there's only a 110 outlet back there, you'll need more than just a new outlet. You would need to get a 220 volt circuit breaker, outlet, and wiring to connect the two. I don't know what electricians charge for such things these days. I'm getting a kenmore washer and dryer. Don't know the exact model but it was on sale for $300 off when you buy the pair and its front load washer which is one of those Energuide ones. I have space in my breaker box for the 220V breaker and the breaker box is in the laundry room so I'm not too concerned about the cost of the electrician. Its the condo corp I'm concerned with mostly... I hate phoning up people I don't know, but it looks like I'm going to have to call the board pres again to see why I didn't get any email from him explaining what I need to do! GRR. I don't really want to give up my new dryer for a new but wimpier dryer. The dryer that we took out was a compact one - seriously I'd never seen one that small. You might be able to put a pair of jeans in it.

[ragingfish]

Wow, that IS small. Our last machines were just slightly larger than that. When they finally died, my parents got the Whirlpool Duet...you can do 17 pairs of jeans!

[Sputnik]

Okay I got permission today to have the new outlet installed as long as I have a licensed electrician do the work. Woo hoo. Now if only my dryer was vented to the outside... oh well. I can buy an indoor vent kit at Home Depot.

[ragingfish]

Indoor venting???Neve heard of that...doesn't sound right...how does that work? You gotta get those gasses outta the house...

[Sputnik]

Lots of people vent their dryer inside - it just ends up keeping the humidity in. Have you ever seen people put panty hose on their dryer? They do that to catch the lint because they've vented inside. My parents have a thing that allows them to vent inside or outside. I guess in the winter people to it to keep the heat in.

[Sputnik]

Yeah with a gas dryer its an absolute no-no to vent inside.