Motor issues

S

stlwood

New member
Hoping one of the electrical wizzes on this site might have some guidance for me:

I am pretty confident that my wiring connections are all done correctly (using the electrical box from ClearVue) and the first time I tested my motor (for a few seconds), it ran fine (although there was a noticeable click that came from the relay when it first started). I started it for the second time today (a few weeks later), and I just got a humming and then a slight sizzling sound (and faint burning rubber smell) coming from the motor - the impeller didn't turn at all (even though it spins freely if you push it by hand). The relay made the same clicking noise as it started. Obviously I shut it off after a few seconds when I realized what was going on.

Any ideas what might have caused this? After all the work it takes to get this thing up it was a pretty sickening sound/smell. Seems awfully strange that it could be getting power but not turning the axle.

The only change I've made to the motor assembly since the first time I started it was to level/tighten the nuts that attach the blower housing to the motor assembly, so no changes have been made to any of the electrical connections.

There should be some pics of my electrical connections at www.flickr.com/photos/stlwood.

Thanks in advance for any help...

JT
 
JT,
I think it is likely that the motor starting capacitor failed. Sizzling and odor both make me think the capacitor has gone. It also is possible that one of your connections at the motor (in the starting circuit) has come lose and is arcing. Sometimes a wire nut connection fails. If the starting circuit is not correct the shaft will sit still and the motor will just hum. Spin it either way by hand and it will then start up in that direction. But please don't try that with the impeller! If you can get at the box on the motor check the connections first but I think you will have to drop the motor to check the two capacitors.
bababrown
 
Thanks bababrown. I have no experience with motors; are the capacitors housed in the two "humps" that are screwed onto the outside of the motor housing?

I found this on the Leeson website under troubleshooting; unfortunately I have no idea what it means...probably that I need to call an electrician who knows motors.

Capacitor (on single phase motor) may have failed.
First discharge capacitor. To check capacitor, set volt-ohm meter to RX100 scale and touch its probes to capacitor terminals. If capacitor is OK, needle will jump to zero ohms, and drift back to high. Steady zero ohms indicates a short circuit; steady high ohms indicates an open circuit.
 
JT,
Yes the caps are in those bumps. And the instructions on testing the caps are correct. I would use something like the 1Kohm scale on the VOM and you should see the needle jump up towards zero and then drift back to a very large value. You also may see something like a cap with an end physically blown out. Good luck.
bababrown
 
Thanks. I've been youtube-ing this a bit and it seems like if it turns out to be the capacitor(s) it's a manageable fix (although it seems I'm destined to have to dissassemble and pull the damn thing down). Some of the videos I've seen describe the problem I had and suggest it could also involve the stator and/or the speed switch. In any case, are these problems the results of bad motor parts or bad wiring? I'd obviously like to have a warranty claim for this brand-new motor...
 
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