Riccar SupraLite R10Sand - motor running abnormally super fast

[datamonkee]

I have a ~10 year old R10Sand that has worked fine for a decade. Recently, all of a sudden, I have noticed that the motor is running magnitudes faster than normal. This is the equivalent of a car running at 9000 rpm on first gear. Anyways, I was wondering if anyone may have encountered this before.

I suspected that, perhaps, the motor wheel is losing grip with the belt, so, i took out the belt, cleaned it (alcohol). I also cleaned the wheel and roller areas that contact with the belt. But, this did not alleviate the problem. I have ordered replacement belts to try.

 

[panasonicvac]

Sounds like you need to repack the bearings with grease or get new ones.

 

[blackheart]

Hmm....

I can't help but wonder if it's clogged when machines are clogged up and no air is moving the motors will spin at a higher rpm because they have no air resistance.
Since your machine is an R10 it'll have a harder outer case what I would do is open that turn on the machine press gently on the disposable bag and see how long it takes for the bag to reinflate. the reinflation should be very quick even on low speed so if you're finding it's not inflating or doing it slowly you are clogged.

 

[datamonkee]

Blackheart, good idea. I opened the bag container, turned on the machine at low setting, and the bag did inflate pretty quickly. So, it does not appear clogged. good suggestion.

panasonicvac, interesting idea. i hope that's not the case, but it's probably the case.

I should receive my new belt in a couple of days. i will update everyone on whether that worked.

thanks, all.

 

[panasonicvac]

Another possibility as well if it's not the belt is maybe your fan blades have been wearing out.

 

[desiredname]

Check the fan for anything abnormal. When a fan becomes unbalanced it makes a motor sound like it’s running fast and loud. With the high rpm’s of vacuum motors the fan is quite often the culprit of a screaming motor.

 

[datamonkee]

Thanks for the advice. i will check the fan.

btw, i received the replacement part that i ordered. I had ordered a B014-0814B belt, which the Riccar site says fits my R10Sand. But, when I received it, i realized that the belt is not the same as the belt I have in the vacuum cleaner. It's very different. I was surprised that the Riccar site may be incorrect.

Upon further internet research, I think the belt that I need is B014-1200, which I will order and see how it is when I get it.

 

[mieles5380leo]

The R10Sand should take the serpentine belt the B014-0814 is the rubber stretch belt for the R10E/S models. Your motor may also be pulling too much current so you may want to check that. A key indicator of that is if the handle or cord get hot during use. The fan blade though is a likely culprit. If the bearings were bad you’d hear that familiar sound of bad bearings. If you don’t know what that sounds like turn on any old carpet washer that has been used and abused for some years and likely gotten some water down in the motor. That’s what a bad motor with bearings that are shot sounds like.

 

[datamonkee]

mieles5380leo, thanks for the info. i will check for the motor pulling too much current, as you recommended.

i just looked up bad bearings on youtube. i suppose that is a possibility. I'm not looking fwd to taking apart the motor. =(

what did you mean by "The fan blade though is a likely culprit."

 

[blackheart]

ya know....

Maybe a video would give us a better idea of what's going on here.

 

[datamonkee]

blackheart, excellent idea. i have uploaded the video to here:


basically, the first instance is the low level power setting. the second instant is the high level power setting.

btw, there is a hint of burnt something/plastic smell when i am running the vacuum cleaner once this issue started.

 

[panasonicvac]

I still stand behind my first post about the motor bearings. Not having enough grease can cause the bearings to spin more freely which isn't really a good thing to have. The first few minutes of this video shows a perfect demonstration of the old versus new motor bearings.

 

[datamonkee]

panasonicvac, i think you are correct. i was looking at my own video and realized that there really is no slippage of the belt and motor wheel. So, the issue is likely closer to the motor. I actually cancelled my belt order, cuz i don't think that is the issue any more.

i will take a part my riccar some time, but that will be done later. it could take a while (priorities).

 

[mieles5380leo]

What I meant by the fan is probably the culprit is the fan may be causing the issues you are having. After taking a look at your video that is definitely the fan blade rubbing on the fan housing. Sometimes these fans warp over time and being your machine is about a decade old it makes perfect sense. The belt is a serpentine belt so it won’t slip. Change your fan blade out and you should be all good. It’s pretty simple to do and I sell the fans at my store for $19.99.

 

[panasonicvac]

I just saw your video and that fan absolutely needs to be replaced. It's a very easy job. Or if you're not comfortable to do it yourself, you can always take it to your local authorized Riccar dealer.

 

[datamonkee]

Thanks for everyone's advice. Give me some time, and I will take apart my machine and take a closer look at the fan and bearings. This will take some time for me though. I will give an update when I do.

Thanks, all.

 

[mieles5380leo]

Just make sure you aren’t using the machine in the meantime. The fan will implode soon and likely take out the fan housing so you’ll be looking at an even more involved repair and more money out the window.

 

[datamonkee]

Sorry it took so long, but I finally found time and courage to open up the machine. I have attached some photos. I think panasonicvac, DesiredName, and mieles5380leo were correct that there was an issue with the fan / impeller. It looks like the plastic fan piece was cracking and becoming unbalanced. I can see that the fan must have become slightly deformed enough to rub against the plastic housing.

I don't think it was a bearing issue after all. Manual rotation of the motor by hand felt smooth. I think the noise I was hearing is the plastic fan rubbing against the plastic fan casing.

mieles5380leo, you mentioned that you sell fans at your store. Is this an online store?

 

[mieles5380leo]

It isn’t, it’s a storefront but we do ship.