Austroflamm Integra ticking convection fan

[Austronuts]

I have an Austroflamm Integra free standing stove. The convection fan is making this ticking sound. I was hoping that it was the bearings at each end of the fan. I took the fan out and greased the bearings. Put it back together and it still makes the same sound.

When I had it apart I noticed that the round metal piece that runs through the fan motor had some scoring on it. Could this be it??

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance

 

[Mark_ms]

At the end of the fan there is a bushing that is probably worn and off center. It looks like this
You have to make sure the fan shaft is in the center of the bushing when you reinstall.
Picture of the scoring you mention would be good.

 

[Austronuts]

At the end of the fan there is a bushing that is probably worn and off center. It looks like this
You have to make sure the fan shaft is in the center of the bushing when you reinstall.
Picture of the scoring you mention would be good.

Attached is the image of the scoring.

I'm assuming there is a bushing at each end of the squirrel cage??

The one furthest away from the motor is easy to change. How do you get at the one on the motor end?? Looks like it is buried inside the cage.

Thanks

Thanks

 

[Austronuts]

Attached is the image of the scoring.

I'm assuming there is a bushing at each end of the squirrel cage??

The one furthest away from the motor is easy to change. How do you get at the one on the motor end?? Looks like it is buried inside the cage.

Thanks

Thanks

Also noticed that my end bushing doesn't have a metal cap on the end like some of the end bushings that I have seen on other websites.

 

[Mark_ms]

Also noticed that my end bushing doesn't have a metal cap on the end like some of the end bushings that I have seen on other websites.

Some bushings do not have a metal nipple exposed some are covered with rubber, but they all have a metal bushing on the inside of the rubber.
In order to replace it, the squirrel cage has to be removed
I was thinking the ticking noise you heard was the squirrel cage not being parallel and rubbing against the fan housing somewhere.
I don't know what to say about the scoring on the shaft.

How long have you had the Integra? Do you have an owners manual? I could send a link for one if needed.

 

[smwilliamson]

The metal cap bushing is the replacement bushing, not OEM. That scoring is on the stator and that is normal. If the motor is making the noise it may be that the fan has a crack in it, or a washer is missing from the stator shaft. Could also be a bad bearing inside of the tangential fan and under the motor .

 

[Austronuts]

Some bushings do not have a metal nipple exposed some are covered with rubber, but they all have a metal bushing on the inside of the rubber.
In order to replace it, the squirrel cage has to be removed
I was thinking the ticking noise you heard was the squirrel cage not being parallel and rubbing against the fan housing somewhere.
I don't know what to say about the scoring on the shaft.

How long have you had the Integra? Do you have an owners manual? I could send a link for one if needed.

Yes I do have the manual already. It's the one with all the trouble shooting stuff in it. If you have a different one I would like to see it.

I bought the stove over this last summer. I have run about 60 pounds of pellets through it so far.

I will try to adjust the angle of the housing to see if that helps. I did notice that the end bracket at the motor was a little bit kicked out at the bottom. I'm gonna try dropping it on the right end to close the gap and see if that fixes it.

 

[Austronuts]

Adjusted the fan bracket and closed that gap. I also took the fan right out of the stove too. While inspecting it I wiggled the rotor shafts and noticed that there is a squeeking sound coming from the piece of rubber that is connected to the squirrel cage. This is Def where the noise is coming from. I attached a photo. If you look between the fins you can see the rubber part I'm talking about.

I would like to get at it. Is there anyway to get that rotor shafts out of the squirrel cage?

 

[smwilliamson]

It possible but I doubt that's where it's coming from. To get in there you have to remove the motor from the fan housing. You are going to have one of two different styles. On some units there are four mounting feet that set down into slots and the motor twists to lock into posisition and one tab will be bent down to lock one foot into posisition. The other style, the legs of the motor also twist to turn in but there will be one screw that locks into a threaded wedge to hold the motor in posisition. With the first style you need to bent the foot up with a flat head screwdriver so its out of the way and then you want to tap, and I emphisize TAP one leg until the motor twists past the nubs and can be pulled up or if you have the second style....once the screw is loose from the wedge the motor will freely turn. Once you have the motor spun you want to pull it out of the fan. It may be a hard pull but whatever you do, don't try and lube it up before pulling. The axle of the motor compresses into the rubber gromet inside the fan and that friction or "grab" allows the fan to spin. The rubber piece is part of the power transmission. Greasing or lubing the axle wills cause the gromet to slip and the fan will spin fast and slow and the sound of the air speed changing will drive you whacko. It will be just as tough to push it back in. After the motor is out you can inspect the inner bearing which is just behind the gromet and under the motor. That's likely where the sound is coming from. If you can run the fan out of the stove, try pushing lightly on the bushing at the other end of the fan while it's turning. If the noise changes, turn the fan off and push on the whole fan away from the motor and toward the bushjng at the far end, it's likely that the rubber gromet is being compressed inward toward the motor. Stretching out the gromet away from the motor can sometimes clear up that sound. If the bushing at the far end is worn out of round the whole fan can wobble and that may need to be replaced or at the least, packed with some lithium grease.

 

[Austronuts]

It possible but I doubt that's where it's coming from. To get in there you have to remove the motor from the fan housing. You are going to have one of two different styles. On some units there are four mounting feet that set down into slots and the motor twists to lock into posisition and one tab will be bent down to lock one foot into posisition. The other style, the legs of the motor also twist to turn in but there will be one screw that locks into a threaded wedge to hold the motor in posisition. With the first style you need to bent the foot up with a flat head screwdriver so its out of the way and then you want to tap, and I emphisize TAP one leg until the motor twists past the nubs and can be pulled up or if you have the second style....once the screw is loose from the wedge the motor will freely turn. Once you have the motor spun you want to pull it out of the fan. It may be a hard pull but whatever you do, don't try and lube it up before pulling. The axle of the motor compresses into the rubber gromet inside the fan and that friction or "grab" allows the fan to spin. The rubber piece is part of the power transmission. Greasing or lubing the axle wills cause the gromet to slip and the fan will spin fast and slow and the sound of the air speed changing will drive you whacko. It will be just as tough to push it back in. After the motor is out you can inspect the inner bearing which is just behind the gromet and under the motor. That's likely where the sound is coming from. If you can run the fan out of the stove, try pushing lightly on the bushing at the other end of the fan while it's turning. If the noise changes, turn the fan off and push on the whole fan away from the motor and toward the bushjng at the far end, it's likely that the rubber gromet is being compressed inward toward the motor. Stretching out the gromet away from the motor can sometimes clear up that sound. If the bushing at the far end is worn out of round the whole fan can wobble and that may need to be replaced or at the least, packed with some lithium grease.

Just to be clear..

Twist motor out of housing and pull it out of the squirrel cage.

Thanks very much

 

[smwilliamson]

Just to be clear..

Twist motor out of housing and pull it out of the squirrel cage.

Thanks very much

Yes

 

[Austronuts]

Yes

So here is the update.

The sound is completely gone now.

I unplugged the stove. I tried to chase the wire coming off the fan to the electrical bank that they come from. This was to tedious so I marked the wires and cut them. Then I took the fan out. To do this I pulled the four screws holding the bracket to the stove. At first it wouldnt slide out so I gave it a little tap with a hammer to persuade it. Looks like it was also secured with some high temp silicone. Once I broke that bond the fan came right out.

Then I removed the fan motor from the fan housing by taking the two screws out on the end of the motor. This removes the fan body but leaves behind the rotor and shaft. There are washers on the shaft that you don't want to lose.

I also used a pick and put a little bit of grease around the rotor shaft head on the inside of the squirrel cage and on the outside. I know a previous post said not to use any grease on this but I did it before that was posted. I didn't lube the axle all the way through the transmission just on the outer edges of the tranny grommet. It seems to have done the trick. The fan is dead silent

I adjusted the end bracket so it was sitting correctly on the end of the fan motor. To do this I had to get the four screws lose. Then I was able to move the fan up on the left and down on the right. This made the bracket sit correctly.

Then I reconnected the wires and started the stove.


Thank you for all of your input!!