The short answer
No lights means the supply: the breaker, the outlet or the cord. Lights but no drum means the door switch, the belt or the motor. On electric machines fed from a two-pole breaker, losing one leg leaves the lights on and the heat off, which is a different page.
Which one is yours
- No lights, no sound at all — A supply fault.
- Lights on, nothing happens on start — Door switch, thermal device or motor.
- A click or hum, then silence — The motor is being asked to turn and cannot.
- The breaker trips whenever it is started — Stop and read the electrical-hazard page.
- Dead after the washer ran at the same time — A shared circuit tripped.
- Not this fault: it starts and stops mid-cycle — Read the cycle page.
Ranked for closet and apartment installations
- Breaker tripped, often by a shared circuit — First, and free to correct.
- Door switch not made — Second, and very common.
- Outlet dead or the cord damaged behind the machine — Third, and worth checking at the socket.
- Thermal fuse open — Fourth: on many machines it kills the motor as well as the heat.
- Start switch or motor failed — Fifth.
- Belt broken so the drum cannot turn — Last, and it usually hums rather than sits silent.
Check in this order
- Look at the panel before anything else — Lights or no lights splits the whole diagnosis.
- Reset the breaker fully off and on — A tripped breaker can look almost closed.
- Test the outlet with something small and known-good — It separates the outlet from the machine.
- Press the door firmly closed and try again — A marginal switch is the most common lights-on cause.
Owner checks
- Switch the breaker fully off and back on — Half-tripped breakers are easy to miss.
About 10 min
- Plug a lamp or phone charger into the same outlet — It proves the supply without any tools.
About 10 min
- Check the cord where it passes behind the machine — Closet installations crush cords against the wall.
Tools: torchAbout 15 min
- Close the door firmly and start again — It tests the door switch from outside.
About 5 min
- Run the washer and dryer separately for one load each — It exposes a shared circuit tripping under load.
About 60 min
- Stop before opening the cabinet for the fuse, switch or motor — Mains wiring and lint are both in there.
Dead machines and tripping breakers
Safety
Unplug the appliance or switch off its breaker before removing any panel. A capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off. A breaker that trips every time the dryer starts is reporting a fault: stop using the machine and have it looked at. Do not run a dryer from an extension lead, and do not replace a breaker with a larger one.
When to call
Call an electrician when the outlet itself is dead, when the breaker trips repeatedly, or when a circuit cannot carry the washer and dryer together. Call an appliance technician when the supply is sound and the machine still will not run, because the fuse, switch, motor and belt are all inside. On a stacked installation, mention it when booking.
Other pages for this dryer
Page scope
Generalized across dryer families under this badge and written for the common installation types; where a family-specific or model-specific page exists it is the narrower answer. Not here: breaker ratings, outlet configurations, cord specifications and motor data.
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
