How to replace a belt on hotpoint VTD20 tumble dryer?

After replacing belt with great difficulty I can't get front door back on. It seems to hold the drum in place. Drum is currently sitting on the motor. I have a Hotpoint VDT65 Aquarius+. At a complete loss as to how to put whole front assembly back. Have I done it in the wrong order?

Julia
November 2012

thank you!!, i am going to change the belt on my vtd00p later, and i have searched and searched for just one thing..... "belt ribs on the inside". may seem obvious to some, but having already replaced 1 belt and having that snap within seconds, i needed to check! have to assume that i didnt have it fully aligned, a mistake i wont make this time (hopefully!)

alison, single mum of 3 boys, (diy wonderwoman!)

alison
October 2012

I've read all this with interest but I still don't understand how the belt is manoeuvred over the jockey wheel. I have a CTD00P, presumably this is different from the ones described.
It's hard to see how to get the belt round both as there's not enough slack in the belt after going round the shaft or the wheel.
Does anyone have experience of this?

noopin
July 2011

Well done Stuart, couldn't have done it without the metal tube trick. All Dryer designers want shooting this is more difficult than it needs to be. It took about an hour, getting the panels back on was as difficult as replacing the belt.

Phil
June 2011

We just used the above method to fix the belt and the drive pin which broke when the belt snapped - Thank You very much for all the advice. Neither myself or my husband have any technical knowledge at all and we fixed our machine in a little over two hours!!!

Sian C
January 2011

I found this advice very helpful. I have the hotpoint TDL32P with no tensioning belt. Taking oiff the fron is nuch easier and using a bar to persuade the belt to go on. Thanks for the advice

Phil
December 2010

use washing up liquid sparingly!

LYNNE ELIZABETH DELPH
December 2010

Thanks guys for your advice, Hubby changed ours today at a cost of £14, he found the belt easier to fit than putting the panels back on which needed us both to make sure no wiring was detached.

Pat Hughes
November 2010

It is called the drum shaft. Can get as part of C00113038 DRUM SHAFT REPAIR KIT VTD20P
on hotpoints spares site.

Neil
October 2010

i have a hotpoint tumble dryer vtd2o at the back of drum there is a round bit that was attached to drum which has snapped of what part is this called

garethwoodward
October 2010

Managed to replace the belt in about 30 minutes base on the advice in this thread. I freed enough of the front panel to manouvere the belt over the drim. I then took a hollow extension bar for a socket set and put it through the belt and over the end of the motor spindle. As I turned the drum I just pushed the belt on to the spindle.

RickMD
September 2010

I used Stuarts tips and replaced the belt in about an hour.
I removed the two screws on the back that hold the lid in place. The top then slides back, after hitting at the front with the palm of my hand.
I then removed the small panel right at the bottom on the front, Underneath this there are five screws which I removed but later found that I only needed to remove screws 1 3 and 5, 2 and 4 don't actually hold the front on.
The front panel is also held on by two screws on the inside at the top at the bottom of the control panel.
At this point I put the unit on its left hand side (looking from front). I placed it so that the front panel could lean against something because of the the wires (I replaced the belt without disconnecting any of these). With the machine on itys left hand side I removed the right hand side panel (four screws on back of machine and one underneath) Once the screw underneath have been removed the panel can be moved backwards of it clips.
After removing the broken belt and hovering out all the dust, I put the new belt over the drum by feeding in between the drum and the front panel. Before putting the belt onto the drive shaft it a good idea to refit the front panel. First of all slot it in at the bottom and put the three screws back in. Then line up the drum so that the front panel can be pushed onto it. You also need to make sure the exhaut pipe (big black straight pipe on left hand side of machine) is also lined up. You can reach this from the right hand side near the bottom by putting your arm right across. Then put the two screws back in at the top of the front panel. Click back in the control panel.
Now get a small length of pipe about 20cm long, I actually used a socket set extension bar. I put this between the drum and the belt and then manouvered it so that the end on the bar went over the drive shaft. By pulling the other end of the bar away from the drum and turning the bar the belt moved down the bar and onto the drive shaft. I then rotated the drum to make sure the belt was on the marks on the drum where the old belt had run.
I then fitted the right hand panel and then the top panel.

Ric
July 2010

Use "Stuart, March 2008" as your model - it worked for me! However, be warned that you'll need to set aside a couple of hours for this unless you're really good - and have some 'props' handy to support things like 'flapping' front panels etc. (- I used a couple of chairs). I also found that removing the right hand side panel (looking at it from the front) really helped in terms of access to the drive spindle. A word of warning: getting a second pair of hands to support the drum whilst you're battling to get the belt over the drive spindle is a really good idea - I failed to do that and the force required to lever the belt into position (using a piece of tubing) caused the drum to become creased on the motor housing. If that happens to you, my suggestion is that you wrap a thick towel around a club hammer and then, when the front panel's back on (no easy feat in itself!), it's possible to knock the dent out from the inside.
Thanks Stuart :-)

Bob
September 2009

When you lift the back off take a couple of minutes to fold some insulation tape round the nasty sharp edges. They will make you curse if you don't. Rub a small amount of washing up liquid over the drum prior to sliding on the belt. This gives a 500% improvement to the slidability, just when you need it. Don't dry trainers in the dryer. They eventually catch between the drum and the door. The drum stops. The motor spindle quickly wears through the belt and here we go again.

Doug Hedges (third belt already)
August 2009

Brilliant Stuart, Why didn't I think of that, a bit of 20mm plastic conduit did the job too, it's just so obvious when you point it out. As my sons would say "cool". And that is for the VTD00 in my case. Many thanks....

TonyH
June 2009

Thanks Stuart, Great instructions. I also took off the right side pannel which made fitting the belt easier. I did think I was going to bend the unit in two when pulling down on the belt and it took a while to get the side pannel back on. but all back together and working fine. There was so much fluff inside I am surprised it was still working....

Richard
February 2009

Absolute genious! Used a curtain pole with the cellofane wrapper still on which helped with sliding it off.Thanks so much for the help saved hours of graft Cheers Steve and Dino in Peterborough

Stephen Varty
December 2008

I've just replaced the belt and it's a pain of a job...
Put all the screws back in the back - it's accessed via the front.
Take out the top 2 rear screws, push the top of the dryer towards the back, sliding the top off.
'Snap' off the bottom front fascia, and remove the 5 bottom front screws.
Remove the top front inside screws to take off the control panel (you will also need to 'snap' it off from the inside clips) - it will hang loose as it is still connected via wires, so don't pull too hard.
The whole of the front will then lift off (again it's connected via wires so won't go very far!)
The pipe that leads from the filter to the exhaust can be placed to one side until the end.
The drum is held on by the rear, so will stay on. The motor is under the drum attached to the base. On my model there was no 'tensioning pully' - it's brute force.
After retrieving the snapped belt, place belt around drum (it's quite tight) and position to where old belt lay (there was a mark on mine, about 2/3 of the way in), belt ribs on the inside.
You've now got to get the belt over the motor's spindle - not easy. After much swearing I took a piece of 15mm copper (plumbing) pipe about 12" long, threaded it through the gap between the drum and the belt, then forced the end onto the motor spindle. By holding it in place, and gently rotating the drum and pipe, the belt slipped onto the spindle. I then adjusted the belt position by gently rotating the drum (careful that the belt doesn't fall off!!!) and pushing the belt to the correct position on the top of the drum.
After all that, put it all back together in reverse order (except the exhaust pipe).
To fit the exhaust back, unscrew and twist off the exhaust outlet from the back of the machine, and slide the pipe in, and put the exhaust bracket and pipe back on.
Really hope that helps people - it's a difficult job! i have seen for sale tools to help put the belt on - it may be worth buying one!

Stuart
March 2008

Examining a belt

Note:
Disconnect the power source to your dryer before you conduct this or any other examination. Either unplug the unit from the wall outlet, remove the appropriate fuse from the fuse box, or flick the appropriate breaker in the circuit breaker panel.
A dryer's belt serves to rotate the drum. If it becomes worn, or if it breaks, then the drum cannot tumble and rotate. Inspect your dryer's belt. If it is excessively worn, has little cracks, or is broken altogether, you will have to replace it.

With your dryer opened up, you'll notice that the belt loops over the drum, under the idler pulley wheel, and around the motor's drive pulley. Tension is applied to the belt by the idler pulley wheel that sits on a moveable arm.

To remove the belt, release the tension applied by the moveable idler pulley wheel. Discard the used belt. Install the new one by again pushing in on the idler pully arm.

DIY Dalmeida
October 2007