Faulty woodman DE212 extractor

Mickyas · 11 Nov 2020

Hi everyone, first timer on here so forgive me if I've posted in the wrong section.
I got a 2nd hand Woodman DE212 extractor a while back, it was working fine for ages, but then started blowing plug fuses, so I tried the slow blow fuses, but they didn't fare much better. I've dismantled the motor etc (it wasn't all that dirty), gave it a good clean out with compressed air etc, reassembled it and tried again, got nothing at all, didn't even blow a fuse.
I'm thinking it could the motor start capacitor, but I've no way of checking. The problem i have is that I can't source a capacitor anywhere (500mfd 125vac, 2 pin) and I'm hoping that's the correct one to use as some of the info on the motor is missing (its single phase 240v) so I'm just replacing like for like. I'll try to add pics for reference.
If anyone has any info it'd be much appreciated.
Thanks in advance
Mick

minilathe22 · 11 Nov 2020

I am surprised the capacitor is rated at only 125V AC when it is a 240V motor. I would look for a replacement cap which is rated 240V or higher, but the same 500mfd rating. However its not guaranteed that the cap is the issue, it could also be something else wrong with the motor, it is now 30 years old.

Mickyas · 11 Nov 2020

Hi minilathe22, thanks for the speedy response.

Yeah, I wondered about the voltage of the capacitor being half that of the motor, but I'm no sparky so assumed it was correct as that's what was on the motor. I know there's a site I can use to calculate the size of capacitor required , but I don't know the ampage or kw of the motor.
I was also thinking of buying a soft starter to try and reduce the surge to the motor. Any thoughts???
Mick

minilathe22 · 11 Nov 2020

It is stamped 2HP on the motor, which means its around 1.5kW. Trouble is that during starting, it likely draws alot more current than this would suggest, as its only 1.5kW when up to speed. The start capacitor has probably survived this long as its only used briefly during startup. I would just get a beefy looking 500mF capactor rated at 240v+ and go with that. Perhaps other users can suggest something more specific.

Be prepared for the motor having failed in some other way, if the windings have shorted out somewhere, its usually cheaper/easier to just replace the whole motor. But replacing the cap I think is worth trying first, as they are prone to failure.