Serviceable Component Parts

[SandShark]

You would think that a manufacturer like Welbilt, who owns brands like Manitowoc, Cleveland, Delfield, Frymaster, Garland, Kolpak, Lincoln and Convotherm, among others, would do better at providing serviceable parts for some of their components. Maybe they do for some components, but not for the component I need a part for, so we're having to buy a ~$1,000 component because of a $50 part.

Today, I got a work order from one of my school kitchens that one of their Cleveland OGS 10.10 Convotherm Oven-Steamers wasn't heating. After some brief troubleshooting, I determined that the burner fan (5018006) was misbehaving, thereby causing the burner to "short-cycle" on and off which led to the oven taking an extraordinarily long time to reach temperature. So, I disassembled it.

Basically, it's an ECM motor mounted to a housing. Inside the housing is a chicken s**t plastic blower wheel. The wheel had become separated from the shaft enough that it would "free-wheel" when the motor shaft would spin. The wheel pretty much just fell off the shaft when I split the housing open. Because the plastic wheel had been free-wheeling, the plastic hub had been wallowed out on the back side. There are no mechanical fasteners to hold the wheel onto the shaft. The wheel is basically pressed onto the motor shaft.

Of course, I downloaded the parts manual to get a part number for the wheel. Lo and behold, there were no individual part numbers for the parts that make up this component, so I called Convotherm technical support to see if they had a diagram of the component and a part number for the wheel. No such luck.

Now, we're having to purchase the whole assembly because of a $50 part.

[Turtleman]

Crappy design, any way of adding two set screws on the collar? I know hackish thoughts

[SandShark]

Crappy design, any way of adding two set screws on the collar? I know hackish thoughts

Yeah, I'm not particularly keen on hacking components for a gas appliance. Besides, I don't think I could get a drill bit on the hub at a 90 degree angle to drill pilot holes. Maybe Flex Seal?

[dieseldude]

Lets say your motor shaft is 3/8. Locate a shaft sleeve 3/8 x 1/2. increase the inner bore of the fan to 1/2. rough up the shaft and epoxy assembly to the shaft.

[SandShark]

It's not a very clear photograph, but if you look closely near the end of the shaft, there are some cross-hatch cuts that are there to hold the wheel. I don't know if a sleeve would fit properly.

I tried pressing the wheel back onto the shaft, put everything back together and within a couple of minutes of the motor spinning, probably at 3K RPM, I could feel the motor and the housing vibrating. Then, I could tell the wheel came back off the shaft. Sure enough, when I took it back apart, the wheel had come loose again. I think the wheel is slightly out of balance, so I think it's toast. Thanks for the idea, though.

[jmlandru]

Maybe not so crappy parts but crappy factory install?