Blower stopped sucking!

[rhino1]

My blower stopped moving air today, it is a #4 sutorbilt on a frankenstein slide-in, coupled directly to the 25 h.p. honda. I always keep fresh oil and grease regularly. The only issues I had from this blower was recently, when I first fired up the machine, it would spray out dirty water, which it never did before. I attributed it to condensation and cooler temps. I had also just replaced the engine with a slightly higher h.p. engine. No real noise comes from the blower, it just seemed to let go suddenly.

Is this toast or what?

 

[Greenie]

Engine turning fine, but blower no sucky sucky?

torn direct coupler, or thrown belt.

 

[Steve Lombardi]

clogged filter or inlet to machine?

 

[bob vawter]

So Crash calls me up yesterday an' says... no suckee no suckee so i tell him to lift the waste tank lid up an' take the hair ball outta the inside of the suckee hose port...

SUCKEE SUCKEE LONG TIME!

 

[Larry B]

SUCKEE SUCKEE LONG TIME!

Wasnt that part of a 2LiveCrew song?

 

[rhino1]

Not clogged filter of any kind, not torn coupler, not any kind of electronic diversification gizmo-no auto pumpout either.

I am taking it off right now, I have another on the shelf I think may work.

 

[Greenie]

I don't understand, if the blower shaft is physically turning, you should have some vacuum being generated, you would have to have a broken shaft/impeller if not...

 

[bob vawter]

Well you'll never diagnose the problem wit it off.....

 

[John Watson]

Had one with a sheared woodrift key on the shaft before. Blower was was free?? Never did figure out what sheared the key, Cleaned up the shaft under the coupler, put in new key and it worked fine... Go Figure..

 

[Dolly Llama]

absolutely no vac pressure, or just weak pressure?

if weak, check the obvious and easy things first

waste tank lid on right?
Dump valve closed?
broken/loose vac plumbing to waste tank?

..L.T.A.

 

[rhino1]

John Watson, that is pretty much what has happened, Greenie was on the right track as well.
With the lovejoy coupler and the pulley covering up all the exposed shaft, there was no way to see that the shaft on the blower itself wasn't turning, although the coupler and pulley were spinning, they were spinning ON the shaft, not spinning WITH the shaft.

A dead giveaway I noticed before tearing out the plumbing: the coupler on the blower side was getting really hot, while the blower itself and the coupler on the engine side remained cool.

Dancing a little jig because I don't have to buy a new blower........... right now, anyways.

P.S. The blower I had on the shelf is a #3, anybody need one?

 

[John Watson]

Klack sacken kluck woosie, I aint dead and I rememebered sumtin today!