Trying to Wire a Washing Machine Motor To Power a Grain Mill

[dlgoff]

Glad to hear it's working. And i like your workmanship !

I'd like to taste his resulting product.

 

[BLANKAJ]

Here it is! All finished and up and running! Had no problem starting it up with a full hopper. I'm running right around 130 RPM which it great. Takes maybe 2-3 minutes to mill 25 lbs.

 

[BLANKAJ]

I figured I'd also show the rest of my budget basement brewey and control panel. Even doing it as cheap as possible, it still gets expensive. But if I can sell my beers for $40 each I'll be in the the black in no time! [emoji2]

 

[Wildfier Phoenix]

Hello anyone around,

I picked up a free LG Tromm Direct Drive HE washing machine off the side of the road. Thing was not working some buttons not working said the previous owner. The previous owner was going out to buy a new washing the same day.

I took off with it anyway, ignoring the claim of busted front panel, I figuring that the thing still works and dam was I right. I got it home, spun the drum and it started up for a few seconds. My curiosity sparked and I decided to spin the drum much faster and start pressing buttons and then the LG washer actually starts a load. I was sitting there for a couple seconds lol ing then BAM!

My curiosity and creative mind went boom for the, so many things I could subject that direct drive motor too ... Mawhahahahahahaha!

Is what I picked up off the side of the road, a really good thing as I am thinking it is? XD

 

[jim hardy]

Is what I picked up off the side of the road, a really good thing as I am thinking it is? XD

it has a three phase computer driven motor that's not so easy to wire as the old fashioned ones described thus far in the thread. I wouldn't attempt it myself.
http://www.twice.com/news/appliance...ll-revolutionize-washing-machine-market/38075
http://cache.freescale.com/files/microcontrollers/doc/app_note/AN3476.pdf

That's a sophisticated and expensive washing machine. Better part of a thousand bucks new. Seems a shame to tear it up
My advice is see if you can fix it up and donate it to somebody in need, or trade for something .
I'd start here..


However - if it's a permanent magnet rotor you'll find DIY'ers are making wind turbine generators s out of them. Search youtube.

have fun
old jim

 

[Wildfier Phoenix]

Thank you for the information, I guess I will have to go looking at the beast carefully to see if it has a 3 phase motor then.

When it turns out that it has a 3 phase motor I will donate it or sell over the internet, instead of tearing it apart. I also agree it would be a shame to destroy it, if it still could be used.

Just wondering would it be possible to add some more wiring on the LG washer electrical and redirect hand spun electricity from the LG washer unit to power other things?

 

[hawaiibrewer]

View attachment 98675View attachment 98676
View attachment 98677
I figured I'd also show the rest of my budget basement brewey and control panel. Even doing it as cheap as possible, it still gets expensive. But if I can sell my beers for $40 each I'll be in the the black in no time! [emoji2]

Looks like a nice system with the temp controller and all...I'm still an old school brewer that monitors my gas fired system with thermometers. My typical brew size is 13 gals using an old keg as the kettle.

 

[Wildfier Phoenix]

I have checked the LG washer unit, unfortunately it has a 3 phase motor, however upon checking the model number with the LG website for my own reasons, I found the LG washer unit is on the list of DISCONTINUED models. I also noticed on LG's main page, their new Side Kick washer unit.

I know I said before I would donate or sell the LG if it had a 3 Phase motor, however since it is discontinued, I might strongly reconsider that .....
I just need to watch the guy on youtube who rewired that motor from that Peykell and Fisher washer unit and maybe I could power my house with it .... after strapping a bike to it ..... ALL ABOARD! Aha ha ha ha ha ha ha

FYI anyone who says it is not possible, you will only fuel the fire for my thoughts about reusing the LG WM2075CW unit I have, sorry about that

 

[jim hardy]

Spin it with an electric drill and see how many AC volts it makes.

If it's more than thirty or so the rectifier block from an old automobile alternator will turn it into useable DC ..
Or something like http://www.ebay.com/itm/Amico-SQL-1...677055?hash=item4afe56bc3f:g:GhkAAOSwiYFXJ6kD they're all over Ebay.

have fun.

 

[Ronald J Beach]

jim hardy,
I realize this is an old post.
I have the exact same GE washing machine motor as BLANKAJ. I did not have the forethought to save the male plug or any other parts when I wrecked out the washer and recycled everything.
I too want to use the low speed feature of this motor. I have two items salvaged when my a/c unit was replaced this summer. 1). TITAN HD Motor Run Capacitor, PRCFD605A, 60+5 MFD +- 5%440/370 VAC 60/50 Hz. It has HERM, FAN and C on top. 2). EMC electric motor capacitor, CD60, 189-227 MFD, 330VAC 50/60 Hz. It has two connections on top, neither of which are marked.
Would either of these items work with my motor in order to use in a similar manner as BLANKAJ?

Thanks

 

[jim hardy]

I too want to use the low speed feature of this motor. I have two items salvaged when my a/c unit was replaced this summer. 1). TITAN HD Motor Run Capacitor, PRCFD605A, 60+5 MFD +- 5%440/370 VAC 60/50 Hz. It has HERM, FAN and C on top. 2).

You must use a Motor Run capacitor.
The one you have is really two capacitors, one for the compressor (60 MFD between the HERM terninal and common, and 5 MFD between the FAN terminal and common.)
Probably the compressor in your air conditioner is a lot bigger than this washing machine motor,.and the fan a lot smaller.
So the 60 MFD is oversized and the 5MFD is undersized.

You haven't said what it is you're powering with this motor.The washing machine used a 45 MFD capacitor , see post #43 and look up that part number (24db450b250pa)
the 60 MFD will allow excessive current and that's hard on one winding
but would be okay for a few minutes to test your motor.
The 5 MFD will allow too little current giving a really weak start . That's very hard on the other winding.. Do not let the motor hum and labor trying to start.

If the 60 MFD works,
buy yourself a 45 MFD ,
250 volts or more
motor run capacitor .
Any good electrical supply house will have it for i'd guess less than $15.
Amazon and Ebay will have them too.

Good Luck
old jim

 

[Ronald J Beach]

Jim,
Thank you for the reply and help.
You haven't said what it is you're powering with this motor. I want to use it to make a tumbler (a.k.a. rock polisher or as the pryo guys say "ball mill") like the light weight ones sold by Harbor Freight. I will have to do the math for the rpm of the container when I get the motor situation sorted out and the frame built, belt bought and the container made.

I did the ohm test as suggested by you in previous posts and also did the hum test and run test by touching wires of a cord I made up to the leads as shown in the pictures. All this checks out.

I will pursue the proper motor run capacitor.

Thanks again.

 

[jim hardy]

If it's a very light rock tumbler , like the hobby ones I've seen,
that is almost no load at all for a husky washing machine motor.
You might get away with a shortcut..

Try your 5 MFD capacitor with no load on the motor, ie just bare shaft.
If you're lucky it will hum for just a second or two while starting , then accelerate and become pretty quiet as it reaches running speed. If you have a clamp-around ammeter measure current and compare to nameplate amps.
If it does start
Then try that again with your tumbler connected.
If it successfully starts the tumbler with 5 MFD capacitor then you'll probably get away with using it.
But don't expect it to start a heavy load.

A capacitor smaller than 45MFD should give you a gentler start. Experimenting with your apparatus will let you optimize it , if you want ..
Good luck and thanks for the feedback. We all enjoy a vicarious victory.

old jim

 

[Ronald J Beach]

It will not be used with light loads so I will stick with your original recommendation. I am still a long way off in that I do not have a frame fabricated, pillow blocks, rollers, etc. as of now. First concern is getting the motor operating.
I've only checked the supply house in the next town over and they wanted $30.48. I will check a couple more local (Tulsa) before I order one online.

Thanks again.

 

[jim hardy]

Small World - i was just in Tulsa . try Associated Parts & Supply over on Admiral Place...
old jim

 

[Ronald J Beach]

I will and thanks again.

 

[jim hardy]

PS you might consider making your pulley arrangement to accommodate the motor's high speed . Reason is its cooling fan will turn faster giving more airflow over the windings.

 

[Ronald J Beach]

The project is on hold for now. I am trying to get some painting done while the weather is nice.

 

[Eddie2002]

Just found this thread on reusing the clothes washer motor after a quick Google. I salvage the same two speed motor out of a clothes washer that wore out but still had a good motor in it. With the help of all the great information posted here I was able to reuse it to power an old Kelley K-9 honey extractor made back in the 60's. I've been a bee keeper for years and hand cranking the extractor isn't a lot of fun with a large honey crop.

The conversion was pretty straight forward using the 1080 RPM low speed setting and belt drive to a 10 inch pulley. The motor came with a 2 inch pulley on it so I ended up with about a 5:1 reduction with a final speed of just over 200 RPM.

First time through I had to give the extractor a little push to help get it started so I added a 60 uf run capacitor to the circuit instead of the 45 uf capacitor that came with the motor. The 60 uf cap alone was an improvement but once the extractor is loaded I'm sure it will need the full 105 uf to get up to speed so I wired the 45 uf into the circuit in parallel to the 60 uf cap.

I have a 8 minute video of the conversion and operation of the extractor over on U-Tube but not sure if I'm allowed to post it or link to it.

Thanks everybody for this thread, it helped a lot with re purposing the motor.

 

[Eddie2002]

Here's the U-Tube video of the conversion or upgrade. The extractor was purchased by my dad back in the 60's but not used much. After his death in '91 I grabbed all the bee keeping equipment and started with bees. Since then I've been an off and on bee keeper and currently run about five or six hives in Florida which produce about 15 to 20 gallons of honey a year. For my best year I produced 45 gallons which was a real work out with hand cranking the extractor and made me decide to work on motorizing it. The exterior of the extractor looks rough after 50 plus years and my next project will be to sand and clean it up with a coat of battleship grey paint on it's outside.



Hope everybody enjoys the video, the extractor isn't close to OSHA regulations but it's a work horse and built better than most currently offered nowadays. Just need to keep your fingers out of it when spinning. LOL

 

[Tinkerer 81007]

Jim, hope you are still around since this is 2021. I have same motor as you used for your photos on the first page and I'm looking to wire it for fwd and Rev with all three speeds. It looks like low speed winding (terminal 9, w-or wire) is is energized anytime terminal 8 (orange wire) is energized as they are connected inside the terminal block, so it looks like low is energized anytime high is not. Am I looking at this wrong?

 

[anorlunda]

Alas, our beloved Jim Hardy passed away. R.I.P. Jim. He is sorely missed.

I do have links to two videos that may help. Maybe not. It sounds like you're at a pretty advanced stage of knowledge already.

 

[dlgoff]

Alas, our beloved Jim Hardy passed away. R.I.P. Jim. He is sorely missed.

I think of him very often. I can still visualize him when he was setting in my rocking chair.

 

[Tinkerer 81007]

Alas, our beloved Jim Hardy passed away. R.I.P. Jim. He is sorely missed.

I do have links to two videos that may help. Maybe not. It sounds like you're at a pretty advanced stage of knowledge already.

Sorry to hear about Jim, he was wealth of information. Thanks for the videos, I haven't looked at them yet, but will before I put electricity to any of the windings. Had a Retired Navy electrician chief (non-practicing) look at a close up of the terminal block and washer schematic. He concurred that my observation was correct but did not see it as a problem. He said that I could disconnect the motor wire from the terminal and connect it directly to the power coming from low/med speed 3-way switch that I will be using. I'll follow up with results just in case anyone else stumbles across this blog looking for help wiring 3 speeds for this motor. Thanks!

 

[Tom.G]

Jim, hope you are still around since this is 2021. I have same motor as you used for your photos on the first page and I'm looking to wire it for fwd and Rev with all three speeds. It looks like low speed winding (terminal 9, w-or wire) is is energized anytime terminal 8 (orange wire) is energized as they are connected inside the terminal block, so it looks like low is energized anytime high is not. Am I looking at this wrong?

I haven't tried it, but looking at an earlier post starting in reverse may work if you reverse the connections to the start winding. That does mean that the motor must be at a dead stop, no reverse-while-running allowed!

Before it starts, Bm does not rotate just oscillates in the vertical plane. So the rotor does not know which way to turn.
That's because a vertically oscillating magnetic field can be represented as two uniform ones rotating in opposite directions
and the rotor is happy to follow either one after you nudge it in either direction.
That's key to motor theory - a rotating flux must have two components and their angle must not be 180 degrees. The start capacitor and its winding give you that phase shifted component , it's exact angle is not critical but somewhere around 90 degrees works best..

That's why there is a start winding, to provide rotation to Bm until the rotor has begun spinning. Once that happens it'll follow whichever component of Bm you picked and you can disconnect the start winding.

Let us know what you find.
I can't help with the 3 speeds though.

Cheers,
Tom

 

[Tinkerer 81007]

Yes, I'll be using a 4 way switch on the start winding circuit. Since start winding power drops out after the centrifugal switch activates, changing the switch position while motor is running will not have any impact until the next start. May power it up this afternoon and If everything works like expected, I will post a detailed schematic of the setup (based largely on Jim's fantastic work).

 

[Tinkerer 81007]

Good news! I was successful in starting forward and reverse and running all three speeds. Speeds were about 50 rpm higher than motor rating, but that may be the result of inaccuracies in my meter or power company running a little higher frequncy. Haven't tried depinning low speed wires from motor terminal block and just connecting together, but I'll do that this afternoon. Detailed schematic and photos will follow when I'm confident I have everything spot on.

 

[Tinkerer 81007]

Update. No discernable difference in parameters or operation when bypassing motor terminal block for low speed windings so I returned to original configuration. Look for a schematic before end of week (want to take my hand drawn diagram and recreate in a graphics program at work). Some pics, including hand drawn schematic, attached. Only thing I'm missing is the 15 amp in line fuse, but I have that on order.

Pic 1 is hand drawn diagram. Look for better one later this week.

 

[Tinkerer 81007]

Pic 2 is motor terminal block with all wires connected.

 

[Tinkerer 81007]

Pic 3 is general shot of motor, harness, and switches. 2 way for on/off in single gang box. 4 way and two 3 ways in 3 gang box. 4 way (left) controls fwd or Rev start by switching direction of current flow through start winding. 3 way (center) controls fast or medium/low. 3 way (right) controls medium or low speed. I left harness at original length to give me plenty to work with.
(Just figured out how to add pic directly instead of as attachment)

 

[Tinkerer 81007]

As promised.