Condenser Fan Motor Again?

[corrigang]

Last summer, when the temps got really hot in Central Cal. (102+), our fan on the condenser would stop running but the compresser and the inside fan would continue to run. HVAC tech diagnosed bad condenser fan motor. He changed motor and capacitor (originally had one round cap with 3 terminals, now has an additional oval cap with 2 terminals). Worked good but made excessive fan noise. He exchanged motor and changed blade. Noise was still louder than original, but tollerable. HVAC guy said there was nothing more he could do. OK....Functionally the system worked fine, even through those really hot days. Fast forward to last week when temps got to 106 here, SAME THING. After shutting unit off for 20 minutes and re starting, it would work OK until it got really hot again. I have sprinkler set up to spray the condenser and try to keep it cooler, wich has worked so far (fan motor cutting out due to excessive temp??).... Another HVAC guy says motor may be bad again, needs to check it out...Could the motor be bad already? Any advice to help not having to pay for the same repairs again would help...unit is Zephyr by RUUD, model EADC-048JAS in 1500 sq ft home, both new in yr 2000.
Thanks for the site and any advice.

[bama 101]

is the fan cutting off on internal overload due to heat or burning out?

[frank shelley]

Check warranty info first. Warranty's will vary. Sounds like you checked with a diff person or company. Have them look for mitigating cause of pre mature failure. Or it could be we live in a mechanical world and mechanical things break even when there new.

[docholiday]

Could be a number of things. That unit is long out of warranty.

I would however try to get an OEM motor, fan blade and capacitor and clean the outdoor coil. A little clogging of that coil and the air temps passing over that motor may be nearly 140-150 degrees.

[gcastillo]

It may be that the "tech" had the wrong size motor for your unit. Call him or you may be able to call a RUUD tech support line yourself to ask what HP and RPM is supposed to go in that unit. He may have sized it wrong and that would be giving you symptoms like the ones you are having now.

[docholiday]

The replacement motor would be a tripsaver 1/5 hp 1075RMP motor. Part no. 51-23055-11

[corrigang]

Thanks for the responses: Bama, for what it's worth my GUESS is it's not burning out since it will work again after cooling down. (BTW, since doing the sprinkler rig it has not hapened again YET, which logic would lead me to GUESS that it's an excessive heat problem). Frank, no more warranty, I suspect it's broken again. Doc, tech that did work had tried to get original (at my request) but could not find oem GE motor (I came up short also with web search and phone calls). Was supposed to be direct match as far as hp (1/3 I think) rpm, etc...he did have to cut the shaft on the motor shorter though (that did not seem like a direct match to me). As far as I can see, the coils look relatively clean, I hose them off a few times each summer. Gcastillo, see above as far as OEM...I guess my question(s) would be; 1. Is there much more I can try to clean the coils? (or anything else).
2. When I get another tech out here and he tells me that he needs to install another motor and Cap again, should I be suspicious, or does this just (as Frank suggests) happen sometimes (lucky me). Apreciate the feedback guys, as I will have to get tech out soon, I want to be somewhat informed on what seems legit and what smells of BS.
Thanks again.

[steamer]

Silly question, but Ive seen it before , is the fan turning in the correct direction, And just look on the unit identification tag and it will tell you what motor (size, hp,rpm) came factory.

What was the size and pitch of the original fan blade, if they replaced the blade and went to a different blade and pitch, this may overheat a certain hp motor.

And if you have any mechanical ability and have a clamp on amp meter, find the common wire for the CFM and amp it out while running in the heat of the day.

Also the pressures would be nice to know, if your pulling very high head pressure for some reason, the motor will be pulling a higher temprature while running also,alot of time I see, that the fan blades are installed improperly and they do not pull enough air out of the condensor, which leads to higher head pressures, and motor failure.

[rtu]

I'm with Docholiday on this one-
Any rheem/ruud distributor can get
that oem motor & blade, Might not be
on the shelf so may have to order it.
Was the oem mtr open ventilation and
possibly replaced with a totally enclosed?
That would also contribute to these symptons.

[steamer]

Well if the original cfm was a 1/5hp 1075 rpm motor, there is no reason a 1/4hp universal fasco or GE, or Rescue motor would not work, the fan blade is another story, this part of the equation must be investigated.

Man if everyone waited for factory oem parts to be put back, there would be alot of ticked off customers, especially out here in Vegas, where the heat eats up CFM's like candy, Granted oem parts are needed for certain applications of the hvac system, but CFM's are pretty universal.(as long as the amp rating and hp and rpm are within parimeters of the original motor)

One other point that many techs pass up when installing cfms,"TAKE THE DRAIN PLUG OUT"if you have a upside down cfm and the downside drain plug is not removed at installation, guess where all the moisture over the winter goes, it will destroy a motor in months.

[frank shelley]

Originally posted by steamer
Well if the original cfm was a 1/5hp 1075 rpm motor, there is no reason a 1/4hp universal fasco or GE, or Rescue motor would not work, the fan blade is another story, this part of the equation must be investigated.

Man if everyone waited for factory oem parts to be put back, there would be alot of ticked off customers, especially out here in Vegas, where the heat eats up CFM's like candy, Granted oem parts are needed for certain applications of the hvac system, but CFM's are pretty universal.(as long as the amp rating and hp and rpm are within parimeters of the original motor)

One other point that many techs pass up when installing cfms,"TAKE THE DRAIN PLUG OUT"if you have a upside down cfm and the downside drain plug is not removed at installation, guess where all the moisture over the winter goes, it will destroy a motor in months.

Well put.

[docholiday]

So we are clear, the motor spelled out in the replacement parts book is just that, a replacement, not the OEM motor. Generally the OEM motors are not produced once the model is no longer in production but an equal or sufficient replacment motor, such as the trip-saver is selected that works in its place.