squealing window-mounted extractor fan

[emma_middlebrook]

Hi

I've got an Airflow 4" window-mounted extractor fan in the bathroom. Last winter it started squealing and I used to tap it and eventually it would stop. The squealing stops in spring. It restarted its howl a couple of weeks ago. Tapping and banging doesn't work this season.

Today I took the thing apart, spent an hour cleaning every bit of grimey dirt from it, put it back together and reconnected. When 'hanging loose' and rotated about 90 degrees from its installed position it doesn't squeal: encouraging. I fitted it back into the window and it started squealing again!

Any ideas how to fix this? Any ideas why the bloody thing squeals only in winter?!

Cheers for any help,

Emma

[mrcheerful]

you need to get some lubrication at each end of the motor, a hypo type syringe with some oil is the ideal device, so if you have an inkjet refill set, use a syringe out of that, either way try not to drown it in oil, just a bit where the shaft rotates, just at each end of the motor.

mrcheerful

[emma_middlebrook]

I was too embarrassed to say that I sprayed some WD40 in what I thought was the right place but it didn't do any good! I'll try and dig out some kind of syringe and put some proper thicker oil in. I wonder why it's just once the temperature gets down to 5C or less. Will report back.

Cheers

Emma

[Mr Fuxit]

Don't use thicker oil, use paraffin or white spirit; either of these will soften the congealed oil that was impregnated into the bearings when manufactured.

[emma_middlebrook]

Ok, will do (at the weekend). I hope it works!

Emma

[mrcheerful]

WD40 dries out too fast to be any real help, some light oil will be fine though. Best general lubricating stuff I ever found (20 years ago) was called TRIFLON but it doesn't seem to available any more.

mrcheerful