Needing Attention

It had to happen sooner or later. My total lack of blogging, or more to the point my lack of working on the house, has caused it to pout. There have been little things, hints at needing attention but I chose to ignore the broken sash weight by propping the upper sash into place with a stick. Weeds are now buried under leaves needing to be raked. But there is no ignoring the dryer that refuses to heat up - especially since I'm wearing my last clean (and dry) pair of underwear. Yes, it seems one of the thermostats has blown preventing the heating coil from activating. Somehow, cold air just does not dry clothes as well.
This is the second time I've replaced the thermostat. The first was justified as the Mrs thought cleaning out the lint trap was optional. You might recall a fellow blogger came with an Ohm meter to help identify the errant part. This time I tried a more daring approach. THIS IS FOR TESTING ONLY!!! Do not ever bypass safety equipment. Dry clothes are nice but not at the expense of burning down the house.
After turning off the breaker, I removed the cover panel. Then one at a time I took one of the red power wires off each thermostat and alligator clipped it to the opposing wire, effectively bypassing the trip switch. First was the one on the exhaust. Pop the power back on and start up the dryer. No heat. Replace those wires and move to the coil switch. Nope, still no heat. But the final check brought results. With it bypassed, the heater kicked right on.
I called a couple local big box stores, but no one carries parts. Last time I ordered replacements from PC Appliance Repair but this time I went with Appliance Care Store. No real reason other than they were $3 cheaper. We'll see how fast the parts arrive. Hopefully it will be soon or I might need to run to the store for a package of clean undies!