12-volt fan motor (range hood)

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scottydl

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My range hood exhaust fan (above the stove burners) has never worked, and I assume the motor itself is fried.  I removed it the other day and am wondering where to find a 12-volt replacement fan motor.  Anyone ever replaced one of these?  The fan and motor are not unlike a roof vent fan... it may be the same thing adapted for the range hood.  I couldn't find anything 12-volt at Menard's yesterday and plan on trying Ace Hardware today, but I figured I'd ask in case someone has experience replacing these.  See photo of what the small motor looks like -
 

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I don't remember the name of the place, but I found replacement motors.  Look at the motor, there is likely a small component on the side, it is a temp sensor that will act like a fuse.  If the motor overheats it cuts out.  You may have a harder time replacing it than replacing the motor.  Mine was bad, but I found one in the parts bin in our service deppt.

As a last resort, you can replace the whole assembly hood and all for not much more than the motor.

 
Sccotty, contact the hood manufacturer or take the motor to Grainger's, McMasters or possibly an appliance repair shop if you are in or near a larger city.
 
PancakeBill said:
As a last resort, you can replace the whole assembly hood and all for not much more than the motor.

Yikes.  I kinda thought this would be a $5 part but the trick would be finding it (12 volt and all).  The motor is small, maybe 1.5" in diameter and 3" long.  The 12-volt nature made me think away from standard appliance repair places, but I'll give them a try.  This motor in particular is a Jensen (who usually makes cheap audio components) and has all the specs printed on a label.  Hopefully that will help me find the right replacement.
 
"has never worked"
If you havn't done so, Before getting a replacement, I would check the motor alone with 12 volts.
Art
 
King said:
"has never worked"
If you havn't done so, Before getting a replacement, I would check the motor alone with 12 volts.

Very good point... I just did so, and I get nothin' from the motor.  The wiring is pretty simple and all the other hood switches work (light, FW pump, tank monitor panel) so I had previously narrowed it down to the motor itself that way.

Karl said:
Scotty,
Something is out of kilter. You said it's a Jensen part but show a Bosch motor. Which is it? What is the model number/part number?

The Bosch photo is from Google Images, just a similar looking motor (not the one I have).  Sorry I didn't clarify.  ;)  Here are the specs on my Jensen fan motor:

Model No. HR475E3
Jensen No. 42-472-01
Voltage: 12 DC
Amperage: 1.3 amp
Date of Mfg: 7 Dec 93

Google turns up nothing useful on that "Model No." or "Jensen No."... I don't care at all if I get an exact brand/model replacement, I just want something that fits and works the same.
 
A lot of electronic stuff uses 12v motors inside - computers, for example. There are lots of 12v fans on the market, so check around. Ought to be able to find something that  can be adapted to it. And an electronics cooling  fan will be a lot quieter than your original - they were notoriously loud and rather ineffective to boot.
 
If it looks exactly like the Bosch motor, try a foreign car dealer's parts department. Bosch motors are used extensively in them. I would guess that to be a windshield wiper motor, or for a gate lift or window lift. That be me, I'd take it apart and check the brushes and commutator for corrosion or a bad connection. Unlikely that the winding would burn out, and worn brushes can be replaced. It may just require lubrication. Did you check if it is drawing any current?
 
It's not exactly like the Bosch... I just posted that to illustrate what shape/style of motor it is.  Computer cooling fans are a dime a dozen (and pretty quiet as Gary mentioned), so if those are rated at the same voltage maybe I'll go that route.  How close does the amperage need to be to the original?  Exactly 1.3a, or can I give or take a few tenths?  Honestly I did not figure the original-style motor would be so hard to find.  I have a 12v clip-on fan in the RV that I never use, so I could try to raid the motor from that too.
 
I'll agree with you as far as the tiny 3" fans that are common in PC power supplies, Karl.  But I've had really good luck swapping out the original exhaust fan with a 4 3/4" 12 volt muffin fan like these.

Judging by the amount of steam removed from the stove, how hard they seem to blow against my hand, and how far the outside flap blew open with the muffin fan vs. the orignal, the 4 3/4" fan I used has airflow comparable to the original noisy fan it replaced.

Scottydl - don't sweat the amperage except - if you have several fans to choose from, the one with the higher amperage will usually move more air.  But almost any 4 3/4" fan will do a good job.
 
Problem solved.  The previous owner of my rig had included a 12-volt clip on oscillating fan (like the one pictured below), which was horribly loud and I never used.  Until now.  I disassembled it to get to the motor, and what do you know... it was nearly identical to the range hood fan motor that never worked!  A little modification and I now have a working fan over my stove burners again.  Total cost = $0.  ;D
 

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Found this old topic while searching for options to my noisy out of balance fan. Thinking i will try the 4-3/4 computer cooling mentioned above.
Has anyone else used it that can update on its effectiveness over some use time?
 
I bought this one and had to adapt a little bit but it has been working fine and is fairly quiet....

HERE


I actually paid much less than this about $12.00 but can't remember where I bought it from....

Good Luck,

Jim
 
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