Thanks for a clear explanation on ECM motors. I worked on one close to 20 years ago. Checked voltages and resistance until I was sure it was just a module. Changed module and motor ran fine.
Good video. In addition, (1) If you connect 24v to more than one tap (1-5), the motor will run at the highest tap speed (torque). Totally safe to do so. (2) The motor can be a 3-phase generator too. If you connect your meter to any 2 of the three motor windings and turn the shaft, you will see voltage. Which means you use a discarded motor on a windmill or similar. (3) A replacement controller is sold separately but the cost of the controller is almost the same as x-13 motor/controller together. (4) The x-13 motors are available on Amazon for around $300. Don'e get suckered into paying $700+ for this motor. They are all made by the same company. (5) The x-13 motor is programmable. You can change the speed (torque) for any of the 5 taps.
I know that nobody does repair on a component level anymore but, when these go bad, 9 times out of 10 it’s the Thermistor (inrush current limiter or ICL). With a little finesse and some basic soldering skills most of there can be repaired for less than $20. If you buy your parts from a place like Mouser, this price can be as little as about $4
Thank you for watching! Yeah, you don’t want to unplug the high voltage plug off of the motor to check if there’s voltage and then plug it back. I’ve killed two motors doing this. I’m thinking because of the high potential that exists. What I do to ensure I have high voltage is shut off power, disconnect the plug, hold it in my hand and turn on power and confirm I have high voltage. Then I Turn off power and then plug it back in and turn on power. You want to avoid taking it out and plugging it back into the motor with high voltage present.
Great video, I would say the only thing that could be a little bit better practice is checking your low voltage from the 24v tap directly to the common terminal of the motor, just so you know that you don’t have a bad common wire going to your motor. I’ve only seen it a few times though, out of hundreds and hundreds of motors though
So, on the low voltage(on the bottom) will only have one wire(say blue)? Does low voltage control control motor speed? Is blue wire simply "green" thermostat wire?
Low voltage controls the motor speed. Typically, you have three low voltage wires going to the bottom part of the ECM. When you only want to have Fan ON, not on AUTO, (no heating or cooling), you call for G and it send 24 volts to the wire going on number 1 or 2 (slower speeds). When you call for heating, it sends 24 volts to the wire that goes on number 4 (a faster speed). When you call for cooling, you send 24 volts to the wire going to number 5 (fastest speed). You will physically see 3 wires going to the low voltage of the ECM motor.
Just my 0.02, some of them are 18v dc not 24ac. I've seen them only on Nordyne package units. Do a video on the 16 pin and the one with 4 wires not the 5 taps please.
@@gotchaplumber PCM might be referring to something else. Another motor you commonly find in HVAC is PSC, permanent split capacitor motor and it takes high voltage to turn it on. There's no low voltage present.
You can unplug it at the motor but you need to make sure there’s no power going to it. That’s why you power it down at the disconnect first. You then Hold the plug in your hard, turn on the disconnect, check you have high voltage going to it, turn off power at the disconnect, plug it back in and flip the disconnect on. If you unplug it with high voltage going to the ECM motor, you will mess up the motor.
I’m wondering. You said “it’s cool” but why’s it cool? Wouldn’t it be much easier to fix and less likely to fail if it just took 120 from the board with a few wires. Why make such a complex motor I don’t understand.
It's an irony of design when the reliability of a PSC motor is swapped to a device with a built in design flaw that makes it more vulnerable to damage from external causes of poor air flow. Why did they design ECM blower motors to be on a constant torque performance curve?
What goes bad on the module are the "thermistor" that is a thin disc type of electronic part. That part is $1.50 to purchase on its own however, installing one is time consuming. Maybe those in the engineering departments could find a thermistor that is more robust and lasts as long as the motor itself. Yes, a $2 part fails and it costs the public $400 to $1,000 !
@@izzymoney85 Yup. Most of the ECM's I have to replace are a minimum of $1200 when they go bad. Any minor savings on electrical is LONG gone when I have to replace these... I have also seen the motor itself go bad with resistance readings out of spec that has taken out the control... It's definitely worth looking over the motor if you want to save the customer some money and only replace the module. They also seem to always have them completely encased in a silicon/epoxy that makes examining the electrical components difficult. Such as the common in-rush MOV that is known to open up on some of these.
That's the best testing ECM video I've ever seen great job
Thank you!
Thanks for a clear explanation on ECM motors. I worked on one close to 20 years ago. Checked voltages and resistance until I was sure it was just a module. Changed module and motor ran fine.
Good video. In addition, (1) If you connect 24v to more than one tap (1-5), the motor will run at the highest tap speed (torque). Totally safe to do so. (2) The motor can be a 3-phase generator too. If you connect your meter to any 2 of the three motor windings and turn the shaft, you will see voltage. Which means you use a discarded motor on a windmill or similar. (3) A replacement controller is sold separately but the cost of the controller is almost the same as x-13 motor/controller together. (4) The x-13 motors are available on Amazon for around $300. Don'e get suckered into paying $700+ for this motor. They are all made by the same company. (5) The x-13 motor is programmable. You can change the speed (torque) for any of the 5 taps.
Most online orders have no warranty or guarantee . Ask before ordering online .
I am in Denver , Colorado.
That's good to know. Thank you for sharing!
Thanks for the 411 on ECM motors I have a better understanding of the basics now
You're welcome!
I know that nobody does repair on a component level anymore but, when these go bad, 9 times out of 10 it’s the Thermistor (inrush current limiter or ICL).
With a little finesse and some basic soldering skills most of there can be repaired for less than $20. If you buy your parts from a place like Mouser, this price can be as little as about $4
Great tip!
Thanks bro for the break down and a full understanding of how to..
It’s not the X-13 that I have an issue with, it’s all the other variants out there and it’s hard to test
Thanks for the very informative video! Much appreciated and happy holidays!
That was a very good explanation I shared with my techs. I also subscribed keep it up!
Thank you!
Excellent explanation!!
love your videos excellent explaining keep up the good work
Thanks!
I’m really appreciate you’re explaining very clearly. You said shot off the power then connected then power on why? Thank you.
Thank you for watching! Yeah, you don’t want to unplug the high voltage plug off of the motor to check if there’s voltage and then plug it back. I’ve killed two motors doing this. I’m thinking because of the high potential that exists. What I do to ensure I have high voltage is shut off power, disconnect the plug, hold it in my hand and turn on power and confirm I have high voltage. Then I Turn off power and then plug it back in and turn on power. You want to avoid taking it out and plugging it back into the motor with high voltage present.
Great video, I would say the only thing that could be a little bit better practice is checking your low voltage from the 24v tap directly to the common terminal of the motor, just so you know that you don’t have a bad common wire going to your motor. I’ve only seen it a few times though, out of hundreds and hundreds of motors though
Good point, thanks!
Great video. Thank you for sharing
Always check for power at the plug. If you check power at the source ,but not at the plug your issue is in the wires feeding the motor. 8:02
You really explained it very well. Thank you.. but is the blue wire coming, the second leg from the transformer?
Yes it is, It’s my hot 24v
Thank you so much...ECM motors are now very clear to me . because of you. Thanks again
I have subscribed
Great job dude thanks for the knowledge.
What does it mean when the motor turns on then turns off after less than a second being on.
Good explanation.
why do you have 208v going to the motor when it calls for 230? Are you connected to the 208 output on the transformer?
I meant to say I have 208 volts coming in and the motor takes 208 volts. Thanks for catching that 👍🏼
Awesome video sir..may you go into superheat and subcooling for the new techs?
Will do!
GREAT GREAT VIDEO
Thanks for the info. Good job!🎉
Good precessional knowledge about the motor
So, on the low voltage(on the bottom) will only have one wire(say blue)?
Does low voltage control control motor speed?
Is blue wire simply "green" thermostat wire?
Low voltage controls the motor speed. Typically, you have three low voltage wires going to the bottom part of the ECM. When you only want to have Fan ON, not on AUTO, (no heating or cooling), you call for G and it send 24 volts to the wire going on number 1 or 2 (slower speeds). When you call for heating, it sends 24 volts to the wire that goes on number 4 (a faster speed). When you call for cooling, you send 24 volts to the wire going to number 5 (fastest speed). You will physically see 3 wires going to the low voltage of the ECM motor.
Just my 0.02, some of them are 18v dc not 24ac. I've seen them only on Nordyne package units. Do a video on the 16 pin and the one with 4 wires not the 5 taps please.
Does "PCM" motor control speed controlled by "high voltage"?
Is "ECM" motor speed controlled by "low voltage"?
Are you referring to PSC motors? Yes, ECM motor speeds are controlled by low voltage.
@@HVACPioneerControls ECM=Low voltage.
PCM=controlled by high voltage?
Is my logic correct or incorrect?
@@gotchaplumberYou are correct but it’s PSC not PCM, PSC is permanent split capacitor
@@gotchaplumber PCM might be referring to something else. Another motor you commonly find in HVAC is PSC, permanent split capacitor motor and it takes high voltage to turn it on. There's no low voltage present.
Thanks for the training videos
Excellent video
Thank you🙄
Solid video!
You can use a universal motor called EZ13 and it does the same job and only costs $240
What is the difference between powering down by the disconnect switch vs. unplugging at motor?
You can unplug it at the motor but you need to make sure there’s no power going to it. That’s why you power it down at the disconnect first. You then Hold the plug in your hard, turn on the disconnect, check you have high voltage going to it, turn off power at the disconnect, plug it back in and flip the disconnect on.
If you unplug it with high voltage going to the ECM motor, you will mess up the motor.
Possibly due to arching?
Thank you 🙏
I’m wondering. You said “it’s cool” but why’s it cool? Wouldn’t it be much easier to fix and less likely to fail if it just took 120 from the board with a few wires. Why make such a complex motor I don’t understand.
It's an irony of design when the reliability of a PSC motor is swapped to a device with a built in design flaw that makes it more vulnerable to damage from external causes of poor air flow. Why did they design ECM blower motors to be on a constant torque performance curve?
THANK YOU 🤟 😎
Good video
What goes bad on the module are the "thermistor" that is a thin disc type of electronic part. That part is $1.50 to purchase on its own however, installing one is time consuming. Maybe those in the engineering departments could find a thermistor that is more robust and lasts as long as the motor itself. Yes, a $2 part fails and it costs the public $400 to $1,000 !
Awesome explanation but a blocked filter will reduce the load meaning less amps. A blocked filter will overrun a PCE motor. Ask me how I know...
8:45 120V --5:44 209.0V
thank you
Those motor are junk
They cost close to 500.00 so where is the saving
Just more parts that can go wrong
Hahaha that's nothing the cost here in Colorado is around 1200-1600 depending on the model make 😂
@@izzymoney85 Yup. Most of the ECM's I have to replace are a minimum of $1200 when they go bad. Any minor savings on electrical is LONG gone when I have to replace these... I have also seen the motor itself go bad with resistance readings out of spec that has taken out the control... It's definitely worth looking over the motor if you want to save the customer some money and only replace the module. They also seem to always have them completely encased in a silicon/epoxy that makes examining the electrical components difficult. Such as the common in-rush MOV that is known to open up on some of these.
@@izzymoney85 Hey , bro . I am in Denver , Colorado. Thanks for the heads up 🤭😎🤟
@izzymoney85 you mean the rip off cost your company sells them for. We know this as techs
Those motors in the video aren't junk compared to broad ocean motors.😂😂😂😂😂
Are ECMs and brushless motors are overkill
Old school rules
I’d take a PSC motor any day over that junk
Good explanation.