Symptom guide / dryer
A dryer that runs and stays cold is one of the few faults where the cheapest test in the house, clearing the vent run, is also the fix most often needed. Across 540 of the 4,223 completed jobs in this dataset behind this page [S3], one part accounts for more of these failures than every other put together: burned-out heating element (electric dryers), 342 jobs at $60–$150 part [S2]. The next largest is one part at 169 jobs, and the second group together is 198. That concentration is the useful part of the diagnosis: the drum turns but the load comes out cold - described as dryer runs but stays cold, clothes come out damp and cold, drum turns but there is no heat or takes three cycles to dry a load - usually has one short list of causes, and they sit close together in price.
| Repair | Completed jobs | Typical invoice |
|---|---|---|
| burned-out heating element (electric dryers) | 342 | $60–$150 part [S2] |
| failed cycling or high-limit thermostat | 169 | $15–$45 part [S2] |
| blown thermal fuse | 29 | $10–$30 part [S1] |
540 of the 4,223 completed jobs in that dataset [S3] sit behind the counts above. Each figure is the source's own median invoice - parts, labour and the service call together, never the part alone.
drum turns but there is no heat takes three cycles to dry a load
S1 puts the element at $40-100 in parts and $150-300 installed; S2 at $60-150 in parts and $220-360 installed. A visibly broken or sagging coil is the giveaway; otherwise the coil is tested for continuity. Time basis: no published duration, book estimate.
dryer runs but stays cold clothes come out damp and cold
A technician meters each thermostat and replaces the open one, usually in the same visit as the fuse, because the same overheating event takes both. Time basis: no published duration, book estimate.
drum turns but there is no heat dryer runs but stays cold
The drum turns but the burner never lights. S2 puts the valve coils at $30-60 in parts and an igniter job at $190-300; S1 puts gas igniter or valve repair at $150-350. Time basis: no published duration, book estimate for reaching the burner assembly.
The verdict
Past ten years, a repair above roughly $400 is hard to justify. Under six years old, nearly every repair on the list is worth doing - and a heat repair on a twelve-year-old machine is close to a coin flip. [S3]
The headline band is the no-heat row of the publisher's 4,223 completed dryer repairs: a $368 median across 1,155 of them, with the middle half at $311-437. The four labelled bands beside it are the same publisher's per-part cuts of the same job set, each printed with its own count and middle half: a heating element at $360 across 342, a thermostat at $350 across 169, a thermal fuse at $327 across 29 and a control board at $478 across 71. The symptom row and the part rows are different cuts of one dataset rather than separate estimates of one number, so they sit beside each other and are never added or averaged. The publisher's own line about them is that a dryer which will not heat has four usual causes and three of them sit within $40 of each other on the invoice.
A basic electric dryer is $550-800 new in 2026, with feature-rich models at $900-1,400. Against the completed invoices in the first-party dataset this symptom sits at $311-437, so even the top of that band is inside half the price of the cheapest new machine - which is why the age of the machine rather than the size of the quote is what decides this one. The part barely moves the bill: the publisher's own line is that a dryer which will not heat has four usual causes and three of them sit within $40 of each other on the invoice, so a higher quote is not evidence of a worse fault.
S1 puts dryer life at 10-13 years and S2 sets its replacement threshold at ten years; the decision below uses the ten-year line
Have a quote?
Put your quote and the age of the unit into the calculator — the same half-of-new-price rule, with your own numbers.
dryer runs but stays cold takes three cycles to dry a load
This is the root cause behind most no-heat calls, not just a maintenance chore: when the exhaust cannot escape, the cabinet overheats and the safety fuse cuts the heat. The source calls lint restriction the leading cause of dryer fires, so it has to be cleared end to end before any part is replaced. Time basis: no published duration, book estimate for the full vent run.
dryer runs but stays cold drum turns but there is no heat
A one-time fuse: it blows because of the vent restriction, so replacing it without clearing the vent blows the new one again. S2 prices the parts at $15-45 and the thermostat-and-fuse job at $130-240. Time basis: no published duration, book estimate.
drum turns but there is no heat dryer runs but stays cold
On an electric dryer the drum spins on 120 volts while the heat needs the full 240, so a partially tripped double-pole breaker looks like a dead element. Reset both poles firmly. Free, and worth checking before buying any part.
| Cause | Cost | Time | DIY? |
|---|---|---|---|
| clogged vent run (lint restriction) | no part needed | 45 min | easy |
| only one leg of the 240-volt circuit live | no part needed | 15 min | easy |
| failed cycling or high-limit thermostat | $15–$45 part | 60 min | advanced |
| blown thermal fuse | $10–$30 part | 45 min | easy |
| weak igniter or failed gas valve coils (gas dryers) | $30–$60 part | 90 min | advanced |
| burned-out heating element (electric dryers) | $60–$150 part | 75 min | advanced |
A technician visit starts with a diagnostic fee of $80–$130 [S3]. Completed repairs run $311–$437 [S3].
Last verified: 2026-09-29. Prices are US market figures from the sources above; your quote may differ.
Completed repairs run $311–$437 according to the sources cited on this page, after a diagnostic fee of $80–$130.
The decision rule used on this page works from a planning life of 10 years.
Past ten years, a repair above roughly $400 is hard to justify. Under six years old, nearly every repair on the list is worth doing - and a heat repair on a twelve-year-old machine is close to a coin flip.