anyone now how to fix or where to ...............

[gregm]

I have this old Westy fan (see pic - grill cover off) and it worked but sometimes would shutoff while working or not turn on at all, I think there is a "short" or loose connection in the switch or the wiring attached to the motor is "loose"? When it did run, it ran perfectly.

 

[gregm]

closeup of switch,

where would I find something like this and easy to "re-wire" ? Its a two speed and off setting. Any help/pointers greatly appreciated.

 

[coldspot66]

You should be able to find that at an electrical supply house where electricians buy their supplies. Is there a Johnstone Supply near you? You might take the old one with you to match it up.

 

[perc-o-prince]

Oh the memories!!!

Hey Greg,

I grew up with this very fan. Same color, even. It was a real wind machine till.....it nearly burned our house down!!!!

It caught fire in the front hall. Thank goodness we could smell it in time.

I'm now a-scared of those fans

Rich

 

[bajaespuma]

Me too. Is this the one that has two roll-bar Bozo-the-Clown feet and you can raise it up and down? Ditto on the memories thing!

 

[mayken4now]

Try wwGrainger mostly listed as Grianger these days.

Steve

 

[gregm]

fire ? yikes .................

thanks John and Steve, so should I cut the three wires that go into the existing switch ??? and then bring the switch with me right ? obviously, I will have to cut them to bring it. How will I "re-wire" it, I guess I will figure it out, the white wire appears to go directly to the motor and the black goes to the switch and then a red and green come from the switch to the motor. Obviously the motor is designed for "two-speed"?

uuummm, Rich, fire ? ok, well I will make sure I only use it when I am home and in that room. This fan looks like it has had very little use.

 

[brettsomers]

we had that EXACT same style Westinghouse fan also. this was the early 80s, so i guess it was already vintage then? and the motor on that one burned too!!! i remember, one of us unplugged it and someone poured a glass of water on the the motor. i wonder if they were faulty? anyway, there is a SWEET looking fan, same model, but brown, at *thrift town* here in SA. it ran like new and looked great! it was 40 dollars, i wished i had a use for it...

 

[tomturbomatic]

Do the blades turn easily? It could be that after all of these decades, the motor needs some lubrication. It could be going out on overload from dry bearings. You might find an oil wick or two that would be thirsty for a few drops. Of course, if the motor has a short, it could be overheating and going out on overload also.

 

[coldspot66]

Greg,

Black & Red wires are prolly for hi and low speed...white is neutral and green is ground. Cut the wires about an inch from the switch. You can splice the new switch with wire nuts and tape, and bundle together with a wire tie.

 

[gregm]

thanks John and Tom

Tom, I have an older almost identical westy fan, sits on the floor, high volume mover. Has oil ports. This one here does not have any oil ports and it spins very freely, just fine and with no noise at all.

 

[kenmore58]

Greg,

I have the exact (I think) same fan in my shed/workshop. Works fine so far. Moves a great deal of air and no signs of fire yet!!

Ron

 

[chad_hauris]

I wouldn't think any of the wires connected to the motor are ground...this has a two prong plug and most likely would not have a grounding wire. There are likely three wires from the motor itself...a neutral and a "hot" for the High speed coils and a "hot" for the low speed.

 

[chad_hauris]

Also...modern fans have a thermal fuse in the motor that opens if it overheats but oftentimes old ones did not...this can lead to the motor burning up as people have said. I would not leave this fan unattended as there is no thermal or overload protection.

 

[sambootoo]

G O O D fans! I have 2 of them. Had to replace the motor on one of them, was lucky to find a suitable used motor @ a flea market. The other one needs the motor rebuilt but it's impossible to find anyone in this area who will tackle the job. Like other appliance repairmen, "it's not worth it. Just trash it." Although powerful and very functional, it seems these Westinghouse motors don't hold up as well as the old Emerson fans/motors. Hope you get the problem taken care of. When I was in elementary school, half the classrooms had these Westinghouse roll about fans, the other half had Windmaker fans. Don't know what they did with them all when they FINALLY got air conditioning.