Diagnose and Repair Noisy HVAC Blower - Rattling Squirrel Cage

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Komentáře • 102

  • @KurtsToys
    @KurtsToys Před 9 dny

    Thanks for this video. Pulled the blower and the center plates separated from the fins. I bent the plate between the fins to have ac till the new cage gets here. Before that it sounded like a car with no muffler!

  • @Paul-lh8ci
    @Paul-lh8ci Před 3 lety +10

    Thanks for this video, very helpful. Mine was making the same sound & this helped me diagnose it. I was able to rivet the 2 center pieces together which is working so far. The entire center piece (the 2 pieces) was also rotating within the cage so I applied a metal glue to the edges of the fins where they contacted the center piece to keep it from moving. Working like a charm so far and the blower wheel is spinning nicely without sound. If my McGyver fix doesn't last, I'll get a new blower wheel (looks t/b about $150 or so), but fingers crossed, this will work.

  • @ramchillarege1658
    @ramchillarege1658 Před rokem +3

    Great Video. Thanks.. I had always wondered how the squirrel cage came out. Your video made that very clear.

  • @mrphantastic_
    @mrphantastic_ Před 2 lety +1

    Omg you saved my life and money. 14 year old home the fan slow slipped off the motor. I came home and turned on the heater. Started hearing grinding noises. With yours and other vids I found I removed the blow unit. Knocked the fan back into the motor and tighten the nut. All good now!!!

  • @MrOldeastdallas
    @MrOldeastdallas Před 10 měsíci

    Thank you so much for the video!! Mine currently sounds the same. I will be ordering the part and hopefully I get it back up and running.

  • @djjamminjimlawton6365
    @djjamminjimlawton6365 Před 4 měsíci +1

    Thank you. My Oil Burning Forced air furnace is making some similar noise, now I know where to purchase the parts!

  • @callmebackfriday2
    @callmebackfriday2 Před 2 lety

    First time I saw the mounting bracket on fan motor is not mounted Symmetrical or with 4 equal spacing.
    Thanks for the video and this really helps. :-)

  • @MKBuddy1
    @MKBuddy1 Před rokem

    Thank you. I'm pretty sure same sound here!!! You make it look easy!!!

  • @hootinouts
    @hootinouts Před 2 lety +6

    I had this exact same thing happen to me about 15 or 20 years ago. It was a Trane furnace and the cost of an OEM blower wheel was outrageous so I found the company Lau and bought one of theirs at about a third the price of Trane's wheel. The Lau blower wheel fixed the problem and never failed me.

  • @darrengriffith1206
    @darrengriffith1206 Před rokem

    Good job man. I think mine is doing about the same. Your video is a great guide for a guy like me.

  • @tywil1588
    @tywil1588 Před rokem +1

    Thank you brother!!! You just saved me $430 from buying a new motor. My is making the same noise but didn’t know rather it was the wheel or the motor shaft because the shaft has about an 1/8” of play. So I thought that what was causing the rattling noise. But I’m going to change the wheel and hopefully that fixes my rattling issue. 🙏🏽

    • @bradleybowns3609
      @bradleybowns3609 Před 7 měsíci

      Did that fix it? My motor shaft has the same amount of play.

  • @patriot7633
    @patriot7633 Před rokem

    Good Job, Very detailed, well focused explanation to how to fix AC Airflow motor.

  • @vectorsigma9903
    @vectorsigma9903 Před 2 lety

    Now I know how to solve the rattle issue. Thank you.

  • @newchannelcheckaboutpage2140

    I searched up squirrels being electrocuted and I found this LOL

  • @generac43
    @generac43 Před rokem

    Valuable video! Thanks for doing this.

  • @LayneNguyen
    @LayneNguyen Před rokem

    This is great! Thank you so much for making this video. It really helped me out a lot.

  • @elsiegundo7266
    @elsiegundo7266 Před rokem +1

    Very helpful video. Thank you for saving me a few hundred dollars by not calling an overpriced HVAC company.

  • @TheGuinever
    @TheGuinever Před 3 měsíci

    Love that drop leaf table, btw

  • @infotechyeti
    @infotechyeti Před 5 měsíci

    great video. nice clear audio and every step is explained very well. i have a lennox furnace with some rattling happening not as severe but afraid itll come to that. hoping this is the issue to fix and replace.

  • @greenageable
    @greenageable Před 2 lety +6

    Thx man your vid gave me courage to investigate my metal on metal nightmare! Turned out the rotor screw came off and was scraping against the housing, easy fix!!!(: easily saved me $500 here in vegas

  • @Dawkins921
    @Dawkins921 Před rokem

    Buttery smooth lol great video

  • @ChrisMichaelsChicago
    @ChrisMichaelsChicago Před 7 měsíci

    I'd like to point out that I've used tiny aluminum rivets on plates having a few rattles with great success on many occasions. Look for spotwelds gone bad. I made a DYI cheap little test jig with flying leads to connect and power up the motor following attempted repairs to prove a noise free repair. That way, if there ARE balancing or noise issues, one will save themselves a lot of grief KNOWING THAT BEFOREHAND. It also leads to a higher success to repair, than replace.(The Jig is just a 10A power cord, A cheapo Supro hard start kit and some 10, or 12 Ga quick connects)
    Add counter balance weight to the cage, spinning her on and off adding as needed till you find the sweet spot. (I've also used 1/2", or even shorter sheet metal cleat cutoffs crimped onto blades in the cage to repair, or as counterweight) Then when she's spinning perfectly, SLIDE IT IN! :-) PLEASE WEAR GOOD QUALITY GLOVES WHEN MESSING WITH SHEET METAL!!!

  • @jacks9036
    @jacks9036 Před rokem

    We just replaced our blower fan and motor and now it’s great

  • @robert5
    @robert5 Před 2 lety

    Bought a 20 yr old house. With 20 yr old furnace. Fan blades just started slipping on the hub. Some how the blades became detached. HVAC guy suggested new furnace, I went ahead with the replacement due to age and I wanted it to be DEAD reliable so I could leave heat of cooling on when I travel. I was warned my furnace was "end of life" with repairs eminent by my home inspector so had replacement cost already budgeted and hit the seller for part of that cost at closing which they agreed to.
    Now my new furnace blows less hard then my old one so I researched fan speed and am going to adjust that up a bit.

  • @tgray8593
    @tgray8593 Před rokem

    great video....helped me tremendously

  • @Il0O0OIIl
    @Il0O0OIIl Před 13 dny

    At 13:35 he skips pulling it off the motor. Folks, this took me over 3 hours. And I went out and purchased a puller. Be prepared to by a motor as well

  • @georgeh7374
    @georgeh7374 Před rokem

    Thank you for posting this video, this is exactually what my furnace is doing Same exact noise, I feel confident replacing the part myself, and save Hundreds of dollars on an expert coming to fix this, Thank you George H

  • @trope5105
    @trope5105 Před rokem

    i woke up this morning thinking my house was smoldering somewhere! took me a few hours to figure out my furnace quit blowing, i think the heater was on all night, just not blowing air, so the house was actually at 65 degrees, which is hwere i set it before i go to bed and go to work, im not home very long so i save allot of money that way, i live in a small old ass trailer house. anyways, finally noticed it when i heard the heater try n kick on but it never turned on. glad i looked this up though, ive never taken one apart, and even though my furnace is a top mount cage, i seen how it slides out in the same concept, and saved me from taking about 20 screws apart, which is what i was gonna do lol. im famous for that,, im gonna try n see what i can do to get the damn thing to work for the next few days, i live in wyoming, its 0 degrees at night, i need heat for the weekend, and probably a few more days until i can get a part! im an electrician, n know a few trade guys, but basturds arent answerin their phones! i need a motor or a squirrel cage, on or the other, i can use a screwdriver to get the bitch spinnin, but after 1-4 minutes, she slows down to an immediate stop in bout 3 seconds, an thats all she wrote basically until i try it in an hour or so later. good thing i live in a small house, i just cranked the oven on to 400 for bout 45 minutes, an my house went from bout 54 to 67 in that amount of time ! being an electrician, i actually have a 8 foot baseboard heater that i took from a job that was left over, n i might have to go get it an ghetto rig a plug onto it to try n supplement some of my heating needs . anyways, most of this is irrelevant to this video, but i have no social media outside of youtube, n i have no friends, and im to embarrassed to tell my ma pa n sisters about what has happened, so my only outlet is your comment section!!! i hope you feel special lol!!!! anyways, i dont have money for a hotel, so lets hope that i can get something to work! its 615 at night, temp outside reads 11 degrees, so hopefully i can get through the night, without needing to go start and sleep in my car!!! im actually on hard times, trying to start my own electrical business, but times are hard! no one is spending money, and i cant afford quite yet, the insurance to be able to work in the gas n oil fields that are around! norcan i afford to pay the guys or materials in order to man a decent sized job! i live in butt funk no where in wyoming, i forgot to mention that also! not that it has anything to do with changing a blower motor in your furnace lol... anyways, thanks for reading my conversation to myself :P... Have a Good DAY !!..??

    • @TheHandsOnChannel
      @TheHandsOnChannel  Před rokem

      If you can get some oil down on the bearings it might buy you some time. Good luck, I hope you get it going.

    • @trope5105
      @trope5105 Před rokem

      @@TheHandsOnChannel that's all I can think of doing myself as well! Thanks for the input! I appreciate it allot!

  • @yuegao2016
    @yuegao2016 Před 2 lety

    Thansk sooo much! Mine is having the same noise now😅

  • @1964summit
    @1964summit Před rokem

    Very helpful. Similar problem on a 2000 Carrier. Thanks

  • @sagitario12ish
    @sagitario12ish Před rokem

    Good job, nice video.

  • @shandrakor4686
    @shandrakor4686 Před rokem +1

    Using what was in this video I looked into mine at 3am in winter -45c and saved the cash it would have cost to call a 24hour emergency service call. It's a Trane unit and woke me up making a terrible grinding sound that was loud enough to wake my neighbors up. I checked the panel and turn the heat off no change. I recalled a light switch attached to furnace and flipped that instead. Noise stopped and I dealt with the people asking what that was. Got it open felt around and the motor was still super hot, was thinking motor was burnt out or something. Turned it on burner light up fine but just hearing a low moaning from the motor. Turn it back off and cut power to it. the "squirrel cage" it hard to spin at all so I think I'm screwed. I hope online, fine this and after watching start to look over my unit and the motor and I can shift and move them both way to easy. I pop out the filter to get a better look and the three bar's coming off the motor is only attached by one screw. I find one screw loose and another with about a third left the end broken off. Best I can guess is the vibration broke it and let the cage hit the floor and kept spinning making that racket. One screw went back in fine but the third just kept spinning and not tightening the bar down the broken off screw was likely still in the bottom of the hole. I found a sharp hole punch and made enough of a hold to screw into the sheet metal and forced a screw into a higher hole on the bar after checking for clearance and that that cage spun free I turned it on and worked great.

  • @harrisfogel6992
    @harrisfogel6992 Před 9 měsíci

    For a Made in the USA part, a couple of spot welds would have prevented the problem. I ordered a new one from Same Day Supply. Hopefully it lasts longer than my original one!

  • @ralphbenites1312
    @ralphbenites1312 Před 11 měsíci

    Yup same here no one has done nothing about it yet but it’s hot so our friend is going to fix it

  • @ronmisiura9169
    @ronmisiura9169 Před rokem +2

    I once heard an inconsistent flop, flop, flop in my blower fan so I mentioned it to my HVAC brother-in-law. He told me to check it for a mouse. As I got my hand in their and spun the fan, a dead mouse fell out.

  • @TheGuinever
    @TheGuinever Před 3 měsíci

    I'm getting to the point where I can distinguish between a plastic grocery bag that got past the metal intake cover and a piece of paper. They make different sounds. Might be beyond paper or plastic today, though. Might be the motor.

  • @nabob3223
    @nabob3223 Před rokem

    Thank you!

  • @stephenwilliams5201
    @stephenwilliams5201 Před 3 lety +1

    Cool ! hi hi . My nessan has a. Squrill cage. No! Really it does. I had two nest i took out. At the cost of $ 274.00. over a period of two years. So I went to hardware cloth.( hardware cloth has a 1/4 squares). Like your selfe . You're a winner. When you do it your selfe thanks Fer good show. Kv4li

    • @TheHandsOnChannel
      @TheHandsOnChannel  Před 3 lety

      My wife and I were just talking about where the name squirrel cage came from. Now I know. Thanks Stephen.

  • @ezequiellinares5427
    @ezequiellinares5427 Před 2 lety

    Good video thanks

  • @bricks-mortar
    @bricks-mortar Před 8 měsíci

    14:31 Those Lennox unit parts are EXACTLY like a Carrier brand.

  • @philmirez
    @philmirez Před 2 lety

    American made part too! Hell yea!

  • @andrewdaymon364
    @andrewdaymon364 Před rokem +2

    I’m in Florida. Can you please explain the purpose of a heater? 😂

  • @StuffStudier
    @StuffStudier Před rokem

    Ours has a piece of plastic on it and I want to get it off through the filter area since I can pull it out for that

  • @adammontgomery7980
    @adammontgomery7980 Před 5 měsíci

    Mine only makes noise when starting. When it gets up to speed, it sounds normal. Any guesses before I pull it apart and risk freezing tonight?

  • @LivingRetirement
    @LivingRetirement Před 5 měsíci

    Helpful video, thank you!! I have one question: did it make those uneven vibration noises also when the fan was ramped up to high speed? I have similar noises, but they always go away when the furnace fan goes to high speed. I only have the noise problem when the fan is getting started, or when it shuts off after set temperature is reached.

    • @TheHandsOnChannel
      @TheHandsOnChannel  Před 5 měsíci +1

      Mine is one speed only but it would make the noise all the time, even when it was winding up.

  • @StuffStudier
    @StuffStudier Před rokem

    Ours had a nasty microwave popcorn piece of plastic in the blower wheel. I went in through the filter area and didn’t take the front cover off or cut the power. I ripped that devil off it and it sounds a lot better

  • @losmoore3358
    @losmoore3358 Před rokem

    Good job. Good video. U said earlier u oiled it. Where did u put the oil in at ? My blower is squeeking. Please show where u put the oil and what type of oil, 3 in one oil ?

    • @TheHandsOnChannel
      @TheHandsOnChannel  Před rokem +1

      I dripped oil down the shaft and held the squirrel cage in such a way that gravity pulled it into the bearings. I had the squirrel cage removed when I did that. Good luck, I know how annoying that can be.

  • @TrotterG
    @TrotterG Před 2 lety

    I've been trying to fix squeaking and creaking noises coming from my AC unit. Obviously the vibration comes from the blower motor. I took it off to clean it and put some tape on its contact surfaces to fix the squeaking. I noticed the cylindrical fan blade part is out of true on its axis of rotation. One end is about 3mm off. I think if it were trued up, the vibration would decrease significantly. What would be the way to fix this? Should I just use moderate force to try to bend it into a better position? Coke bottle shims on the motor arbor? Any input is much appreciated. Thanks!

    • @TheHandsOnChannel
      @TheHandsOnChannel  Před 2 lety

      You can carefully try to bend it straight. Also if it's a balance issue you can get a ceiling fan balance kit. You might have to modify the weights to fit but I think it'll work. Good luck.

  • @khangquy
    @khangquy Před 2 lety

    THANKS

  • @garza7676
    @garza7676 Před rokem +2

    if you put sheet metal screws ,you'll make the wheel unbalanced ,causing it to vibrate and come apart in the long run .

    • @TheHandsOnChannel
      @TheHandsOnChannel  Před rokem +1

      Probably but it lasted long enough for me to order a new fan blade.

    • @paulf1071
      @paulf1071 Před 5 měsíci

      @@TheHandsOnChannel I was thinking the very same.
      I suppose you could roughly re-balance it by cable-tying on an identical screw 180° around the wheel.

  • @vamsidharpothula1979
    @vamsidharpothula1979 Před 2 lety +3

    Hi Sir. Can you please post the link of the item replaced? I am not able to find the part.

  • @BigOsTaco
    @BigOsTaco Před 10 měsíci +1

    How much did the squirrel cage run you? Just curious as I will most likely have to do that to!
    Great video thanks 👍

    • @TheHandsOnChannel
      @TheHandsOnChannel  Před 10 měsíci +1

      I think it was about 75 dollars if memory serves me.

    • @BigOsTaco
      @BigOsTaco Před 10 měsíci

      @@TheHandsOnChannel great. I went on Amazon to look around and it was one around $150. So I am thinking worse case scenario within $200 so that’s not bad. Thanks for the reply and the video.

    • @harrisfogel6992
      @harrisfogel6992 Před 9 měsíci +1

      $200+ from local Philly HVAC wholesale suppliers. Found it for $109 with free two day shipping from Same Day Supply Sales. Carrier branded, which I actually don't like. These are cheaply built and don't even have a single spot weld, which would make them impossible to fail. Just cheap press fitting. I'm going to spot weld my old one in two opposing spots and keep for a spare. Typical Carrier/Payne junk. Great video!

    • @harrisfogel6992
      @harrisfogel6992 Před 9 měsíci +1

      Oh, the fan I received was built wobbly. When I installed it, it was wacky out of round. Having another one sent. I've read about other people having to order several till one arrived that was properly built and balanced. Carrier junk. Btw, the problem was that the center spindle/hub wasn't even on the new one, causing the entire fan to wobble out of control. Next I'm changing out the bearing in the motor. Will try to post a short video about. Might save a lot of folks from buying a new motor. The front bearing gets the majority of wear having the weight of the unsupported fan pushing down on it. A simple bearing in the fan housing would relieve that pressure. But it's not the Carrier way to build things properly. The problem is a cascading one. If the fan has a failure, like ours did with the central hub coming loose, it makes the fan wobble, which in turn makes it unstable for the poor bearing, which starts to wear unevenly. And bada bing, now the motor is shot, so is the fan cage, and it can even distort the metal of the cover assembly. Ugh!

  • @walterberg8030
    @walterberg8030 Před 6 měsíci

    You forgot to tighten 2 outside screws on the diverter did you not?

  • @tombombpgh4129
    @tombombpgh4129 Před rokem

    It strange my furnace Is new but without the filter it's quiet I changed out filter cuz of noise abd its loud weird sound with the filter in . I might have to call hvac is a loud screeching noise and this the 2nd winter since it was installed

  • @jasonbusch3624
    @jasonbusch3624 Před 3 lety +1

    Thats funny I have to put new screws in mine today it started rattling the motor is loose on the cage. I blow out the dust and re oil with good full synthetic oil every season for 23 years.

  • @robertreingruber1097
    @robertreingruber1097 Před 2 lety

    i am having trouble getting my squirrel cage adjusted properly. Loked like you said something on adjusting but it was in FF mode. any tips?

    • @TheHandsOnChannel
      @TheHandsOnChannel  Před 2 lety

      I just eyeballed mine to center it up between the 2 sides. Most of them have about 1/4-1/2'' clearance.

  • @HAMRADIOJOE4178
    @HAMRADIOJOE4178 Před měsícem

    HOW MUCH WAS IT ?

  • @jayc4715
    @jayc4715 Před rokem +2

    I just kicked mine..and it stopped rattling

  • @La01781
    @La01781 Před 2 lety

    can you help me out with this ducane furnace? what’s this noise

    • @TheHandsOnChannel
      @TheHandsOnChannel  Před 2 lety

      Sorry, I'm not familiar with that brand. It probably has a similar blower setup as the one in the video.

  • @sharonstone7796
    @sharonstone7796 Před rokem

    Ours was replaced is it supposed to be loud when running

    • @TheHandsOnChannel
      @TheHandsOnChannel  Před rokem

      Fan/wind noise is normal but you shouldn't have any rattling or screeching.

  • @trok90k
    @trok90k Před rokem

    What if you order one and it's the same diameter but a little bit shorter? Can you use it?

    • @TheHandsOnChannel
      @TheHandsOnChannel  Před rokem +1

      You should be able to use it as long as it's close to the same size. I'd try it.

    • @trok90k
      @trok90k Před rokem

      @@TheHandsOnChannel also I accidentally ordered a counterclockwise wheel when the original was clockwise. If I reversed the motor to a counterclockwise spin would it still work?

    • @TheHandsOnChannel
      @TheHandsOnChannel  Před rokem +2

      @@trok90k IDK about that. I think you might want to just exchange it for the right one.

    • @trok90k
      @trok90k Před rokem

      @@TheHandsOnChannel ok thanks

  • @j.t.3627
    @j.t.3627 Před 2 lety

    🤔😉👍👌🖖

  • @luisolmos8389
    @luisolmos8389 Před rokem

    How do I figure out the type of blower wheel I need to purchase

    • @TheHandsOnChannel
      @TheHandsOnChannel  Před rokem

      There should be a manufacturers name and model number on the squirrel cage. Just type that into google and you should find the part you need. Good luck, I remember it took me several search attempts to find it.

  • @wilson579
    @wilson579 Před 6 dny

    18:32

  • @gosman949
    @gosman949 Před rokem

    My air conditioner guy wants to charge $330 to clean the inside unit squirrel cage. Is that a good price?

    • @TheHandsOnChannel
      @TheHandsOnChannel  Před rokem +1

      That's probably not a bad price considering most of them are hard to access.

    • @gosman949
      @gosman949 Před rokem

      @@TheHandsOnChannel this is a Trane and the tech says it is a hard one to get to. I don't know why they couldn't just blow it out without taking it out.

  • @jerzygutowski3170
    @jerzygutowski3170 Před 2 lety +1

    If you put extra screws you will set the fan out of balance

    • @TheHandsOnChannel
      @TheHandsOnChannel  Před 2 lety +1

      It actually worked like that until I was able to buy a new fan blade.

  • @thedobermangang3503
    @thedobermangang3503 Před 6 měsíci

    Put you some gloves on my brother so you won't cut your hand on that metal

  • @21MILlet
    @21MILlet Před rokem

    Why DONT YOU discharge the capacitor to be safe working around the unit! It’s a simple process to BE SAFE!

    • @hvacworkshop4791
      @hvacworkshop4791 Před rokem

      It is just 120v. Haha. Actually it will be discharged by the time you take it out.