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What to do when all else fails!
I've repaired Coleman A/C units several times in the past. The common issue is a bad start capacitor, as described on my other webpage covering that issue. In this case, the blower motor was very hard to turn by hand when the power was off. It also started to squeal, rumble, and had a slight vibration. None of these are good signs! I used some oil and lubricated the bushings as best I could. I nursed a few more months out of it. There are no Zerk fittings on the motor. The bearings/bushings are sealed. So once they start to fail, there's not much that can be done.
The first order of business is turn off all sources of power and to remove the plastic shroud, which is held in place by 4 screws. Lift the cover straight up, then you'll see what's pictured below. Yes, "I" had applied power once the shroud was removed to assess what the issue was. Power was removed again before getting into the wiring. The motor uses a common shaft to drive the fan for the condenser (outside) and the evaporator (inside). Pay close attention to the placement of each of the fan blades on the shaft. These positions are adjustable. If you put the old fan blades on the new motor in the wrong position, they could drag against something important! Spin the motor by hand before applying power to verify clearance of the blades.
 The condenser fan blade is half in/out of its shroud. |
 Same view a little further away. In this picture you can also see the motor that needs to be replaced. |
 Opposite view. Note the plate that the motor is mounted on. |
 A close-up view showing how the motor is mounted. Remove the clamp holding the condenser fan to the shaft, allowing the blade to be pushed off the shaft. The blade can then be carefully removed from the housing. Remove the two screws at the bottom of the supporting L-bracket, then the 5 screws on the motor baseplate. The motor can be gently slid out. The motor shaft will move into the shroud of the condenser. Be careful not to bang the fins of the condenser. It's close, but it will move enough for the evaporator fan to come out of the housing. In other words, the evaporator fan blade does not have to be removed until after the motor is completely removed. Once the motor is removed, it's a simple matter of removing a few screws on the backside of the mounting plate to replace the motor. |
 A view from the left side. You can see where the wiring goes through a grommet. |
 On a previous Coleman A/C unit (same thing), you can see the access plate removed to gain access to the wiring and capacitors. I carefully removed one wire at a time from the old motor, then wired in the new motor. |
 Here's a view of the specifications printed on the access plate. |
 I contacted the manufacturer of Coleman A/C units, which is RVP. Brian, the representative, gave me the information I needed to buy a replacement part. Here's his response to a part number... "The part number for that motor is 1468-3109. Fasco leaves the 9 off of the data plate when it is manufactured. You may order that from your local service center or dealer or from Camping World at 1-800-626-5499." It isn't cheap. With shipping, it's pushing $200 for a new motor. But a new A/C unit costs $500-$600, then has to be installed. Replacing the motor was still the best option in this case. The unit worked great after the swap. |
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Last updated 03/07/06 All rights reserved. |
