General > General Technical Chat
Tumble Dryer woes
<< < (5/6) > >>
NiHaoMike:
If the heating element is not accessible with the covers in place (and thus its casing becoming live wouldn't be a safety issue), perhaps it might be worth a try using Kapton tape or mica sheet to isolate it from ground?
james_s:
Is there a heating element? I thought those condensing dryers used a compressor based dehumidifier instead of a heating element.
NiHaoMike:
There's usually one to get it up to temperature quickly.
Gyro:

--- Quote from: james_s on October 03, 2021, 03:31:08 am ---Is there a heating element? I thought those condensing dryers used a compressor based dehumidifier instead of a heating element.

--- End quote ---

Unless these appliances are radically different in the US, I think you're overestimating the dedication of white goods manufacturers.

Condensing tumble dryers are very similar to the ducted ones. The only difference is that, instead of being directed through a duct in the wall, the exhaust air is simply passed across a very light Aluminium heat exchanger, warming the incoming air and condensing out exhaust moisture in the process. This increases its thermal efficiency. The exhaust air is still quite warm, but dry enough to be discharged back into the room without causing condensation issues.

The element size is probably a little smaller than non-condensing dryers, but they are still fairly high energy consumers. The element is either a closed tube type, as I mentioned previously, or a bare expose type, as used in fan heaters. Replacements for these tend to be more expensive, presumably due to the increased hand assembly required in manufacture.

Some examples, a quick look indicates that tube elements are probably used in about 30% if dryers... https://www.elementman.co.uk/elements/tumble-dryer/?p=3

A cynic might think that (apart from the comparatively lower power consumption) the main marketing reason for the initial introduction of condenser dryers was to overcome the customer resistance to having to drill a big hole in their wall!

The closest I know to a compressor based heat exchanger type drying solution is to hang the wet washing in a closed room with a compressor based room dehumidifier. In both cases, the room gets pretty warm. For domestic reasons, I keep meaning to calculate which is the cheapest solution in energy terms, the relatively shorter multi-kW burst in the dryer, or the longer drying session at a couple of hundred watts with the dehumidifier.



--- Quote from: NiHaoMike on October 02, 2021, 11:41:39 pm ---If the heating element is not accessible with the covers in place (and thus its casing becoming live wouldn't be a safety issue), perhaps it might be worth a try using Kapton tape or mica sheet to isolate it from ground?

--- End quote ---

Unfortunately, looking at the mechanical mounting arrangements of the tube type elements in the above link, it seems unlikely that this would work without significant modification.
richard.cs:
Both condensing driers with conventional heating elements, and ones with compressors exist in the UK, the latter are normally called "heat pump driers" and are considerably more expensive.
Navigation
Message Index
Next page
Previous page
There was an error while thanking
Thanking...

Go to full version
Powered by SMFPacks Advanced Attachments Uploader Mod