'48 GE Vortalex 12" Oscillating Fan

[rp2813]

I've owned the subject fan since the '70s and it performs well, but since I got some excellent input and advice on my recent Graybar find, I thought I'd ask the experts here about something that has always bothered me with the Vortalex. 

 

Upon starting the fan, it makes a rhythmic chattering/squealing/rattling sound associated with the increasing RPM before quieting down to normal after reaching full speed.  I have a feeling that whatever is causing this is also causing the motor to be kind of slow about getting up to speed, as in, maybe 5 seconds or so.  The sound is barely noticeable with the blades off, and the motor reaches full speed a lot quicker.  The blades are balanced quite well.  There's no shaking or quivering from the cage, and just minor vibration in the stand that I think is more about the motor than the blades.

 

Right now I have the washers configured with a relatively thick rubber one sandwiched between two fiber ones on each side.  These washers came from Darryl Hudson, who I found on the AFCA site back in the good old easy access days.  This washer configuration is the same on the front and rear portions of the shaft, so there are two pairs of fiber washers surrounding two rubber ones, for a total of eight fiber ones.  Free play is minimal, but the fan will run for hours with no overheating or other ill effects.  If I remove even one fiber washer, it can develop a slight rattle.

 

Since the early '30s Graybar is practically silent and attains full speed almost instantly, I'm wondering if the Vortalex should be behaving the same.  I found a Vortalex restoration posted on YouTube in three separate installments.  That thing was in really bad shape, but without any major cleaning it was silent and quickly got up to speed. 

 

Any idea what's wrong with mine?  I've attached a picture of a 16" model that's the same style as my 12".

 

Thanks for any suggestions,

 

Ralph

 

 

 

[d-jones]

Hi Ralph

I have that model Vortalex fan in my bedroom and it's doing the same thing. When I looked into it in the past I found the noise coming from two places. First, my fan has a fair amount of axial play on the motors shaft. Enough that once the fan is up to speed the thrust created by the rotating blades pushes the shaft rearward causing the worm gear on the back end of the shaft to rub against the inside of the little gear box on the back of the motor. Keeping the gearbox filled with grease helps prevent the worm gear from chattering noisily against the inside surface of the gearbox. But you mentioned that you've shimmed your motors shaft with washers to minimize axial free play, so this may not be an issue with your fan. The other source of noise is the sintered bronze bushing at the front end of the motor. There's a little reservoir of lube and wicking material mounted to the underside of it and that lube will occasionally run out and need refilling. If it doesn't get refilled the bushing can be noisy until things heat up enough to soften what remains of the old dried out lube. Once it heats up and the lube softens, capillary pull will draw it through the bushing to the rotating shaft and things will quiet down again. However, if your fans little reservoir is full and you're still having this problem then I've just wasted your time with this right up. Hopefully that's not the case.

 

[rp2813]

Thanks David.  The noise seems to be coming from up front.  Is the sintered bushing the one in the "snout" just behind the blade?  It appears to have some play in it, I presume to compensate for balance issues.  It looks like there's a counterpart bushing at the back end as well.  Some of the grease for the oscillation mechanism makes its way onto the shaft back there, but it doesn't seem to cause any problems.

 

I replaced the wick and have been keeping the reservoir topped off.  It seems to be doing its job, as the shaft is very slick.

 

Maybe this is just the way these fans sound after years of use.  Mine was in good shape when I got it, but I have no idea how much use it saw before then.  I've come to use it only on the highest speed, as it's louder on lower speeds, and even more so if I set it to oscillate.  It's in my shop because it's not only on the loud side for indoors, but it also moves too much air, even on the lowest setting, and can blow things around.

 

I think these fans are in their element when screwed to the wall in a high corner, or over the entrance to an old retail or eating establishment.

 

[d-jones]

Well Ralph

In light of this thread that you started I decided to take my fan in to work with me today and give it a good going over so it'll be ready for summer. While I was at it I went ahead and investigated the squealing and rattling sounds it's making and found that the little worm gear inside the gearbox is the sole cause. The fan can be run with the cover off the gearbox and that removed any doubt about the culprit. I'd love to be able to silence it but that'll take some thought.

 

[rp2813]

Good sleuthing David!  I'll do likewise with mine just to make sure, however what you've described about your fan sounds like a noise that's present the whole time the fan is running.  The chattering on mine only occurs at start-up, and intermittently but not as loudly on the lowest speed.  It's like the faint whirring sound of an old electric motor kicking in and getting up to speed, but super-amplified into a chirpy, rhythmic squeal.

 

I read that the washer configuration on these fans can vary depending on what will make the fan run quietly.   I presume that at least four fiber washers are required no matter what, so the soft washers at the worm gear end and the blade end are each safely sandwiched between two fiber ones.   After that, it seems you add them like spacers for the desired result, with range for play in the armature/shaft NTE 1/16".

 

Maybe I'm over-simplifying things with your fan, but couldn't you add washers to the worm gear end to keep it from making contact with the back of the gearbox, or it this latest noise you described something else?

 

 

 

[d-jones]

Unfortunately it may be something else. It looks to me as though the worm gear may actually be chattering against the gear that it drives, in other words the little gear that lays across the back half of the gear box perpendicular to the motor shaft and ending at the large brass slotted fitting on the right when viewed from behind. But I notice that the sound isn't all that obvious at the lowest speed setting, which as you pointed out is plenty of air for most needs. One thing I love about these Vortalex fans is the sound the blades make when they're up to speed. As an aircraft mechanic I see a lot of turboprops go by at the Van Nuys airport. When the pilots throttle back the turbines they can get fairly quiet leaving only the sound of the rotating props, and that sound is what the Vortalex fans remind me of. The chattering gears can block that sound out and that's what I'd like to avoid.

[this post was last edited: 6/19/2016-04:10]

 

[supersuds]

I wish I could help, Ralph, but my little Vortalex starts as fast as a bunny and the motor doesn't make any unusual noise. It does appear to have had very little use. You must be right that what you hear wasn't normal when they were new.

 

[rp2813]

John, I'm probably making a bigger deal out of this than it really is.  The fan behaves fine except for this brief bit of noise on start-up.  Considering it's almost 70 years old, I should wish I'll be operating as well when I'm 70.

 

David, I'm right there with you about the propeller sound produced by a Vortalex.  It's one of my favorite things about this fan.  Maybe a thicker grease will help to quiet the gears on yours.  If anyone could figure out a way to mitigate the chattering, it would be you.