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Thread: CWI 3hp cyclone crapped out on me

  1. #1
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    CWI 3hp cyclone crapped out on me

    So I've had this CWI 3hp cyclone ( http://www.cwimachinery.com/product/...ust-collector/ ) for a little less than a year. Its been really great as far as power goes. Its all hardlined with 6" galvanized ducting and I really only use one tool at a time. Yesterday morning I used it for a good hour, turned it off, and when i went to start it back up it gave a go at it but couldn't get up to speed and tripped its little internal circuit on the switch panel. I reset that, and it kept on doing it. For reference its on a 30amp 240V dedicated circuit.
    Here's a video link to it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRsq...ature=youtu.be

    Neither of the capacitors smell burnt, nothing in the panel seems fried. I know almost nothing about electrical, so you'll have to forgive my ignorance of the terms etc. Any help would be sorely appreciated, I worked in the shop sans dust collector yesterday and its really awful. Here's some pics of the overall setup:
    IMG_7817 copy.jpgIMG_8657 copy.jpgIMG_1742 copy.jpgIMG_2723.jpg

  2. #2
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    Replace both capacitors, get a set of spares also.
    Might be centrifugal switch, replace the capacitors first.
    Good luck
    Ron

  3. #3
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    Try working outward from the power source, cleaning as you go. Isolate the components to see what isn't working. One leg of the power supply might not be supplying power. Something could have dust in it. The motor could have be Gone.

  4. #4
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    I have a 2 hp CWI machine so will be following with interest.
    My first thought is, after an hours use, is there something packed or jammed around your impeller or inside the machine?

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by William Hodge View Post
    One leg of the power supply might not be supplying power. Something could have dust in it. The motor could have be Gone.
    It's a single phase machine. If one line is dead, the whole thing is dead. Probably the start capacitor or centrifugal switch. With really bad luck, it may be the start winding, in which case the motor is trash. How frequently are you stopping & starting it?

  6. #6
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    I just watched the video & am now doubting whether it's the start capacitor or switch. It seems to be tripping too soon for that. The motor sounds at first like it's starting to come up to speed & then just craps out. With the start circuit not working, it won't usually do much more than hum loudly & barely turn.

    I bet the motor's done, but it should still be under warranty.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Frank Pratt View Post
    I just watched the video & am now doubting whether it's the start capacitor or switch. It seems to be tripping too soon for that. The motor sounds at first like it's starting to come up to speed & then just craps out. With the start circuit not working, it won't usually do much more than hum loudly & barely turn.

    I bet the motor's done, but it should still be under warranty.
    The symptoms are at least consistent with the motor's centrifugal switch that is not properly opening/closing (depending on start and/or run capacitor configuration) at speed, which draws too much current when the motor starts to get up to speed.

    Regardless, I would check the warranty, and if it is still in effect, pursue a warranty repair/replacement. If you, or an unauthorized repair shop, start opening up the motor, etc. that could void your warranty if it is still in effect.

    -- Andy - Arlington TX

  8. #8
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    So maybe centerfuge switch or whole motor. I def don’t think it’s the capacitor, they both look right as rain. I start and stop it a lot.

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    Quote Originally Posted by justin byers View Post
    I start and stop it a lot.
    That can be a problem. Starting a blower is a lot different than a table saw. The impeller has more mass and the starting time is much longer. There is a maximum number of starts per hour, and a minimum wait time between starts. You need to find out what the recommended cycling is & not exceed it.

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Frank Pratt View Post
    That can be a problem. Starting a blower is a lot different than a table saw. The impeller has more mass and the starting time is much longer. There is a maximum number of starts per hour, and a minimum wait time between starts. You need to find out what the recommended cycling is & not exceed it.
    Quite right. There's an odd failure mode that I've seen several times on dust collector motors. Lots of starts overheats the ROTOR windings (those Aluminun bars cast into the rotor laminations). They can get hot enough to soften and crack at the corners where the shorting ring connects. This takes some of the bars out of the circuit and reduces the torque. If enough are opened then the motor no longer has enough torque to bring the impeller up to speed, just like the video.

    The cooling fins can even break off leaving chunks of Aluminum rattling around inside the motor.
    Beranek's Law:

    It has been remarked that if one selects his own components, builds his own enclosure, and is convinced he has made a wise choice of design, then his own loudspeaker sounds better to him than does anyone else's loudspeaker. In this case, the frequency response of the loudspeaker seems to play only a minor part in forming a person's opinion.
    L.L. Beranek, Acoustics (McGraw-Hill, New York, 1954), p.208.

  11. #11
    Doesn't seem to be building enough speed for it to be the centrifugal switch.

    Capacitors can "look" fine but could still be bad, although less likely given the age.

    David's idea is really interesting. It's actually quite easy to disassemble an induction motor, so you could take it apart and see if there is any damage to the rotor.

    One thing that hasn't been suggested, yet, is that it could be the overload device.

  12. #12
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    What’s an overload device? What would cause it to malfunction?

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    120 0r 240?
    Bil lD

  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Friedrichs View Post
    Doesn't seem to be building enough speed for it to be the centrifugal switch.

    Capacitors can "look" fine but could still be bad, although less likely given the age.

    David's idea is really interesting. It's actually quite easy to disassemble an induction motor, so you could take it apart and see if there is any damage to the rotor.

    One thing that hasn't been suggested, yet, is that it could be the overload device.
    Have a listen to the video. The motor starts to spin up, then starts sounding bad just before the OL trips. I doubt it's the OL. And he shouldn't really take it apart if it's under warranty.

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    5 year warranty. Give them a call.
    "A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".


    – Samuel Butler

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