Ceiling Fan Troubleshooting

[Beasta1.6S]

I have a 56'' Orient PSPO fan in my living room.
I serviced the fan by changing its bearings. Reconnected it.
Now, right now the only switch for it is the regulator itself.
What happened is, I started the fan at max, that is 4, the fan worked like a gem. No noises and ultimate fanning.
I was impressed. But, if I regulate the fan by reducing the speed from the regulator, the fan refuses to attain the same speed it achieved at 4.
The only way to solve it is by changing the capacitor.
With the new capacitor, it works well until the speed is reduced from the regulator after which the capacitor again dies the same death.
What to do?

[tadukuttan]

Permanent-split capacitor motor
Another variation is the permanent-split capacitor (PSC) motor (also known as a capacitor start and run motor).[6] This motor operates similarly to the capacitor-start motor described above, but there is no centrifugal starting switch,[6] and what correspond to the start windings (second windings) are permanently connected to the power source (through a capacitor), along with the run windings.[6] PSC motors are frequently used in air handlers, blowers, and fans (including ceiling fans) and other cases where a variable speed is desired.
A capacitor ranging from 3 to 25 microfarads is connected in series with the "start" windings and remains in the circuit during the run cycle.[6] The "start" windings and run windings are identical in this motor,[6] and reverse motion can be achieved by reversing the wiring of the 2 windings,[6] with the capacitor connected to the other windings as "start" windings. By changing taps on the running winding but keeping the load constant, the motor can be made to run at different speeds. Also, provided all 6 winding connections are available separately, a 3 phase motor can be converted to a capacitor start and run motor by commoning two of the windings and connecting the third via a capacitor to act as a start winding. AC motor - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia...

And here is a DIY on controlling ceiling fan speeds by changing the capacitor values - Ceiling Fan Capacitor Solutions Conscious Junkyard

Ps. All this after verifying your ceiling fan coils are fine, and the regulator is fine.

[Beasta1.6S]

Please help guys, after some combinations of wiring, the fan worked fine for a couple of days but again died to a painfully low speed the last night without any warning.
What could it be?
Can anybody share the wiring diagram?
There is a connection box which has two input holes and three output holes (towards motor).
The fan has three wires; red, green, white.
I don't know what the connections are like inside this ''connection box''.
How do I make sure that the windings are fine?

[Dinesh Sachdev]

dude, it seems the problem is from the regulator, I think you are using a tapped resistor regulator.. Use a transistorised or inductor based one, just get that damn modren thingy..replace and it will work,, seems that the resistor inside your regulator has got cracks which get spark gaps at low speeds and so the capacitor dies due to fluctuating current..

Other than that, Does the motor heat when operated less than 10mins ? and does it hum ?

Turn the shaft to see whether its moving freely, If it does then okay..
Turn it on and see if it hums, If it hums but still moves, then realign bearings..
Turn the line to direct i.e bypass the regulator..
Run the motor for 5 mins
check temp if it heats like crazy , then one of the windings has got shorted internally, get it rewired..

The color code of wire in fans is not a standard rule, different manufacturers use different rules.. At the most you can show us a pic of the box and the wires coming out of it,,
The three wires coming out of the motor will be,
a common wire for both the coils, direct connection to phase
a wire to connect to the capacitor.
and the other to connect to the other end of capacitor and neutral..

I think that the box might be a Power factor correction box of some sort, but IDK for sure.

[Beasta1.6S]

The connection box is a plastic connector of some sort.
And regarding the regulator, is there any polarity to be maintained while connecting it?
I hope not because its AC.
The fan was being used continuously at full speed for two days. It died suddenly.
The bearings are absolutely new so no problem there.
The regulator is new but I am not sure if its ''modern''. It is of the size same as a switch. I do see a spark in it on changing the speed.
But, when the fan died, it was in full speed and died suddenly to a slow speed.

[Dinesh Sachdev]

nope no polarity regards in a.c motor, IF you see a spark replaced it, get a better wattage one..are the bearings properly aligned ?

I can't comment on the plastic box unless you give me a pic of it, another thing that comes to my mind when you point out to a box like that is a split capacitor, 2 or more capacitors housed in a same epoxy filled box..


nevermind, no such fan exists in India..using split capacitors..
seems like dieing with slow speed gives a classic problem of either the capacitor gone bad or the regulator..If its still spinning, windings are okay, if it doesn't spin, then windings gone kaput..

[Beasta1.6S]

No no.
Its like a coupler to join the fan's motor to the live and neutral wire. It has screws to hold the wires in the holes.
Now, if the fan worked fine for 2 days, do you think the wiring could be faulty?
And, regarding bearings, I don't think there is any alignment involved.

[Dinesh Sachdev]

no alignment involved, then m pretty sure if the capacitor okay, then the regulator is faulty..

you see in a ceiling fan all that is there are 2 coils which have identical windings, one is permanently magnetized and the other is pulsed to create motion (not in detail, generalized statement)..
So even if you switch the windings there is no problem, although reversing the permanent winding will endup in fan going in reverse mode..

If its a coupler then it must be straight type..nothing to worry about.. If the fan worked fine for 2 days then, the only parts which can go wrong in a fan are the capacitor and the regulator..there is nothing else to go bad,, check both..

the way to check a fan capacitor is get a 100W light bulb no cfl, use Incandescent type..(be careful as mains voltages are involved)..
remove capacitor, very carefully with an insulated tool, short both of its wires, you might get a big spark, don't worry and don't get afraid..
now just use the bulb in series with the capacitor with mains.. that is..connect one wire of bulb to L..
the other wire to capacitor, the other unconnected wire of capacitor to the N and then switch on mains.. you will see that the bulb will glow brightly and then dim overtime..then disconnect from the L and N, and short the wires in the circuit which were connected to mains, the bulb will glow for an instant and switch off, this means that the capacitor is OK..

If it doesn't do any of the above or malfunctions in any step , then change the capacitor..

[Beasta1.6S]

How do I wire up the coupler is a question.
There are two holes on one side and three on the other.
I'll post a pic tomorrow if required.
Its like
HOLE HOLE
HOLE
HOLE HOLE

[lazybrain]

Beasta1.6S Not sure how much time you have in this world. I too love DIY but when it comes to Fan if i were u i will throw it for repair, if unrepairable i will dump it and buy a new one!! Ultimately, depends on one's interest! But ceiling fan? Mind Blowing