Two items that may help, though no liability accepted! I assume you are technically very competent.
1. The way I replaced the belt (after unplugging, of course!) was:
(a) Undo the two bolts that hold the door - makes trhings more manageable.
(b) Remove the front bottom plate - some screws are underneath.
(c) Remove the top - 2 screws at back, slide back about 20mm and wriggle off the front edge which has a keyhole shaped hole each side fitting over a plastic "mushroom".
(d) Lever off the control knob (which is just a push fit), using a thin blade under opposite sides.
(e) Undo (and don't loose) the 2 screws under the knob that have heads clamping the plastic trim - this will leave the control unit behind in place.
(f) I'm not sure exactly how you are meant to do this bit. It seems to me a dreadful bit of "design". What I did was with great difficulty bash out (forward) the three plastic studs. These go through metal clips that in mine are stuck in holes in the metal plate, but perhaps are intended to be removable. I broke off the middle one, which does not seem to matter.
(g) Unplug the push-on electrical connectors to the heat switch. Make a note of which wire goes to which contact - though I don't think it matters.
(h) Lay aside the plastic trim.
(i) I removed the top screws holding the main front panel, but I'm not sure this was needed. It might be better to remove the screws that fix the top panel, probably just loosening those on top. In any case, the aim is to be able to pull the bottom of the main panel forward sufficiently to be able to wriggle the new belt in between it and the drum - and to widen the gap at the bottom for fiddly work inside.
(j) Take care not to cut yourself on the sharp edges - tough sleeves recommended. Pull out the old belt, cutting it to do so if it is not broken already. It may help also to remove the internal vent pipe, which is now loose anyway.
(K) Wriggle the new belt up past the door opening and around the drum.
(l) I found it helpful to use masking tape to hold the top of the belt in place to stop it sliding off the back while fitting the belt around the drive shaft and between the two spring rollers - itself a fun task! I had a problem when the crude pivot at the bottom of one arm came out of place while I was doing this - make sure they are seated properly and everything is lined up before turning the drum.
(m) Reassemble! More or less the reverse of the above.
To be honest, the whole thing took many hours and getting the "little man" in might have been better.
(2) If you, like me, are unfortunate enough to dislodge a wire from the controller, the following may help. I describe how I now have the wires connected, which may not be as-was. My controller seems to be different to Chis's above. Pretending to work in situ (practically impossible, actually - it was difficult even with the second two screws holding the controller removed):
(a) On the left are three spade contacts -
- Black/red wire is on that nearest the front on the machine, designated "17"
- White/Black (with a plastic shield) on the middle one, designated "9" and
- Blue on the front, designated "1".
[I think these connect to the motor and then to neutral, to the heater and then to neutral, and to neutral directly - the latter presumably for the timer motor.]
(b) Next to that are two unused spade contacts - no middle one. These are actually connected to the adjacent ones in the next set -
(c) Third from left, to machine front ("19"), Brown/black. Probably for motor when in reverse.
(d) Third from left, to machine inside ("3") [as with b there is no middle spade], Pink/White. This is connected directly to live.
The remaining spade contacts (to the right) are all bonded together but don't connect to any external wires.
I hope that helps somebody, but best to check the colours and pinout before risking an accidental disconnection. Better still, take care not to tug on any of the wires.
Richard B.
March 2009
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