Anyone repair their own motors? (Start switches, bearings, etc)

[Mchas]

How much is your time worth? You started this thread over six weeks ago and from what I see you still haven't gotten a working motor. Are you really saving anything trying to DIY? I respect the ambition but I see it all the time where someone is trying to save some money but don't factor in their time(and sometimes their mental well being) into the equation and when they start properly valuing their time they realize they're not saving anything. I'm not suggesting hiring someone else for every job, just pick your battles.

You are correct that single phase motors will not last nearly as long as 3 phase. How much would it cost to have 3 phase run into the site? Over the long haul it may very well be more cost efficient than hassling with motors all the time.

I hear you but I still think it’s worth it in the long run. Sure I started the thread 6 weeks ago but I haven’t spent 6 solid weeks working on this. I bought the parts and they sat around until I felt like giving it a try a few nights ago. And when I say “I”, I really meant I and the maintenance guy that works for me, who is pretty good at rebuilding pumps and motors.

This all an upfront time investment but once “I” figure this out then I am confident we will be able to easily do it going forward.

When I first started running my washes I would pay a repair company to come swap out the motor. At the time they were charging $100/hr plus drive time plus parts and they’d mark up the motors. It would cost me $1000+ to replace the motor at a time when a new motor cost maybe $400. Sure, it would be zero time or work for me but I was paying $600+ each time. Do you think it’s worth me doing it in that case? It only takes about an hour to swap a motor (and my maintenance guy does it now, not me personally). Oh, and the repair company doesn’t work weekends so if a motor died on a Friday my bay would be down all weekend so part of doing it myself is to minimize downtime which also increases sales.

As for repairing the motors it also takes my maintenance guy time to drive the motor to the repair shop and drive back to pick it up when it’s fixd, so he could spend that time doing the repair instead and not have to wait several weeks to get it back. Another factor is that the owner of the repair shop is pretty old and I am sure he will retire soon so unless I can find another local shop I might not even be able to have him do the repairs for much longer.

So - I understand the sentiment and I agree it’s often not worth the time repairing some things but I am confident that saving a few hundred dollars rebuilding a motor is worth it.

As for running 3 phase to the site I would love to do that but I was told the power company (SCE) won’t or can’t, and it would also be extremely expensive to replace everything. I’ll look into it again though. It would be nice to have for sure.

 

[Dan kamsickas]

I hear you but I still think it’s worth it in the long run. Sure I started the thread 6 weeks ago but I haven’t spent 6 solid weeks working on this. I bought the parts and they sat around until I felt like giving it a try a few nights ago. And when I say “I”, I really meant I and the maintenance guy that works for me, who is pretty good at rebuilding pumps and motors.

Not trying to start an argument. It sounds like you've thought it out which is far, far better than some. Perfect example: I have one customer that I've been working with on some vacs and yesterday he mentioned that his auto has been down for a month and he can't figure that out either. When I inquired as to what his distributor thinks the issue is his exact response was : "I haven't called them because they charge too much I'll figure it out myself." Dude, you've been down for a month. How much revenue have you lost and how many customers have you lost?

Doesn't surprise me with SCE. I've got one customer whose got a site that the incoming power is swinging by more that 90 volts and they are trying to tell him that HE has to pay for a new transformer and connection.

 

[Mchas]

Not trying to start an argument. It sounds like you've thought it out which is far, far better than some. Perfect example: I have one customer that I've been working with on some vacs and yesterday he mentioned that his auto has been down for a month and he can't figure that out either. When I inquired as to what his distributor thinks the issue is his exact response was : "I haven't called them because they charge too much I'll figure it out myself." Dude, you've been down for a month. How much revenue have you lost and how many customers have you lost?

Doesn't surprise me with SCE. I've got one customer whose got a site that the incoming power is swinging by more that 90 volts and they are trying to tell him that HE has to pay for a new transformer and connection.

All good, I appreciate other perspectives and questioning if what I am doing makes sense. An automatic down for a whole month - ouch! Definitely worth paying up in that case.

 

[Keno]

Other option if you want a 3 phase motor is to add a vfd/inverter and swap single phase motors for 3 phase

 

[Mchas]

Other option if you want a 3 phase motor is to add a vfd/inverter and swap single phase motors for 3 phase

I thought about possibly doing that, but I am guessing it would cost $10k+ for 5 inverters and 5 new motors?

 

[Keno]

I thought about possibly doing that, but I am guessing it would cost $10k+ for 5 inverters and 5 new motors?

Without looking up prices, that's probably in the ballpark, but that would still be cheaper than getting 3 phase for the whole wash, which you said is a no go anyways. Maybe do them 1 at a time as the single phase motors die

 

[FortCW]

I thought about possibly doing that, but I am guessing it would cost $10k+ for 5 inverters and 5 new motors?

If you know what you’re doing wiring and programming a vfd it can be cost effective. Check out automationdirect.com you can choose from nema 1 ACG-2010 for $414 or a nema 4x (washdown rated) drive ACNND-2010 for $690. If needing an electrician to help with installation the costs will easily be back in the $10k ballpark