Dry my motor?

[02ranger]

Hey all. Not sure if this is the best place to ask this question, but since you guys are wicked shmaht I figured it can't hurt. I have a side-by-side Whirlpool refrigerator with an icemaker. The motor that turns inside the door to break up the ice in the ice-bin is somehow getting liquid inside of it and this liquid is in turn freezing, preventing the motor from turning and dispensing ice. I can remove the motor and give it time to thaw and water will slowly start dripping out from the hole where the power plugs into the motor. Unfortunately the motor is sealed in such a way that I cannot take it apart to clean out the moisture and it won't all drip out of the power hole. I've already bought a replacement motor once and it worked for a few months, but now there's liquid in the new motor.

Anybody got any ideas on how I can get all the liquid out of this thing without breaking it open? Somebody suggested soaking it in denatured alcohol to hopefully replace the water with something with a lower freezing point. Last time I tried leaving it in a bag of rice for a week but it didn't work at all...

 

[IBMJunkman]

This site helped me with a problem I had with my washer.

http://www.applianceblog.com/mainforums/forum.php

 

[runzwithsizorz]

First, water should not be getting to/in the motor, PERIOD! Sounds like you have a design flaw, or a leak. I have never seen a motor I could not disassemble. Can you displace the water, and protect the motor core? sure, but only, *temporarily*
http://forums.offshoreelectrics.com/showthread.php?54900-Spektrum-rx-s-going-for-a-bath

 

[sdifox]

By a bag of silica desiccant. Put motor and desiccant in a plastic bin. Tape the lid shut. Check in a few days.

But your tray motor should not be getting flooded.

 

[who?]

It may be a hassle to use a chef knife to break up the ice but you may have to.

 

[02ranger]

So here is the motor in question. It turns the auger in the ice bin. Somehow water is getting inside and freezing. I think it must be getting in at the two small holes on the top but water will only come out of the hole on the bottom where the power plugs in, and just drips slowly. I need to figure out where the water is coming from so I don't keep having the same issue but I'd also like to figure out how to fix this motor. Seems like a poor design that two separate motors have had water get inside in the exact same way.

Any ideas on how to disassemble this thing? I like the idea of using silica dessicant to dry it out if I can't disassemble it.

https://imgur.com/gallery/TJwnx

 

[02ranger]

This site helped me with a problem I had with my washer.



http://www.applianceblog.com/mainforums/forum.php

I actually started a thread there about the same time I started one here.

Thanks!

 

[EliteRetard]

Does your ice feed through a slot in the fridge door? If so, have you looked at the seal for the ice door flap? Does it close well? I've seen a leaky/broken seal do some weird stuff, when warm air gets in and causes condensation, melting, evaporation etc.

Just throwing it out there, only possible nugget of information I have right now.

 

[tortillasoup]

Does your ice feed through a slot in the fridge door? If so, have you looked at the seal for the ice door flap? Does it close well? I've seen a leaky/broken seal do some weird stuff, when warm air gets in and causes condensation, melting, evaporation etc.

Just throwing it out there, only possible nugget of information I have right now.

exactly why I hate through the door ice.

 

[Eli]

I'd bet its some kind of condensation issue - the interior of the motor is colder than ambient due to parts sticking into the freezer, and so attracts moisture.

Does it get in through the power plug perhaps? I'd try what someone else said - put the motor in something with a bunch of desiccant for like a week, and then maybe try and seal the power plug area with aquarium silicone. Or buy a new one and try the latter, if you can't get it to dry out.

 

[Scarpozzi]

I'd bet its some kind of condensation issue - the interior of the motor is colder than ambient due to parts sticking into the freezer, and so attracts moisture.

Interesting logic.

I'm going to suggest another source of the moisture and that's the water line coming into the ice maker. There could be an issue there with the nozzle actually spraying water in places other than the tray....or, perhaps, the water itself is the source of the condensation/moisture you speak of.

Do you have any ice forming anywhere else in the freezer it shouldn't? Or just in the motor?

The problem with freezers are that they go through this freeze/defrost cycle....there can be air leaks around the door gaskets, etc... A good way to fix freeze/defrost issues are to totally unplug the freezer and let it return to room temp...let them dry out, and then plug them back in a few days later. That sucks if you have food, but it's exactly why we recently got a new fridge and put our old one in the garage... My daughter mucked with the freezer temp and we never could get the system balanced again due to ice forming/freezing in the drain lines.

 

[sdifox]

I'd bet its some kind of condensation issue - the interior of the motor is colder than ambient due to parts sticking into the freezer, and so attracts moisture.

Does it get in through the power plug perhaps? I'd try what someone else said - put the motor in something with a bunch of desiccant for like a week, and then maybe try and seal the power plug area with aquarium silicone. Or buy a new one and try the latter, if you can't get it to dry out.

humm, could be poor door seal.