Electrical puzzle - dust collector motor

[Jacques Gagnon]

Good day fellow woodworkers,

I am somewhat puzzled: the start capacitor quit on my Leeson 5hp - 230 motor (ClearVue 1800 cyclone). The capacitor "exploded" while working at the table saw, and the breaker tripped. I replaced the capacitor (including reinstalling the drain resistor) and tried to start the motor. I witnessed a severe case of "electrical motor asthma"! After many seconds (5 to 8?) of labouring efforts the impeller started to pick up speed. I turned everything off at that point.

I have not tried to conduct further diagnostics, largely because I am not sure where to start next. When looking into the electrical panel, I saw that the breaker tripped again. While I know some basic principles, I am certainly not an expert with electrical troubleshooting.

I will be grateful for your suggestions on how best to tackle this challenge.


Jacques

[Peter Christensen]

First see if the motor shaft spins feely. If not the bearings are going and could be the cause of the problem.

Pete

[Jacques Gagnon]

... I will have to take the blower apart and separate the motor from the rest. Stay tuned for the results!

[Bill Dufour]

You can probably take the fan cover off the motor and spin the fan end to see if the bearings are frozen stiff. You might even reach in with screwdriver through the slots and see if it at least moves. Maybe pull the inlet duct off and push the fan with stick.
I suspect the start switch is sticking closed so the start capacitor is always powered on.
Bill

[Jacques Gagnon]

Thanks for the suggestion; I will get back to it tomorrow. Everything seemed ok until the capacitor blew up (I suspect the system overheated after a few short runs and not enough time to cool off in between). I will check the bearings as you and Peter, but my feeling is that they will prove ok. Best way to be sure is to check, right?!

[Charles Lent]

Yes, check the bearings. Does it also have a second "run" capacitor? If it does, replace that too. The centrifugal start switch is inside the cover on the non shaft end of the motor. I would check that the contacts are not stuck together and that the plastic collar can slide easily on the shaft. When the fly weights swing out, this collar moves along the shaft and pushes on the centrifugal switch to open the contacts of the switch. Any failure of this can blow up your capacitor. You need to test the motor to make certain that all is OK before putting the DC back together. If you aren't convinced that you have found and solved the problem, take the motor to a motor shop to have it serviced and tested. Their charge will be a bargain for peace of mind, as well as not having to re-install the motor back on the DC more than once, since I'm certain that it's a big, and heavy, job.

Charley

[Jacques Gagnon]

Charles:

Thanks for the input and sorry for taking so long to reply - off the grid for a few days!

I followed your advice and brought the motor to a shop. Will find out later this week what the problem is (I had unsuccessfully tried to solve the problem with a new capacitor, but the problem persisted) ,,, and associated solution.

More to follow,

J.

[Jacques Gagnon]

... the motor shop just called; new starter switch (Charles had guessed right) and bearings will bring a new life to the motor.

Thanks all for your input!

Jacques

[Charles Lent]

Glad that I could help. Enjoy your new/old dust collector.

Charley