I've noticed once in a while that my Quadra-Fire Castile has started to make a buzzing noise for a second or so when the convection blower comes on - is my fan motor getting ready to let go or is there another stove part that drives the blower motor that might be going bad?
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firewarrior820
Feeling the Heat
DMKNLD said:
Have you ever taken it off to clean it ?
It can get full of hair and dust bunnies fairly quickly .
Easy job to do if you never have done it.
I vacuumed the impeller fans and housing area last spring at the end of burning season, so it shouldn't be too dirty, but will check it for dust bunnies from over the summer.
firewarrior820
Feeling the Heat
OK, but did you remove the unit from the bottom (underside) of the stove . Back off 4 screws and disconnect two wires?
Yes, I did remove the screws and dropped the blower unit down to clean it. I just looked at the fans, and they were a little dusty but nothing appeared to be obstructing them - I'm waiting until it cycles off to remove the screws and drop it down to check the motor area.
peirhead
Feeling the Heat
hard to say from a written description, my Castile has the ocassional resonnance rattle..but the blowers are clean...once in a while doesnt bother me.
SmokeyTheBear
Minister of Fire
DMKNLD said:
When you cleaned your convection blower did you also oil it.
I don't know if your convection blower has oil ports but if it does there should be a recommended oil to use and an oiling frequency to pay attention to.
Some motor manufacturers place that information on the motor plate.
My Castile owner's manual says "no lubrication is required" for the convection blower motor. I did remove the blower and blew out the dust and small pellet particles in the fan housing, but it wasn't all that dirty. The fan motor bearings seemed to spin freely w/o any obvious noises. I know that the #1 snap disc turns on the convection blower, could that cause the squeal at blower start - up if the snap disc is going bad, or is that a "works or it doesn't" electrical part?
I was vacuuming dust under the Quad Castile today and saw 4 small screw heads under the convection blower motor housing. Guessing those might have vibrated loose, and thus possibly the cause of my periodic rattle at blower start - up, and sure enough, I tightened them up a couple turns and no more rattle! 
Sometimes the 'easy fix' isn't always so obvious!
Sometimes the 'easy fix' isn't always so obvious!- Status