Help My Tumble Dryer Will Not Shut Off

Whether you find it soothing or not (it can’t just be me can it?) the sound of your tumble dryer during a cycle can still bring you comfort. It’s a sound of progress and shows that your clothes are getting dried right?

Those soft hums mean your dryer is working fine and there’s nothing to worry about, well what happens when that sound continues for far longer than it should? Yes, we’ve looked at the very opposite problem before, haven’t we?

But the issues that can cause your dryer to not even power up can also in a way cause the very opposite problem as well. A tumble dryer that keeps spinning can be a real nuisance for many reasons.

As the tumble dryer spins it will get hotter and hotter and this can be very dangerous, now the good news is that your dryer will likely eventually shut off on its own. Especially if you have a more modern machine with more advanced safety features.

And if you are really concerned pulling the plug or flipping the switch on the socket will get the dryer to shut off. But that doesn’t help you solve the problem, does it? When you power the dryer back on it will usually just keep spinning again so you’ll be back in the same position.

The only way you can stop this from happening is by finding and fixing the cause of the problem and we’ll help you find the cause below. In the majority of cases, you will need to call in a professional tumble dryer repair expert to help you fix the issue for good, but we can at the very least help you identify what the cause is.

The Timer

The tumble dryer timer is an essential component but as you have seen in a lot of our articles it can also be the cause of a lot of different problems. And unsurprisingly if your dryer is not shutting off then the timer could very well be the cause behind it.

The timer connects and controls the dryer’s motor, but all kinds of problems can affect them, it could be damaged in some way, defective or it might need replacing. Electrical issues are the most common cause of problems with a dryer’s timer and there isn’t much you can do on your own to fix them.

So, your best option is to call in a professional tumble dryer repair technician because they will be able to use a multi-meter to test the connectivity and if the timer does need replacing then they’ll be able to do that as well.

The Door Switch

Your dryer’s door is another common suspect when it comes to a wide variety of issues but while problems with the door switch will usually mean your dryer won’t start the very opposite problem can occur as well. The door switch is an important safety feature as well, so you’ll need to be very careful because you don’t want to risk breaking it.

Now if the door switch is already broken then you’ll have no option but to call in a professional tumble dryer repair engineer for a replacement. But if you’re lucky it might have simply just have activated when it shouldn’t have or might not have registered, so you might need a new one.

Sometimes simply pulling the plug and reactivating the machine can solve the problem or the issue could be caused by the button not being depressed. One common issue to watch out for is that the tumble dryer still spins even when the door is open if that happens try unplugging the dryer and leaving it to cool for a while before turning it back on.

The Cool Down Thermostat

The cooldown thermostat is not a feature you’ll see in all models of tumble dryer it’s a much more advanced feature so if you have a more modern tumble dryer watch out for this problem. The cooldown thermostat is used to tumble clothes without any heat and will activate near the end of your drying cycle.

This will keep your dryer running until a specific temperature is reached it will then shut off the tumble dryer. However, if the thermostat fails or simply doesn’t register then your dryer can just carry on spinning, effectively giving you an endless cycle.

Sometimes shutting off your dryer will stop this problem but in more serious cases you’ll have no choice but to call in a professional tumble dryer repair engineer who will be able to test continuity with a multi-meter and repair or replace your thermostat if it’s damaged or defective.