How to Store a Motor for Optimal Use Later

As asphalt professionals around North America gear up for season shut down, a few items go into the shop for the winter. You order new parts for next season and those go on the shelf as well. That’s good planning. Here’s some good advice from the team at ALL-TEST Pro LLC, Old Saybrook, Connecticut, for storing motors and generators specifically.

Electrical machine storage will affect the life of the equipment. Over time, conditions such as moisture, dirt, dust, rodents and general vibration will have a negative impact on the electrical and mechanical condition of the equipment.When storing machines for any significant amount of time, try these steps:

• Store the electric motors away from sources of significant vibration, contamination and moisture.
• Rotate the shaft of the motor at least quarterly, if not monthly.
• If the storage area ever reaches the dew point, install heaters or dehumidifiers to prevent condensation.
• Perform motor circuit analysis periodically, to ensure that winding degradation has not occurred. Some plants place a tag on each motor showing the last dates for inspections on the condition of the motor, with different colors representing the schedule for turning the shaft. For example, use green for the first month of each quarter, red for the second month and yellow for the third.For more information, visit www.alltestpro.com.