Fresh'nd Aire Circulator Fan - Blades won't turn and smoking engine

[Courtney Dugan]

Hello!  So grateful I stumbled across this website.  I have a fresh'nd Aire Circulation Standing Fan (Model 20 115 60) that has recently stopped working.  I hear the motor trying to start but the blades aren't rotating.

I took the advice from someone at a flea market and took the cap off, air blasted and vaccumed the inside and put some WD-40 in the pipe at the top.  I rotated the blades a few time and then put the cap back on and plugged it in and she worked like a charm!

The next day, I turned her off during the day and attempted to turn her back on at night and the same problem persisted.  I tried adding a generous amount of WD-40 (spilled a little too into the motor area by accident) and rotated the blades a bit and tried again.  I let her fun for a while, 10 mins, because the blades were gradually picking up momentum, and then I looked over because of the smell and noticed the engine was smoking.

I am sure this comes to no surprise based on my approach, but I have ZERO experience in this department, and praying I did not permanently damage her.

I love this fan, it has been in my family for a while and I would love for her to hum again.  Please help!

Courtney

[Lawrence Smith]

go get zoom spout or blue 3 in 1 oil ,(Ace, Lowe's home depot) I believe those fans have a spot in the front & back to add oil, carefully add in both places, I've used a tooth pick to push it into the wicking better, If the smoke is just burning wd 40 then it should clear off, I would wipe off any excess oil. Good luck, very nice fan you have

 

[Courtney Dugan]

Thank you!  Do you know how to add oil to the front of the fan?  I only see the metal tube on the back top of the fan.

[Lawrence Smith]

Look in the front there is a hole at the top of either the motor housing or in the chrome . But that fan definitely has 2 ports , it might have a flip cover on it also

[Lane Shirey]

16 hours ago, Lawrence Smith said:

go get zoom spout or blue 3 in 1 oil ,(Ace, Lowe's home depot) I believe those fans have a spot in the front & back to add oil, carefully add in both places, I've used a tooth pick to push it into the wicking better, If the smoke is just burning wd 40 then it should clear off, I would wipe off any excess oil. Good luck, very nice fan you have

 

WD40 is a penetrating oil, not a lubricant. I prefer zoom spout, and on your fan, you’ll appreciate the long tube on the oil bottle. Post some pics of the front top of the motor and hopefully we can draw an arrow to the front oil post. 
 

Question- without power, does the blade spin freely or is it tight? 
 

There also might be a member near Chicago willing to help you out if the proper oil doesn’t work. 

Edited October 5, 2023 by Lane Shirey