What maintenance do you do on your fans?

[sometimewoodworker]

3 hours ago, crazykopite said:

I have Mr Ken ceiling fans fully remote 6 speed super super quiet they are ac to dc cost 5,000 baht+ but worth every baht as I use them a lot I just wipe them with a damp cloth once a month best fans I have ever owned and because the reduce to DC there is less wear on them they are wooden but sprayed in a beautiful silver colour. Had them in for two years and they are as new as when purchased. The shape of the blade gives better air flow and you can also change the direction of the fan rotation by remote control

I'm with you on those, we have 11 of them

[Artisi]

26 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

They are brushless motors.

So are the majority of AC motors, especially for house hold appliances. 

Edited September 7, 2019 by Artisi

[DJ54]

Take fan apart clean also AC filters once a month. Keeps

them running good... easy enough....just outside the village

and get a fair amount of dirt blowing around...

[sometimewoodworker]

6 hours ago, Artisi said:

So are the majority of AC motors, especially for house hold appliances. 

And your point is?

 

You asked why Mr. Ken fans which use brushless DC motors would wear less than most other fans. The vast majority, all cheap, fans use AC motors, all cheap AC motors are brushed. 

 

Not all AC motors use brushes there are induction motors. No cheap fan or even moderately expensive fan uses an induction motor.

 

This is about fans not fridges, washing machines, vacuum cleaners or AIr conditioning. 

[sometimewoodworker]

9 hours ago, Artisi said:

Some sintered bearings are  impregnated with graphite - not sure if used in fan motors. 

If they use graphite then they will not dry out!

[Crossy]

2 hours ago, sometimewoodworker said:

No cheap fan or even moderately expensive fan uses an induction motor.

 

I have NEVER come across a fan, even a cheap one, with anything other than an induction motor (not a brush in sight).

 

All are capacitor-run, single-phase induction motors.

[Artisi]

Just now, Crossy said:

 

I have NEVER come across a fan, even a cheap one, with anything other than an induction motor.

 

All are capacitor-run, single-phase induction motors.

Correct. 

[Artisi]

2 hours ago, sometimewoodworker said:

And your point is?

 

You asked why Mr. Ken fans which use brushless DC motors would wear less than most other fans. The vast majority, all cheap, fans use AC motors, all cheap AC motors are brushed. 

 

Not all AC motors use brushes there are induction motors. No cheap fan or even moderately expensive fan uses an induction motor.

 

This is about fans not fridges, washing machines, vacuum cleaners or AIr conditioning. 

Why ask Mr Ken, all ceiling fans are induction motors (no brushes) - - plus if you consider an  A/C unit to be a household unit why not a ceiling fan. 

[NanLaew]

15 hours ago, Seeall said:

I thought Hatari good, all 3 died within years, fancy remotes prob not good idea..

We have a universal floor fan remote control. It's called the wife's niece. Never had a problem unless she's busy playing on her phone.

[NanLaew]

11 hours ago, Just Weird said:

Those breakages are not caused by dust-induced imbalance!  Thanks for the superfluous clue that I didn't need.

These fan breakages are usually caused by a heat-stressed plastic hub breaking down. The crack increases with the centrifugal forces and increasing imbalance until the hub partially disintegrates. Now what can cause the plastic hub to get so hot?

 

11 hours ago, RideJocky said:

Dust accumulation on the blade and shroud generally will not cause imbalance, as it typically collects evenly. But dust on the blade and or shroud absolutely increases the friction which has a significant negative impact on the performance and the longevity of the motor.

...and the excess heat passes down the shaft and into the plastic fan hub.

 

Here endeth the 3rd lesson.

[Max69xl]

On 9/6/2019 at 10:02 PM, Kwasaki said:

Clean em when dirty if they ain't broke don't try to mess with them.

Working with some cealing fans, that's real hard work. A floor fan is so easy to take apart and clean. Then some oil and you're done. 

[Artisi]

21 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

These fan breakages are usually caused by a heat-stressed plastic hub breaking down. The crack increases with the centrifugal forces and increasing imbalance until the hub partially disintegrates. Now what can cause the plastic hub to get so hot?

 

...and the excess heat passes down the shaft and into the plastic fan hub.

 

Here endeth the 3rd lesson.

I think 3rd lesson needs a review, as there is insufficient heat "passing down the shaft" to cause the failure. 

I would suggest injection moulding stresses along with some aerofoil imperfections leading to stress failure of the el-cheapo plastic. 

[Jane Dough]

Despite age, I try and see to my 'fan' a couple of times a week. 

 

Regarding the phat loms, I give them the odd clean.

 

Rooster

[bert bloggs]

nothing ,my wife does everything around the house ,even wash the car and do the garden ,she is a fitness freak ,anyway i am far to busy ,watching tv .????

[wavodavo]

On 9/7/2019 at 7:07 AM, roo860 said:

Good going over with WD40.
When you've cleaned all the dust out, airline is useful.

Sent from my SM-G920F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app
 

What airline do you mean ? Thai...Singapore  ..Qantas..??  HA!HA!

[Vacuum]

On 9/7/2019 at 2:20 AM, Just Weird said:

Sharp put a sticker, heavier than dust, on one of the blades at the factory

Perhaps this is how they balance the 'propeller'?

[sometimewoodworker]

2 hours ago, Crossy said:

 

I have NEVER come across a fan, even a cheap one, with anything other than an induction motor (not a brush in sight).

 

All are capacitor-run, single-phase induction motors.

Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa 

 

Or even 

[Crossy]

7 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa 

 

Or even 

 

Love it!. Saved for those embarrassing moments ????

 

[Artisi]

2 minutes ago, Crossy said:

 

Love it!. Saved for those embarrassing moments ????

 

Shouldn't the back-ground sign say reflectory? 

[sometimewoodworker]

29 minutes ago, Artisi said:

Shouldn't the back-ground sign say reflectory? 

Sorry you've lost me on that one.

[Artisi]

22 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

Sorry you've lost me on that one.

Refectory --  Reflect (ory)

Edited September 8, 2019 by Artisi

[sometimewoodworker]

5 hours ago, Artisi said:

Refectory --  Reflect (ory)

Still lost. I can understand the words but not the implication or why changing the name of the monks eating area seems funny.

[Artisi]

49 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

Still lost. I can understand the words but not the implication or why changing the name of the monks eating area seems funny. 

 

Reflecting,

thinking back on "ac motors brushless" 

Sorry, best I can do. 

Maybe Crossy and I have a warped sense of humour ????

Edited September 8, 2019 by Artisi

[khunPer]

On 9/6/2019 at 4:03 PM, Hal65 said:

Curious what you guys do in terms of fan maintenance and whether it does much to keep Thai made fans running for more years without problems.

Maintenance: Keep them clean.

 

Lifetime: I had three ceiling fans that died after approximately 9 years of use – out of 10 ceiling fans, and two large floor fans, 6 exhaust fans – two might have died due to unstable grid power supply, and one outdoor simply rusted apart (I live by a beach), and will not be replaced (hardly ever used). Only ceiling fans run 24/7, however most of them.

[NanLaew]

On 9/8/2019 at 9:08 AM, Artisi said:

I think 3rd lesson needs a review, as there is insufficient heat "passing down the shaft" to cause the failure. 

I would suggest injection moulding stresses along with some aerofoil imperfections leading to stress failure of the el-cheapo plastic. 

I take it you haven't removed the grill and blades and touched the actual shaft of a fan that's been running all night and just been turned off?

[NanLaew]

16 hours ago, Artisi said:

Reflecting,

thinking back on "ac motors brushless" 

Sorry, best I can do. 

Maybe Crossy and I have a warped sense of humour ????

I agree but it can be tough on some where humour isn't their native language...

[Artisi]

45 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

I agree but it can be tough on some where humour isn't their native language...

I figured that might have been the case. 

 

47 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

I take it you haven't removed the grill and blades and touched the actual shaft of a fan that's been running all night and just been turned off?

Yes, but insufficient temp. for a thermal moulded plastic component to cause failure. 

 

Edit: doubt the fan temp would be in excess of 60 C, thermal injected plastics are moulded at above 200 C

Edited September 9, 2019 by Artisi

[NanLaew]

2 hours ago, Artisi said:

I figured that might have been the case. 

 

Yes, but insufficient temp. for a thermal moulded plastic component to cause failure. 

 

Edit: doubt the fan temp would be in excess of 60 C, thermal injected plastics are moulded at above 200 C

...when the plastic fan was injected molded about 10 years ago.

 

Why does Big C, Amorn and others always seem to have a large stock of replacement fan blades?

[Artisi]

30 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

...when the plastic fan was injected molded about 10 years ago.

 

Why does Big C, Amorn and others always seem to have a large stock of replacement fan blades?

Fatigue, inbuilt casting stresses combined with axial load at the root of the blade.

Send me the next failure you have and I will undertake a full failure analysis on your behalf. ????

[Just Weird]

On 9/8/2019 at 9:28 AM, Vacuum said:

On 9/7/2019 at 9:20 AM, Just Weird said:

Sharp put a sticker, heavier than dust, on one of the blades at the factory

Perhaps this is how they balance the 'propeller'?

I just clicked on 'Like' for that and then I realised that there's a pretty high possibility that you actually really meant that!