Bernard Dotts Posted May 22, 2023 Share Posted May 22, 2023 I'm trying to trouble shoot this Westinghouse 16-FC-3 fan today. I was advised that it ran hot when I bought it. I checked the amps and it was pulling 1.017 on high speed. The rating on the tag is .75, so I'm trying to isolate the problem. I replaced the capacitor with a 0.8 uF and the high speed amps went down to .898 max. Do I need a capacitor with an even lower value or is the transformer or stator bad? The stator readings are, Red - Green 200 ohms / Red - Yellow 153 ohms / Green - Yellow 50 ohms. The temperature jumps up to 130 degrees in about 20 minutes. The transformer was at 102 degrees. I've replaced the head wire, cleaned and lubricated, so it's not bound up and spins freely. I have no idea how to test the transformer, if it could be the problem. I'd really appreciate some help with this one! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Olson Posted May 23, 2023 Share Posted May 23, 2023 16 hours ago, Bernard Dotts said: I'm trying to trouble shoot this Westinghouse 16-FC-3 fan today. I was advised that it ran hot when I bought it. I checked the amps and it was pulling 1.017 on high speed. The rating on the tag is .75, so I'm trying to isolate the problem. I replaced the capacitor with a 0.8 uF and the high speed amps went down to .898 max. Do I need a capacitor with an even lower value or is the transformer or stator bad? The stator readings are, Red - Green 200 ohms / Red - Yellow 153 ohms / Green - Yellow 50 ohms. The temperature jumps up to 130 degrees in about 20 minutes. The transformer was at 102 degrees. I've replaced the head wire, cleaned and lubricated, so it's not bound up and spins freely. I have no idea how to test the transformer, if it could be the problem. I'd really appreciate some help with this one! Hi Bernard, why did you choose a 0.8 uF? That may be a little small. Your start and run winding ohms look okay, they add up properly. Westinghouse did strange things with their motors and chokes. I have had to wind them "custom" when someone sent me mismatched parts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stan Adams Posted May 23, 2023 Share Posted May 23, 2023 I am thinking that fan used a 1uf capacitor, but it has been a while since I worked on one. Westinghouse was always pioneering new motor styles & that one ran extremely hot, hotter than the 140 degree Vortys. When you look at the size motor for that large blade compared to every other brand, you can see why. One other thing to consider, that motor was probably based on 110 volts, check the motor tag. My house is currently fed 125 - 126 volts. Try lowering the voltage to what is listed on the tag & check your amp draw, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernard Dotts Posted May 23, 2023 Author Share Posted May 23, 2023 Hello Mark, I started with a 1uF capacitor and the amps dropped a good bit, but still way over the .75 on the tag. I tried the 0.8 uF to see if it would drop further. I'll put the 1.0 uF back in and see how hot it gets. I'm relieved to hear that the readings for the winding look good, because putting the new head wire on was a challenge. Hello Stan, The tag says 100/120 volts on it and I'm getting 123 volts on my outlets. What's the most cost effective way to lower the voltage? Can you wire something into the base of the fan? How hot would you expect it to run? I pulled the plug when it hit 130 degrees. Regards, Bernard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lane Shirey Posted May 24, 2023 Share Posted May 24, 2023 The cap causes a phase shift in the start winding. That allows the fan to start in the proper rotation. Generally there is some flexibility in the size that you can use. To what Stan said, todays voltages are higher than the tag voltage, so generally a slightly smaller cap value is best. If the cap value is too small, the fan will struggle to start. If it’s too high, the phase shift is greater, and the fan will run inefficiently with symptoms of high running amps and hotter running temp. These are the 2 extremes. Somewhere in the middle is the point where running amps are normal, and the fan runs at the temp it was designed for. Not trying to tell you if your fan is good or not, just helping to explain what the cap does. I hope it helped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stan Adams Posted May 24, 2023 Share Posted May 24, 2023 Bernard it is going to run a lot hotter than 130, probably closer to 140 - 145. It should run on on the higher voltage, but that probably explains your higher amp readings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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