How to remove cooling fan of Rainbow E-2 Single speed?

[vinci]

I have a Rainbow E-2 single speed that I'm rebuilding. I need to replace the top and lower bearing of the motor (G type). The cooling fan won't budge. It sits on top of the shaft and I'm counter holding the shaft with an 1/8 hex bit. Is the fan supposed to be turned counter-clockwise or clockwise? For the old D series Rainbow the fan is to be turned clockwise to remove, but not sure about the E-2 series. Also, how is the bottom plastic removed so that I can access the lower motor bearing?

Thanks for any pointers.

 

[electroluxxxx]

The fan is pressed on and should not be removed. The one thing about these is that they were meant to have carbons replaced and they were meant to be cleaned. Not rebuilt. You can pry it off by using 2 flat bladed drivers but run the risk of not being able to get it back on. Are the bearings bad or are you replacing them just because? It’s not too common for these to have bad bearings.

 

[vinci]

Yeah, it's 19 years old bought new and I'm doing the very first main teardown replacing old parts. The bearings actually feel ok. I'll just do a good cleaning of the motor and replace the carbon. Thanks a lot for your insight.

 

[vinci]

I don't need to replace the carbon, really. Looking at the rainvac website, it says "If you need to replace this, then there is a very high chance that you have an armature issue. Please call technical support with any questions you may have."

So a cleanup of the motor suffices at this time since the unit has no issue as such.

 

[electroluxxxx]

I’m actually a rainbow service tech...
If the rainbow has been heavily used depending on use the carbons could need to be replaced depending on length. These were very well known to have motors go. Just make sure to check the length before putting it back together that way you can see if they will need to be replaced sometime in the near future.

 

[vinci]

Pardon my ignorance but they appear to be ok, but I will defer to you to be sure. Thanks for your help. I made sure to keep note to put them back into the original side after cleanup.

 

[electroluxxxx]

They look great!

 

[vinci]

Cool, thanks. The vac was heavily used in its first 10 years of use. Nowadays I use it on my vehicles and between the professional house cleaners schedule. How is the lower motor stage black plastic housing removed? I just want to do better cleaning. I could just rely on compressed air to clean that area if this is a non-removable part. Thanks!

 

[vacuumdevil]

Glad to see other people encouraged him not to ruin the vacuum and remove the fan!

 

[vinci]

There're two screws holding down the lower motor black plastic housing. I closely inspected the lower motor bearing and cleaned the motor housing properly. The bearing rotates quietly.

 

[vinci]

Surprise! The fan easily slide off clean after a bit of WD40 and waiting for a while. I applied a tiny bit of JB weld upon reinstall of the fan.

 

[electroluxxxx]

We highly advised against removing the fan as those fans ARE NOT meant to come off. Well at this point hopefully your JB weld holds up

 

[dysonman1]

I made the mistake, ONCE, of removing the cooling fan from an E series motor. Thought I had it pressed back on correctly. Customer returned time and again complaining about the motor's thermostat tripping - overheating. Since the fan is pressed on at the factory, the stating torque routed out the hole in the middle of the fan. Glue didn't hold up. Nothing did. I finally had to bite the cost of a brand new motor for the customer.

 

[vinci]

I called RAINVAC and tech support said JB weld is the factory recommended reinstall process when pressing the fan back in. Will hold up just fine.

 

[electroluxxxx]

Oh that’s right! Because I work in a rainbow office doing all of the repairs I know nothing, and because Tom owns a vac shop he knows Nothing either... why bother asking for info when you can just pick up the phone and call RAINVAC. They don’t even have a rexair account anymore. I service HUNDREDS of E-series machines a year, I think I know what I’m talking about. Besides JB Weld is not a factory fix as they would never agree to a statement like that.

 

[dysonman1]

I was looking through my binder of factory service updates to the service manual and I don't see anywhere that Rexair recommends removing the cooling fan from an E-Series machine. Rexair's factory service manual only covers replacing carbon brushes and the revolving fan stage. They don't recommend replacing bearings, armatures, field coils, etc.

 

[vinci]

I'm sorry, I didn't mean to disrespect or water down your valued advice to a Rainbow E series owner simply seeking info to rebuild a vac that has and continues to perform wonderfully. Thanks for your advice but curiosity got the better of me - I'm a software Engineer and that is the order of the day. The vac is all put together and looking refreshed and working great! On to the next 20 years, ha!

 

[madman]

WE HIGHLY ADVISED YOU NOT TO...

have the stones to repair your own machine, and maybe learn something in the process. God forbid that happens. What a nasty attitude to have about this. Especially here, a place dedicated to vacuum knowledge. Come on now. You could've just said 'hey it might not stay on now.'

The fan looks like aluminum. If it fits loosely back on the shaft, well that's probably because you wiggled it off and ovalled the hole, as opposed to pulling it straight up, which might've proved difficult without a specialized puller tool. I would've held the fan and tapped the shaft through it with a hammer. Still, it's soft aluminum. If the hole is deformed, you can gently squeeze it with some pliers, but don't overdo it. That should do the trick, assuming the JB weld doesn't hold.

You can only learn by doing. Vinci, don't let these guys intimidate you. Learning is important, sometimes that comes with mistakes made. Part of life, friend.

 

[kazbear]

Bearing bad

I see that the Fan is not supposed to be removed. So I won't. However, the bearing is shot (pulled out ball bearings and metal shavings. The bearing on the other end is fine). So if I cant replace the bearing, is my next option to replace the entire motor?

 

[lesinutah]

Dont

Mess with the fans on any rainbow. They always make them worse.

 

[madman]

... You could just pull the fan straight off. Make sure not to oval the hole in the fan. JB weld it back on, like Vinci did. Seems like it worked. Worst case you need a new motor, which at this point (if you listen to these people) you already need one. Take a gamble on it.

 

[mark40511]

I saw

a video on youtube of someone servicing a rainbow......and instead of removing the fans, they took it outside, taped some things up, and turned it on, poured water in the shaft area and the water shot out the back (this is with it running)...He clearly stated in the video that people watching this might get pissed, but someone he knows knowledgeable in rainbows taught him that. I guess pouring water through while it's running somewhat cleans the fans. I don't know. I sure wouldn't do it. But it looked like it worked.

 

[electroluxxxx]

if the upper bearing has come apart it is highly likely that the bracket has been oblonged or Hollowed out meaning that a new bearing will not snugly fit back in place. As stated in replies above it is advised that the fan not be removed and at this point you should get a new or used motor to stick in there as these motors are made to have the minimal done to them... i.e. lower bearing, cleanings and carbons. as for fans. When properly cleaning a rainbow the motor should be torn down and the fans should ALWAYS be properly cleaned to ensure a smooth running machine. Improperly cleaning ( pouring water through a running machine) is dumb and will result in nastiness growing in the machine and also a risk of burning out the board. If you feel that you cannot fix the issue yourself, privately message me and I can see about a rebuild for you at a low cost since I am a rainbow service tech, or take it to your local service center. The JB weld on the cooling fan is by far the dumbest thing I have ever encountered and I have had rainbows come in with fans that have been JB welded into place and they wind up ruining the motor from coming off of the shaft.
Just 2 cents from the technicians point of view.

 

[vaclab]

Rainbow E2 Single Speed Motor Cooling Fan Removal

is fairly easy. I performed a refurb on one back in September 2020. Removed and replaced the fan (and bearings) without issues and the owner (Thomas) has been running it since then. I'm saddened that some "experts" don't understand what "press fit" means.



If I wasn't so pressed for time, I also would have used JB Weld as well.

Bill

 

[lesinutah]

Said

Vacuum service video is vacuum devil. Being blunt it's exactly how you should clean it.

 

[mark40511]

@ lesinutah

Yea - I remember you really are against removing the fans at all. I remember you said it makes it worse and it's best to not take the fans off. I remember because a couple of years ago when I dropped my rainbow off at the dealer to have them fix the control board, I left my #. He called me back and I asked if, since he had it there, if he could take the fans off and clean them..He told me they didn't need it. I asked him to do it anyway and he didn't. (LOL) I remember you saying that it's a good thing he didn't because taking the fans off can cause more troubles. The only thing is, I've seen many many people take fans off and clean them and never mention it being an issue.

 

[madman]

"Experts"

Exactly. Look. If you're a novice, and everyone's telling you just to buy a new motor... just TRY to fix your old motor. Worst case scenario, you screw it up and need a new motor, which you already needed, so no great loss. And best case, you fix it just fine, and saved yourself the cost of a new motor.

And succeed or fail, you learn something in the process, making you a better human being.