Who owns 32Volt Appliances?

[vaclover]

Who of you guys owns 32Volt appliances?was the 32Volt motors used in washing machines induction motors?

 

[cfz2882]

antique 32 v systems

I have a vintage,probably 1930s 32v drill.32v was all DC,so brushed"series" motors were used.32v was most common in US on remote farms from~1910-1940,small gasoline driven generators or windchargers kept the batterys up-the gasoline generators were usually low rpm;1200 or lower and self starting.

 

[kitty]

Tell by lookin' at it.

If the motor has copper coils in its rotor and has two black or gray bars connected to it, then it's a brushed motor. If not, then it's an induction motor.

 

[tolivac]

My Moms New Hampshire summer camp cottage used to have 32V electric service.A small generator-battery plant provided the power.Last time I saw it was at least 30yrs ago-the "hit-Miss" gas engine was still there-rusting away-the generator and batteries gone.The wiring from the place long removed-the camps were converted to 120V.The place had some 32V light bulbs-saved a few of them-but tried one on 120V-made like a flshbulb.Mom also used to have a 32V sewing machine she used there when she was a girl.The campsites are on an island in Lake Winnepesakie.The cottages were usunsed for the most part in the winter-the lake would be frozen over.Was popular with ice fishermen.

 

[vaclover]

...

Sweet.. I've seen that delco was a manufacturer of 32Volt motors and I have a Delco motor from a vintage washing machine not sure if its 32Volts or 240Volts. I used tostay on a farm with a 32Volt system and the generator still in the generator room .I would like to have an induction washing machine motor rewound to work with 32Volt.lol

 

[norgeway]

The power plants

Were refered to as Delco Light Plants, Dons Dad said they had one when he was a kid, he said his mother had a 32 volt iron and a radio as well as a vacuum cleaner.

 

[tolivac]

An induction motor won't work from 32VDC unless you have an inverter of some sort to convert the DC to AC.Induction motors are AC only devices.Most likely the machine had a 32VDC brush type motor.It would seem that most of the 32V DC was used for lighting and small appliances with smaller motors than a washer.The cottage we used had a Serval gas fridge.The cooking was propane-before that a Kerosene stove.Still in the shed by the cottage-or at least when we used it in the summer.Would bet many washer users in 32V homes had machines that used gas motors.

 

[vaclover]

OK...

I was always wondering whether the 32Volt washing machine motors was induction or not but come to think of it some of todays washing machine motors are brushed motors. I've read that delco the generator company specially made appliances to work with the generator, here's a small town in south africa where my grandpa grew up called wepener the farm they stayed on had 32Volt lights and his mother would screw the sewing machine power socket into the light socket to work. I wonder how strong these motors would have been and how strong the suction of a 32Volt vacuum cleaner would have been?sometimes I wish I could live in a vintage era for just a while.

 

[cfz2882]

32 v vacume

I have seen ride-on floor machines that run on 36 volts DC-the lamb electric or Ametek vacume motors look like the 120v versions-could convert an older US canister type vac with a 24 or 36 volt motor.

 

[tolivac]

The ride on floor care machines use very large batteries to power them-almost like forklift batteries for electric forklifts-but just a bit smaller.Used to work on some of this stuff-they used VERY large brush type DC motors.And large DC contactors to control the power going to them.The motors are too large to be directly controlled by a panel switch-the panel switch controlled the coil voltage to the motor contactor.The motors "look" like 120V ones-the low voltage DC ones have larger wiring-and often shunt wound or coumpound wound the motor can be configured to operate as either shunt wound or series wound(series--high torque),Shunt--for high efficiency at high speed.DC locomotive traction motors work this way.And extra contactors in the device connected the motor for shunt or series wound.Often the contactors would have to cycle while the motor is going-high current!Locomotive traction motors were done hat way.Series wind for starting the train-shunt for "cruising" once the train got to the speed required.Contactors were also used to reverse the motor rotation-shunt by reversing polarity to the armature.

 

[cornutt]

A lot of the "All American Five" tube radios were built so that they could be made to run (barely) on 32V DC by flipping a switch, or by a simple mod performed by the dealer. What needed to be done was to reconfigure the wiring order of the tube heaters, which were typically all in series when run from 110V AC power. (And the rectifier tube, not needed for the DC power supply, was bypassed.)

 

[circlew]

I remember my grandfather (dad's side) talking about having a 32 volt Delco light system on the farm they had, which was about 3 miles out of town. From what he said, it was mainly for lights, radio and vacuum cleaner. He said the engine would run to charge up batteries (Delco brand I suppose) rather than run continuous.

I asked one time why it was 32 volts, rather than 120/240, and he said the system was meant to be affordable to the average farmer. The standard voltage generators were evidently only found at country homes of the wealthy, as they were very expensive and cost a lot to operate.

I have a GE lamp catalog from back in the late 70's, and 32 volt lamps were available at that time, and still may be.