TheMG
join:2007-09-04
Edmonton, AB
 ·TELUS
1 edit | reply to Langning
Re: Where to buy silicone sealant for boiler blower assembly
said by Langning  :The blower motor on my Weil McLain boiler stopped working. It just hummed and got really hot on the housing. The boiler wouldn't start because the blower is not working. You probably didn't need to do that. The motor is likely still fine, it sounds like the capacitor has failed. Replacement capacitors can easily be obtained at most HVAC supply stores. You might be able to get one from the manufacturer too.
In case you don't know, the metal can that's strapped to the side of the motor is the capacitor.
Two steps to determine if the motor is OK:
1) power up the motor, give the rotor a bit of a spin with your hand, if the motor starts running then proceed to the next step
2) use a multimeter and test for continuity of the start winding, if you have good continuity, then the motor is OK and the capacitor is bad |
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Langning
Premium
join:2003-04-28
Marlborough, MA
 ·Verizon FIOS
| said by TheMG :In case you don't know, the metal can that's strapped to the side of the motor is the capacitor. Two steps to determine if the motor is OK: 1) power up the motor, give the rotor a bit of a spin with your hand, if the motor starts running then proceed to the next step 2) use a multimeter and test for continuity of the start winding, if you have good continuity, then the motor is OK and the capacitor is bad I thought the piggy thing is some type of thermal shut-off device when the motor body gets too hot.
I disconnected the whole assembly last night and the motor is connected to the capacitor with 2 wire clips. Can I unplug the capacitor clips and then hot wire the motor to run your test 1?
I am confused as what to do with step 2. I have 5 wires to the motor -- 1 hot, 1 neutral, 1 ground, and 2 wires clips to the capacitor. Where to put my multimeter to test for continuity of the "start winding"? |
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Langning
Premium
join:2003-04-28
Marlborough, MA
·Verizon FIOS
| reply to TheMG
Upon looking up the net, I find this
»toad.net/~jsmeenen/motor.html
If you have an electrical failure where the motor smokes or stinks it is probably done. If the motor gets hot it will usually shut off because it has a thermostat inside to protect it. A motor that was normally working ok and suddenly gets hot may have a bad run capacitor. The run capacitor is a round or flat silver can rated at 5 to 7.5 Mfd (micro farads) for most 208-230 volt motors. To test a run capacitor use this test chart NEVER an ohm meter. If this is the case you can usually just replace the capacitor and your problems may go away. Only single phase motors have run capacitors, three phase motors do not. Some motors for belt drive applications will have a start capacitor but no run capacitor. Some larger motors will have both. So now I do think I may very likely have a bad "run capacitor". |
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