Model Number: 279894
Brand: Whirlpool
Age: More than 10 years
The coils on my gas dryer (Whirlpool model LWI7701W1) burner needed replacement. The burner valve cover indicates it is "Part NO. 342407, TYPE 25K39A-21. However, a paper label on the front of the old burner bracket reads "BURNER ASSEMBLY NO. 343112, CONVERSION KIT 239072, PART NO. 342119". The machine runs on natural gas.
Not being able to find the coils, I replaced the burner assembly with the Whirlpool gas burner kit 279894.The kit is listed as a replacement for the original 25K type gas valve, but is rated as 22,000 BTU vs. 25,000 BTU for the original. The instructions state that if the old unit is not rated at 22,000 BTU remove the old orifice and install it in the new assembly. I did not do so reasoning that a 22,000 BTU burner would have a slightly smaller orifice and would run marginally cooler. Visually the orifice openings appeared the same. No changes were made beyond the burner replacement.
However, when testing the operation after the change, the flame completely filled the burner funnel and extended into the heater box. The cabinet was noticeably hotter and the exhaust ducts were quite hot to the touch. (The flame on the previous burner had been contained within the burner funnel.)
I am concerned both because the hotter temperature could be a potential fire hazard, and because the machine is producing a lot of waste heat.
Does the 22,000 BTU orifice on the new burner produce a larger, hotter flame than the old 25,000 BTU orifice, or could there be a different explanation?