Seeking Travis Avalon Rainier Blower Bearings.

[Otis B Driftwood]

Flip: I did indeed and it's drinking oil riiight now!

And to think that I thought only Arabs took their baths in oil ...

 

[SidecarFlip]

My wife is Italian and she loves oil too.......

Do as Begreen suggests and drill a small hole on the outside of each of the bearings (if more than one) in a place where you can access the holes when everything is put back together and give the bearings a shot of oil every spring.

I've never replaced the bronze bearings in any of my distribution fan motors, not the auger drives. I take the unit apart every spring and oil them up. The problem is, if you let them get dry and stay dry, the steel motor shaft will oval the bushings and then they are junk. Hopefully yours aren't too bad.

Cheap to manufacture but you have to lubricate them or buy a new motor/fan.

 

[Beer Belly]

Cheap to manufacture but you have to lubricate them or buy a new motor/fan.

That is what we did, bought an entire assembly and saved the one good Blower Motor as a replacement if need be. I applaud you for your patience, I for one, take the easy road......would of thrown it thru a window, then I'd have two problems

 

[Beer Belly]

Just wondering, how are you doing on the Blower Switch ?....we replace ours practically every year.

 

[Otis B Driftwood]

I take the unit apart every spring and oil them up.

Flip, I don't mind taking the motor apart every year,
because The House is in worse shape, so the fan is
nothing by comparison.

Once I'm done soaking the bearings, you're saying it's
a good idea to drill and re-oil using "3-in-1" as well
or will the oil bath alone suffice?

 

[Otis B Driftwood]

Just wondering, how are you doing on the Blower Switch ?....we replace ours practically every year.

Great Question. We replace ours every 1 – 3 years.

My guess is a heat shield may improve longevity.

You may have seen a fellow burner here tear apart
his fan and added a heat sink. Similar thread to this
one, gabbing about bearings if I recall.

It's a pain but it's the price we pay for cheap stuff.

When one thinks of it, with these fans going con-
stantly for several months, they do pretty well.

That said, I do have a quibble with the wiring.
To me, the sheathing is way too thin to prevent
an accidental short. You'd think the heat would
be enough to melt them. I check every year.

 

[begreen]

Flip, I don't mind taking the motor apart every year,
because The House is in worse shape, so the fan is
nothing by comparison.

Once I'm done soaking the bearings, you're saying it's
a good idea to drill and re-oil using "3-in-1" as well
or will the oil bath alone suffice?

For this year and maybe next the oil bath will suffice. The exterior oil hole will eliminate the need for taking the motor apart.

 

[Otis B Driftwood]

For this year and maybe next the oil bath will suffice. The exterior oil hole will eliminate the need for taking the motor apart.

Good thing I did take it apart, I found one of the squirrel cages
was broken in two places. Glued.

 

[SidecarFlip]

Flip, I don't mind taking the motor apart every year,
because The House is in worse shape, so the fan is
nothing by comparison.

Once I'm done soaking the bearings, you're saying it's
a good idea to drill and re-oil using "3-in-1" as well
or will the oil bath alone suffice?

If you provide oiling access and oil them with a light machine oil like 3 in 1 (which by the way, now comes in a neat flat bottomed plastic container with an extendable spout), you should not have to take it apart for a long, long time (other than to blow the accumulated lint and junk out of the blower housing and possibly the motor.

I take all mine apart yearly (different stove) and clean them because my wife insists on having multiple cats in the house and I insist on having my large black medium long haired dog in the house and all of them shed and and a good portion of the hair seems to wind up in the 'works'....

 

[Otis B Driftwood]

Yeah, we had a cat once. Then Wily E Coyote caught up with her.
Never a problem – short hair.

 

[Otis B Driftwood]

WELL it's been a week and a half and put it back together
( although one of the hamster runners broke again ) and
whaddayaknow, it works! Purring like a kitten again.

One Word of Caution: Be very careful with those small
washers that bookend the aperture – they get lost easily.
They're not easily replaced. Mine appear to be fiber.

Thanks to All!