Auger motor

2 weeks ago roughly, my pdvc 25 went out. I figured out quickly it was the lower auger motor, which is not all that old. It was a beefier Gleason-Avery type replacement. When i removed it, the gearbox was in great shape but the motor shaft was stuck. I took it out - looked good. I put some 3 in 1 oil on it and it began to spin freely. Got about this far and tonight its starting to make odd noises, like the ones before it died last time.

Is there anything better or longer lasting than 3 in 1 oil i can put on this thing to keep it going? I have a brand new replacement in my closet just in case but it seems fine. I also plan to switch it out with the top auger motor since that runs only intermittently.

Thanks!

 

come to think of it, i think i saved my old motor with a bad gearbox but good motor. I bet i can frankenstein a working unit. still would like to see if there is some good grease that will last on this one tho.

 

You want to use 3 in 1 in the blue can. It can take the heat better.

 

Yep....what he said. It's made specifically for electric motors.

 

so i pulled it apart today to re lube it. I see where the issue is. When i pull out the motor shaft from the motor (sorry i dont know a lot of the names for electric motors) there are signs that the rotating shaft is rubbing the sides. by shaft i'm referring to the part that spins around when the motor has power. the part that drives the gearbox.
So the sides of the shaft are scratched. anyone know why this would happen? when i have it apart and have the bearing oiled, it spins freely. I can hear it tho, the bearings sound rough but it still spins freely.

I put a picture of where its scratched. I forgot to take a picture before i put it all back together so this is generic. I believe they labeled it the armature.

 

Check the bushings - they are probably not round inside, but oval due to wear. You can grasp the motor shaft and try to wiggle it in all directions. There should be negligible play. It sounds like the bushings are worn enough to allow the armature to hit the field (just what you are describing).

If you have bearings instead of bushings, they are probably worn much the same. The bearings can be replaced with a bit of effort and small cost.

 

If there are rub/scratch marks on the sides of the "armature", the bearings (bushings) are shot.....hence the noise. It's wobbling around as it spins.....not supposed to touch anything.

 

since i have a replacement to use in the meantime, i wouldnt mind tinkering trying to replace the bushing. any idea where i could find such a part? I think that would be the hardest part. Im assuming its press fit. I have a few friends with tools to do this. Not sure how i'd remove the bad one. i suppose i could dremel it off.

 

I gave up and plunked in the new motor. I woke up for work this morning and luckily it ran all night. took a shower, came out and heard weird noises from it. Then it froze right there. i put some oil on it and it spun right up and let the stove shut down properly. Tonight when i got home I put in the new spare i keep on hand and ordered a new spare. I dont think at this point its worth replacing the bearing, the armature is very badly scratched up now.

If it wasnt the bottom auger i'd have tried to limp it along but when the bottom auger stops, the top auger keeps working. this leaves a path of pellets from the burn pot right to the hopper. If the top stops working, the bottoms one clears out all the pellets and there is empty tube between the burn pot and the top auger, less chance of a hopper fire.

 

Seems that these motors are leaving far too early in their life.

Is there an issue with the bottom auger that is over stressing the motor ???

I would think these motors would last many years.

???????????

 

Between running continuously and the heat that's rough on the motors

 

This is a bottom feeder ???

Convected heat back the lower auger ????

How about adding a heat isolating coupler between the motor and the auger shaft ???

What RPM is this unit ???

 

its a 1 RPM bottom feeder. I have never taken the motor temp while running but i do know that i cannot touch it for quite sometime after a shutdown. Its a continuous operating motor and most of them say they are made for intermittent use. The tip of the auger is right smack in the fire. most of the failures i've seen are bearing/bushing related and it happens in both the top auger motor and the bottom, so heat doesnt appear to be a factor. my *favorite* failure - The motor rests on a steel plate. when a hard pellet comes by or an extra long one, the motor raises up a bit. when it cuts the pellet, it can bang down on the steel resting plate. over many years of doing this, it wore a hole in the gear case! I couldnt see the hole with the motor installed. this is what i found after it failed and i removed it :
a slight clunk after all that time wore that giant hole. Now i used gasket adhesive and rope gasket to cover the steel plate. i have to change the gasket periodically to keep it fluffy. aint this somethin?

 

Use some good contact glue and glue a rubber piece in there.

Our old Whitfields have a rubber saddle for the motor to rest in.

All the grease either ran out or was contaminated with dirt.

Unless these motors encounter severe abuse they usually run forever.
Our Whits are both early 90's and on the original motors.

 

FWIW I have a 25PDVC that I used for almost 2 years in 2007-2008 and then replaced with my current stove. It sat in my garage for at least 2 years before I moved it to my basement. Since then, it get's used for less than 10 bags a years. My bottom auger motor also failed 4 or so years ago.

 

Snowy, you gave me a fantastic idea. Now i have a use for that old tire i keep in my garage! I knew it would come in handy someday. It'll be perfect!

 

A couple of layers of old inner tube works, too.

 

I would think the tire would hold up better to the heat. It does get might hot back there. auger motor too hot to touch. I plan to try cutting a rectangle strip off the sidewall and glue it down to the plate. I would like to get the treaded part but i already know its a pita to cut through that with the wires inside and all.

The other thing is when i get ideas, i like to try them right away. its midnight now. this is a bummer. not going to shut the stove off at midnight and start playing in the garage at this hour. I guess it will have to wait till the weekend. Anyone recommend a good glue to use to bond rubber to metal in a hot environment? I suppose i could tie it there with metal wire, or i can even use a bolt with a small head and nut through the steel plate. hmm..............

 

I put a piece of rubber hose on the edge of the motor support plate for the motor to rest on. I gave up on the $130.00 augers from englander and bought the $60.00 aftermarket ones that lasted just as long.I replaced atleast 6 auger motors in the 10 years I had the PDVC, thats why I got rid of it I got tired of replacing parts.

 

Seems that the auger motor should not be THAT hot.

I have never seen an auger motor so hot that it could not be touched.

Does the motor run constantly or is it on/off like most stoves ???