Had a Kenmore dryer heating element fail in a way I've never seen before

It was on a service call yesterday, and the element had actually cracked and split lengthwise down the middle of the coil instead of just burning out. I replaced it, obviously, but it got me thinking about vibration or stress points. Has anyone else run into a heating element failing like that, and what did you think caused it?

3 comments

3 Comments

lewis.mila3d ago

Honestly, a cracked coil sounds wild but is it really that big of a deal? Tbh, stuff just breaks sometimes in weird ways.

samflores3d ago

Wait, could it be a tiny manufacturing flaw?

jana8813d ago

Yeah, lewis.mila is right that stuff just breaks weird sometimes, but a split down the middle is a new one for me too. I saw a coil once that looked like it had a tiny bubble in the metal from the factory, and it finally gave out after years of heating and cooling. That constant expansion and contraction has to put stress on weak spots. Makes you wonder if some batches just have a hidden flaw that takes years to show up.