Anybody know how to clean the inside of an electric motor?

B

BARRY JONES

Joined
Oct 2, 1999
Messages
834
Any help will be greatly appreciated.

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Barry
Jones Knives

Do you hear that?
That is the sound of inevitability.
 
I've done many. You have to take it apart.
One bearing will have to be pulled from the housing. It's not always an easy thing to do
depending on the motor type.

 
George,
I think that the motor needs a little more than that. Thanks for the tip anyway.

TomW,
What do I do with it once it is taken apart?

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Barry
Jones Knives

Do you hear that?
That is the sound of inevitability.
 
Barry i'll send you an e-mail on it. It's not difficult I'll need more information.
 
I just had to replace the pump on my air compressor. The service guy said the best thing to do with the motor is this. (I have a very dusty woodworking shop and the motor is always full of dust). Heres what he told me to do. 1. blow it out real good
2. soak the whole inside with wd40.
3.wait a few minutes and blow out again
4. soak the motor again with wd40
5.Make sure motor is unpluged and let sit all night. Blow out again next morning.

The motor I have is a 7.5 hp single phase motor. I guess this would work for all motors ????

John

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http://www.toptexknives.com/yeackley.htm My contribution to the world of knife fanatics.

http://www.sixgunner.com/blumagnum/default.htm
 
Thank you all for the help.

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Barry
Jones Knives

Do you hear that?
That is the sound of inevitability.
 
well the general consensus is blow it out.. but i would add.....you need a BIG compressor WITHOUT a limiter on it (generally put on compressors to limit the pressure to 125 lbs max)...then blow it out. the general idea is that you need enough ummpt to get all the metal shavings out. the dust will come out with moderate pressure, but the metal shavings that are clinging to the magnetized part of the motor are the problem.....the wd40 sounds like an ok idea, but mostly you need lots of wind...maybe go down to an auto body shop and let them blow it out for you...most of them have LARGE air compressors as everything in the shop runs on air....



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http://www.mayoknives.com


 
I used to do a lot of this years ago but I've probably forgotten most of it but here's what I barely remember:

As everyone sez: blow it out. Cleaning a motor can mean a lot of things. Is the motor not working?

Here are some things you can do: replace the brushes (does it have brushes?). Clean the commutator with sandpaper (don't use emery cloth). You can usually clean between the commutator segments using a broken hacksaw blade. It the commutator is in bad shape, take it to a repair shop and have them lathe it.

We used to use carbon tetrachloride for cleaning and dissolving gummed oil or other gunk. Probably use trichloroethane now. You can get this in an auto supply store as brake shoe cleaner or disc brake cleaner. Whatever you use, get a solvent that does not leave a residue and is essentially nonflammable.

If the thing is wet, you can bake it in an oven at about 175 degrees for several hours to remove moisture.

Check bearings, bushings etc for wear; check for excessive runout in the shaft; check for broken wiring, bad insulation,etc.

Unplug the thing before you work on it.
smile.gif


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Hoodoo

The low, hoarse purr of the whirling stone—the light-press’d blade,
Diffusing, dropping, sideways-darting, in tiny showers of gold,
Sparkles from the wheel.

Walt Whitman
 
If its not working, and the bearings and houseing and everything seems to be in good shape. And you've tried all of the above, you might try sending it to the manufacturer to have the arbiture(not sure on spelling) rewound. I'm not sure what it costs, but it is cheaper than buying a new motor. And they should be able to tell you if its worth having done or if it even needs done.
My dad had this done a time or two with the starter for a tractor and it was much cheaper than buying a new starter, and seemed to be a pretty good fix.

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Fix it right the first time, use Baling Wire !
 
:
When I was in the machine shop we had to cleanthe oil from electric motors occasionaly due to the oil mist that floated in the air. Automatic screw machine are notorious for making oil mist!!
There was a nonflamble spray that was used while the motor was running. I don't recall the name of the stuff and I have seen it used, but only used it once myself and that has been a few years back.
Perhaps a place that services motrs might be able to tell you what it was.
I don't know if it would be the application that you're looking for and I wonder about useing something like that where a motor has been exposed to grinding dust and grit.


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