Im brain storming the fesability of using a three phase electric motor out of our front load washing machine that bought the farm. The bearings in the drum went bad and the repair was going to cost 4 to 5 hundred to fix. Wife never liked the front load so hence, we went out and got a top load and now she is a happy camper. These motors are reversible and variable speed so im thinking it would be great on my home made bandsaw mill. I tore the motor out of the washer and havent went any further until i get some advice from people with much more knowledge on this than i have. So what do you think?
electric motor/saw mill
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Many of the newer high effeciency washers use a on board inverter and VFD to drive a 3phase motor.
http://www.nxp.com/files/microcontrollers/doc/app_note/AN3234.pdf
http://www.nxp.com/files/microcontrollers/doc/app_note/AN3234.pdf
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92 Posts
Assuming the motor is a 3 phase 220v motor, you can buy a VFD for it and have speed control for your bandsaw mill, or buy a static converter and have it run at 2/3 the rated HP of the motor ( I have an Index 55 mill in my garage which has a huge 1 HP Relaint 220v / 440v 3phase motor, it runs off a static converter, but am converting to 3 phase VFD control for speed changes).
Yep, they sure do. Part of the water and energy saving crap that's been foisted on us. Plus, engineers seem to worship VFDs.........
I have never seen one and don't know the HP, voltage, frequency or RPM they operate at but I'd be surprised if it's a standard 230 volt 3Ø 60HZ 1800 RPM.
I'd also be surprised if it has a nameplate stating these values.
If you can find out this info, then we can tell if an basic VFD will work or not. In any case, it'll likely be a bear to program. Also, how many wires does it have? I'm guessing 5, maybe 7.
After reading the link posted above, I have 4 thoughts;
1) The link is a thinly veiled advertisement for a new technology.
2) The VFD in question here is grossly over designed, very likely to the point of being unreliable.
3) Given the operating algorithm, I'm not surprised that the drum bearings failed.
4) The motor in the link is 2 pole (3600 RPM) and 180 volts. The torque limit pencils out to roughly 1.5HP, but this is a maximum limit, not a continuous rating. Continuous HP would be more like 1/2 or maybe less.
This may or may not be the motor you have.
Rob.
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5,468 Posts
The motor is not fully enclosed.
You will need to find a suitable VFD.
This would be the first step.
find a suitable drive and connect it to the motor.
Someone highly experienced with electric motors
may be able to help (local motor shop) ?
:glasses:
You will need to find a suitable VFD.
This would be the first step.
find a suitable drive and connect it to the motor.
Someone highly experienced with electric motors
may be able to help (local motor shop) ?
:glasses:
Let me try to clarify a few points. The motor would be to traverse the saw head forward and back during and after the cut. Its not to power the actual band/blade that does the cutting. I have a 16 horsepower engine on the mill that powers the cutting action. I built this mill several years ago and have cut tens of thousands of board feet on it. I cut for a couple years just pushing the saw head down the track. With a sharp band you can push it with one finger. Being i like to tinker i decided to make it automatic feed. I now power it with a 1/3 horsepower ac motor thru a 4 speed transaxle. A 3/16 cable wrapped around a drum on the transaxle that runs the length of the mill and attaches to the saw head. I have the ac motor wired with a reversing and on and off switch. The current set up does the job, but the idea of direction and variable speed in one controller interests me. That being said, i just like to build and tinker. My wife says ive mastered the tinkering and am now a certified putzer.:wink2:
At the current time i have just extracted all the electrical wiring out of the washing machine carcass. With the factor of pully reductions etc. im sure the motor will have plenty of power. There is a box just prior to the motor which they refer to as an inverter. From this point im not sure what my next move would be.
The motor would be fine for a feed motor. The maximum possible RPM of an induction motor operating at 60 HZ is 3600 RPM so the motor pictured is that or lower.
One problem will be getting the inverter in the washing machine set up for remote control. Presently it is controlled by some sort of PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) or maybe the PLC is built in to the inverter. Making it change speed and reverse could be a real trick.
With a basic standard VFD, speed control and reversing is easy.
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