The Repair:
Shortly (a couple months) after the warranty had expired on our Electrolux dryer model EIMED55IIW0, it quit working and was giving us an E64 E-64 error code. I looked up the code and found it indicates a Heater Open Circuit (i.e Fried Heating Element). I didn’t think that could be possible in such a short time (and our dryer vent was clean, I had just cleaned it since our clothes seemed to be taking a long time to dry). I decided to take the dryer apart and see what I could find. Here’s the video of me making the repair:
I found that the heating element was indeed all melted and needed to be replaced. I first contacted Electrolux customer service to see if they would honor the warranty (since it had only been expired for 2 months) and send me a new heating element, but they said I was out of luck. I ended up purchasing a new heating element myself and installing it. Here are some links to heating elements:
Also, here are some other parts that need to be tested and possibly replaces when the heating element goes out:
Note: If you don’t feel comfortable taking your dryer apart don’t even try to attempt this. I’m not an expert, just a homeowner making a repair. If in question contact a qualified repair technician. Always unplug your appliance before making any repairs.
Prevention:
I did find that the burned out heating element was probably due to an extreme buildup of lint in the dryer. I try to clean our dryer vent out yearly using one of these:
but unfortunately that did not prevent our burned out heating element. When our dryer was still taking a long time to dry clothes, I did find that the inside of our dryer was almost fully clogged underneath the grate where the lint trap slides in. In order to clean that out, you have to remove the grate itself. Here’s a video of how to remove and clean the dryer:
Unfortunately I discovered this too late, the damage to our heating element had already been done. However, since then I’ve periodically checked and cleaned out underneath this grate and we have not had another heating element go out. It seems to be a poor design of the dryer that the lint gets packed in there the way it does.