[Noteworthy] Baldor 215yz 10 Hp Deconstructed

Sadly... with fully hermetic (sealed) compressors... the windings usually fail first.

It is the result of sloppy installs... moisture mixes with the oil in the compressor, and the heat of operation causes an acid substance to form. This acid literally eats the insulation off the windings of the motor inside the sealed can.

Lots of compressors get changed, due to acid. When we have an acid burnout... the entire refrigeration loop has to be thoroughly flushed... or in a month or so, one will be putting another pump in.

Separates the 'hacks' from the real service people... :)
 
i usually say something like this...
Pay me a few hundred more, now, OR a lot more later on- it's your machine (motor in this case), your money and
your call !
 
Ulma Doctor said:
i usually say something like this...
Pay me a few hundred more, now, OR a lot more later on- it's your machine (motor in this case), your money and
your call !
Click to expand...

Yeah... I try to explain it to folks.

Sometimes they understand... sometimes they go with a cheap 'hack'.
When I get that call a month later... when they want me to straighten out the mess the hack made...
Well that is when they actually listen to me... <grin>
In all reality... this only happens a few times a year... But it never ceases to amaze me... some folks just to not listen when we try to explain.... :)
 
It is the same in the electrical industry, and I imagine all over. Customer asks a question, receives an answer he does not want to hear and suddenly is way smarter than you. Simply amazing how the thought of spending a little money really makes people smart. Even if it is stupid smart. :confused 2:
 
You are absolutely right about Baldor being the cream of the crop. The motor you have is what we called an OEM motor.
It has just enough features on it that a standard frame motor would not directly replace it.
I used to love it when they came in the door $$$.
Manufacturers love them because you have to buy a replacement from them and not your average motor supplier $$$.
I wound many a 3 phase motor in days past, every once in a while we'd get in a really big one in our shop (Precision Armature Co) 100hp or so.
The shop didn't have a heavy enough service to test run them at full boogey under load, so we would connect them as if they were to be run on 440 volts (Series) and run them on 220 volts.
Which is fine as long as they are not being used under load.
Hi Pot test them to make sure they aren't grounded (VERY BAD), use an Amprobe to test the phases for balanced current draw and send them out the door.
This kept us from detonating the transformers on the pole behind the shop.
Scares the Hell out of the neighbors, stinks like all get out and usually puts the lights out for them as well. WHOOPS.....
 
9Sec93LX said:
You are absolutely right about Baldor being the cream of the crop. The motor you have is what we called an OEM motor.
It has just enough features on it that a standard frame motor would not directly replace it.
I used to love it when they came in the door $$$.
Manufacturers love them because you have to buy a replacement from them and not your average motor supplier $$$.
I wound many a 3 phase motor in days past, every once in a while we'd get in a really big one in our shop (Precision Armature Co) 100hp or so.
The shop didn't have a heavy enough service to test run them at full boogey under load, so we would connect them as if they were to be run on 440 volts (Series) and run them on 220 volts.
Which is fine as long as they are not being used under load.
Hi Pot test them to make sure they aren't grounded (VERY BAD), use an Amprobe to test the phases for balanced current draw and send them out the door.
This kept us from detonating the transformers on the pole behind the shop.
Scares the Hell out of the neighbors, stinks like all get out and usually puts the lights out for them as well. WHOOPS.....
Click to expand...

Yeah... when trannys go boom...
It gets the attention of everyone...
And it is not always good attention for the folks that caused the boom.
 
i have only seen large transformers blow up on youtube, but i have seen about a dozen small ones blow up in person
dang they smell horrible and shoot sparks violently.
if you get the melted goo from a transformer on you or your clothing, you get a reminder for a few days not to touch it again.

the smell is reminiscent of a decaying skunk that fell into a cesspool,got dragged around for awhile and was then washed off with sewage,
i'm not kidding...:faint:
 
Ga Gyro,
It definitely gets you to know you neighbors..LOL
We had our test board outfitted with "Uncle Fester" style knife switches (with exposed contacts, Good stuff right there).
The starting procedure was flip up switch one (110V) motor slowly rolling over, flip up switch 2 (220v) motor gaining speed, 3rd switch (if motor was under 20hp or so) and she'd start singing.
Every once in a while you'd get one that stubbornly refused to come up to speed fast enough and POW, there's goes another one...
When the power company showed up, it was like "GEE I wonder what happened" (insert whistling thru the graveyard sound here). LOL

The other one that was "fun" was when a large single phase motor nuked a starting capacitor (definitely quicken your heartbeat a bit.)
 
Ulma Dr.
You are right about the smell of a burnt transformer.
Burnt electric motors in general smell bad, but the High Sulfur oil used in transformers is really awful.

One other time I popped the safety valve on a full 15 Lb. bottle of Nitrous Oxide (I drag raced Mustangs for 20 years) on a hot day when it was inside the topper in the back of my F150. It sounded like someone threw a Cinder Block into the bottom of an empty dumpster ( a deep boom). Followed by about 10-15 seconds of thick white fog (Nitrous boils @ -127* F) pouring out of every crack and crevice in the truck. I wish I had gotten it on video. I laughed, I cried ($45 gone in 10 seconds), the neighbors all went NOW WHAT....
On track video of my last Mustang.

Ulma Doctor said:
i have only seen large transformers blow up on youtube, but i have seen about a dozen small ones blow up in person
dang they smell horrible and shoot sparks violently.
if you get the melted goo from a transformer on you or your clothing, you get a reminder for a few days not to touch it again.
Click to expand...
 
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