Splendide clothes dryer on second motor with bad bearings

Wayne

Wayne

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This is the Splendide clothes dryer in our trailer. This is how the second motor sounds after about 20 hours of operation. The first motor was replace at about the same run time. Splendide replaced the first motor under warranty. The video is of the second motor that started sounding like this after about 10 hours of operation. I called Splendide, who told me they don't have problems with these and won't warranty the second motor, even though we only had the second motor for about two months when I called them. I have the third motor waiting to be installed when this one fails. The motor was about $125, but they charge you $50 to ship, even via ground. Most frustrating.



This is the motor, any ideas where to get one not from Splendide?

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you know something Wayne.. my wife is a clothes washing freak.. and formerly she wanted a washer dryer in our trailer.. but over time she came to the conclusion that not only was it not possible to do much laundry in a RV in such small machines but that for the amount of time we spend in a RV ( say 3 months a year) the 20 bucks spent at the laundromat every couple weeks and the extra closet space were a better more practical idea than a RV Washing machine..

so I am just saying maybe if you can't get the POS fixed at a reasonable cost you might seriously consider removing the unit and going to the laundromat with your significant other. We just call it a date, like date night... go to laundromat, go out to eat. :)
 
MSCH said:
so I am just saying maybe if you can't get the POS fixed at a reasonable cost you might seriously consider removing the unit and going to the laundromat with your significant other.
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My better half loves having a washer and dryer in the trailer. We used to go to the laundromat when we had the Airstream. It's my job to keep the dryer running.
 
i found this forum by searching about bad bearing noise on the splendide dryer. mine made exactly the same noise. i took the motor out, split the case and removed the armature, used a bearing puller to pull both bearings off, replaced them with timken bearings for 16 dollars and put it all back together. very quiet now. not hard at all. they used cheap junky bearings. put in high quality ones and all is good.
 
encantotom said:
i found this forum by searching about bad bearing noise on the splendide dryer. mine made exactly the same noise. i took the motor out, split the case and removed the armature, used a bearing puller to pull both bearings off, replaced them with timken bearings for 16 dollars and put it all back together. very quiet now. not hard at all. they used cheap junky bearings. put in high quality ones and all is good.
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Thanks for the information - do you have the Timken bearing numbers?
 

2PACK TIMKEN 6001-ZZ Double Metal Seal Bearings 12x28x8mm, Pre-Lubricated and Stable Performance and Cost Effective, Deep Groove Ball Bearings.​


16 bucks on amazon. i think i could do the entire thing now in less than an hour. i had 3 jaw bearing pullers. and to seat the new bearings i used s 5 or 6 inch piece of 1/2 inch copper pipe. and then after putting the motor back in i used the same piece of copper pipe over the shaft of the motor and on the belt to stretch the belt to get it on the shaft. very easy. i have them hooked up in my shop till i put them in my rv and my wife tried the washer and dryer both and is quite satisfied with them both so far

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Received. I have a new motor waiting to go in, so I'm going to replace the factory bearings with these Timken bearings in the new motor. It's way too late to return the new motor and I doubt I'll ever wear the motor out with good bearings, but will have a spare motor.

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the dryer i have was barely used. so i am convinced based on all the problems people have had and or they dont realize that the dryer should be nearly silent that the motor originally used the cheapest bearing possible and that caused them to fail very quickly when exposed to lint and humidity. it is an easy fix. the motors have gotten well over 200 bucks now.
 
ever wonder why they make fairly expensive stuff like a washing machine and then cheap out on a critical part?

I'll give you the opposite effect.. Thermo King went to brushless AC induction motors on their Evap and Condenser fan motors.
Previously they had brush type DC motors which were a pretty hi quality but the brushes would wear out but the motors were still good..
When they started using the brushless AC induction motors we went from repairing them maybe every 4 years to almost never repairing any of them. I saw some of them run for fifteen years, 18 hours a day 300 plus days a year.. I encountered one in my whole career that had a bad bearing.. and the motor had been in constant service for about 15 years.
 
encantotom said:
motor originally used the cheapest bearing possible and that caused them to fail very quickly
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The thing that really irritates me is Splendide told me they have never had a report of a bad motor. Rest assured that they were very willing to sell me a new motor.
 
I put new bearings in the new motor (3rd) I bought to replace the second motor with bad bearings, which will go in the dryer in the next couple days. I would bet the brand new motor would have been making the awful noise within 10 hours of operation. I'll probably write a note on the motor I take out that it needs to bearings and the Timken part number, then put it in a box and forget about it. A bearing puller is a must as the bearings come off pretty hard. The screws are all TORX heads. This has to be the cheapest built motor I've ever seen and the cheapest crap bearings ever made. Had I known how easy it is to replace these bearings, I would have replaced them on the first motor and saved a bunch of money.

The old OEM bearings where these:

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The new bearings are Timken:

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Take a couple pictures of what it looks like before you take it apart and make a witness mark on the case, stator, and mounting bracket. I didn't mark the mounting bracket and it's much easier to figure out how it goes back on with a witness mark.

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Unscrew the 4 screws holding the case together and split the case.
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Use a bearing puller to remove the fan sprocket.
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Pull the bearings.
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I used a deep well sprocket to seat the bearings.
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Reassemble and make sure the thrust washers go between the case and the bearing. Line up your witness marks and screw the case back together. Carefully tap the fan sprocket back on. This thing is flimsy and will bend out of shape easily. Use your pictures to get the mount bracket back on correctly. Done. The whole process takes about 15 minutes. You'll spend more time setting the bearing puller up than anything else.

Thanks to @encantotom for the Timken part number!
 
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I did all the same things. Your details will make it easy for anyone. Bearings pullers are probably 20 bucks at harbor freight or you can borrow them at any autoparts store.
 
Finally got the new motor with the Timken bearings in and reassembled the dryer. The bearings in the old motor were rough as can be. Just spinning it by hand made a bad bearing sound. You'll know what this is if you've ever heard the sound a rough bearing race makes. If someone ever wants to send me to purgatory, just make me repair appliances, that will be about the same. Almost every part is made from stamped metal and is sharp. It's almost impossible to wear gloves, because you need to handle about 50 small screws. My hands look like I got a bunch of paper cuts.. The worst part of the whole job is getting the belt back on the motor shaft. You need to tip the drum toward the motor and leave the screws that secure the motor mostly loose so the motor can tip toward the drum. Apply a liberal amount of adult language and you'll be able to get the belt back on.

All of this stuff on the back needs to be removed.
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The keeper for the drum axle also needs to be removed.
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The capacitor needs to be removed before you can get to the left motor screw. I didn't bend the sheet metal, the last guy that changed the motor did that. Seriously.
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A close quarters ratchet is very handy.
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Take a good picture of the wiring, so you know how it goes back.
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Remove the capacitor, then remove the left motor screw.
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New motor in and ready to go back together.
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Completely reassembled except for the top. I ran it like this and it nice and quiet with the Timken bearings.
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Done
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If you go ahead and replace the bearings in the backup motor that will assure that you never need to use it. :)

Can't sell it though, it has to sit on the shelf within easy reach for the voodoo to work.
 
Wayne, none of your adventure in washing machinery has made me reconsider the idea that its simpler and cheaper to do the date nite thing at the laundromat while travelling in the RV.
 
If you don’t have a power screwdriver, then you need one for a job like this with so many screws. This little guy saves a bunch of time!

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