Michael Wendt on mon 21 sep 09
Randall,
Good News, the wheel will require quick action to save it
but should not cost much to save.
The second the wheel comes out of the basement, take the
motor off, disassemble it completely, wash it out with clean
water and while still wet, squirt WD-40 into the bearings as
you rotate them. Be liberal and if you are lucky, when dry,
the motor will be fine. Worst case, you will need to buy a
new set of motor bearings and install them. Then, reassemble
the motor.
Right away, wash and WD-40 the wheel head shaft bearings the
same way. The goal with both of these clean water washings
is to be sure no dirt winds up in the bearings. The WD-40
helps prevent rust, something that happens as soon as air
reaches the metal parts as they start to dry out. I would
also clean and coat any other steel surfaces with WD-40.
The electronics can also be washed with clean water and
allowed to dry completely before you try them out to see if
they still work. Things like switches and potentiometers (
Brent wheels use a slide pot and 2 trim pots in the foot
pedal for example) can be ruined by getting wet, so I would
probably replace things like that before plugging the
controls back in since they could cause other parts to burn
out.
Good Luck !
Regards,
Michael Wendt
Randall Moody on mon 21 sep 09
Hi gang. I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with a wheel that
has been submerged in water. In the recent flooding in Atlanta, my basement
studio appears to be flooded. I haven't had a chance to go down and survey
the damage but from looking at the exterior of the building it doesn't look
good. The wheel is a Thomas Stuart Pro. I don't think that our homeowner's
insurance will cover it since it was in an adjacent building and not in our
apartment. Does anyone think that it will be salvageable?
This stinks since I really love that wheel and probably won't be able to
fork out the dough on a new one any time soon.
--
Randall in Atlanta
Philip Poburka on mon 21 sep 09
Hi Randall,
Probably...it will be fine.
Traditional Electric Motors usually survive 'Floods' wonderfully, so long a=
s
any silt or debris is afterward flushed out, Bearings re-Oiled or re-Grease=
d
(especially if of a non-sealed kind,) and all allowed to dry, prior to
running again.
Remove it to the fresh breezes of the outdoors as soon as possible...remove
any shields or other impediments to access closed areas...Hose it out in
every way as thoroughly as you can...let dry.
Lube all Bearings and so on...maybe, inspect any Electrical Contacts or
Controller-Electronics, clean any Oxidation from these....and, once
satisfied it is all thoroughly dry, Plug it in, and see how it does.
Should be fine...
If not, it would tend to be any 'sensitive' Electronic elements who'd
suffered from brief Galvanic Corrosion issues, and, these would then need t=
o
be evaluated and dealt with however so.
Phil
Lv
----- Original Message -----
From: "Randall Moody"
> Hi gang. I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with a wheel
> that
> has been submerged in water. In the recent flooding in Atlanta, my
> basement
> studio appears to be flooded. I haven't had a chance to go down and surve=
y
> the damage but from looking at the exterior of the building it doesn't
> look
> good. The wheel is a Thomas Stuart Pro. I don't think that our homeowner'=
s
> insurance will cover it since it was in an adjacent building and not in
> our
> apartment. Does anyone think that it will be salvageable?
>
> This stinks since I really love that wheel and probably won't be able to
> fork out the dough on a new one any time soon.
>
> --
> Randall in Atlanta
Fredrick Paget on mon 21 sep 09
I have never had a flooded wheel but early in my career I was a Chief
Electrician in the U.S. Merchant marine and I saved quite a few
flooded motors .
I especially remember when the reefer flat flooded on a troop ship I
was crewing on. That was sea water which is the worst - more so than
fresh water,
What you need to do is get it up out of there and wash it out really
well with a hose using the fresh water. Maybe there is mud and crap
in there to and you need to open up things and flush all that out
really well. Then dry it off and put it out in the sun - really bake
it maybe in a hot car or van with a window or two cracked open for
air change. When it is really dry try running it. Some parts that
move in the power train may need oil too. WD-40 is good on metal
parts too. Chances are you can save it.
Fred Paget
Twin Dragon Studio
Mill Valley, CA, USA
fredrick@well.com
Charter Member Potters Council
>Hi gang. I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with a wheel tha=
t
>has been submerged in water. In the recent flooding in Atlanta, my basemen=
t
>studio appears to be flooded. I haven't had a chance to go down and survey
>the damage but from looking at the exterior of the building it doesn't loo=
k
>good. The wheel is a Thomas Stuart Pro. I don't think that our homeowner's
>insurance will cover it since it was in an adjacent building and not in ou=
r
>apartment. Does anyone think that it will be salvageable?
>
>This stinks since I really love that wheel and probably won't be able to
>fork out the dough on a new one any time soon.
>
>--
>Randall in Atlanta
--
Marcia Selsor on tue 22 sep 09
I had an electric kiln in a flood. 3 ft. of water for 10 days. It
dried out for months. I cleaned
up the wiring, contacts etc. vacuum the silt off the bring and ..no
problem. It wasn't computerized
in those days. Call Thomas Stuart and ask what he thinks you need to
do. He is a great
consumer support person. You may be able to dry it out, grease the
axle and clean the crud.
Ask him.
Marcia
On Sep 21, 2009, at 8:36 PM, Randall Moody wrote:
> Hi gang. I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with a
> wheel that
> has been submerged in water. In the recent flooding in Atlanta, my
> basement
> studio appears to be flooded. I haven't had a chance to go down and
> survey
> the damage but from looking at the exterior of the building it
> doesn't look
> good. The wheel is a Thomas Stuart Pro. I don't think that our
> homeowner's
> insurance will cover it since it was in an adjacent building and not
> in our
> apartment. Does anyone think that it will be salvageable?
>
> This stinks since I really love that wheel and probably won't be
> able to
> fork out the dough on a new one any time soon.
>
> --
> Randall in Atlanta
>
Marcia Selsor
http://marciaselsor.com
William & Susan Schran User on tue 22 sep 09
On 9/21/09 9:36 PM, "Randall Moody" wrote:
> Hi gang. I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with a wheel th=
at
> has been submerged in water. In the recent flooding in Atlanta, my baseme=
nt
> studio appears to be flooded. I haven't had a chance to go down and surve=
y
> the damage but from looking at the exterior of the building it doesn't lo=
ok
> good. The wheel is a Thomas Stuart Pro. I don't think that our homeowner'=
s
> insurance will cover it since it was in an adjacent building and not in o=
ur
> apartment. Does anyone think that it will be salvageable?
There's a possibility that if you can get it out to dry land, and completel=
y
disassemble the wheel, including taking apart the motor and drying out all
its parts you may be able to salvage it. I would think you will need to
replace the control panel circuits and you'll also want to replace the
bearings.
Good luck my friend.
Bill
--
William "Bill" Schran
wschran@cox.net
wschran@nvcc.edu
http://www.creativecreekartisans.com
Arnold Howard on tue 22 sep 09
From: "Philip Poburka"
> Traditional Electric Motors usually survive 'Floods'
> wonderfully, so long as
> any silt or debris is afterward flushed out, Bearings
> re-Oiled or re-Greased
-----------
14 years ago my wife, son, and I were caught in a flood at
night. Our Toyota van floated down the street in the surging
water. We could feel the wheels lifting off the pavement.
All the Toyota dealers in town said the van would never run
again. However, my brother-in-law came over two weeks after
the flood, and started the engine. We drove the van for
another six months.
Sincerely,
Arnold Howard
Paragon Industries, L.P., Mesquite, Texas USA
ahoward@paragonweb.com / www.paragonweb.com
Randall Moody on tue 22 sep 09
Well, I was able to get down in the studio this morning. It appears that th=
e
motor didn't get wet or at least only the very bottom of the housing did. I
will put it up on the work table and open it up to dry. (The TS Pro is HEAV=
Y
so I will enlist the help of my 17yo.) The on/off controller didn't get we
so that is good. The pedal did get completely submerged so I am going to
remove it, tear it apart to dry and WD40 it also.
Thank you all for your help on this! You are a great group. I am off to mop
up the soggy remains of the greenware that was stored on the bottom shelves=
.
Luckily my storage system is hierarchical! Although I may need to place the
fired work on the lower shelves. :)
--
Randall in Atlanta
Randall Moody on thu 24 sep 09
If this happens to you here is what I have found out from various friends
and the TS company.
There are no lube spots on the motor. The bearings are sealed. So it is a
matter of taking the motor housing off and drying the motor. My father, who
used to work with electronics a great deal, recommended rinsing the part
with clean water, blowing it out with compressed air and then placing the
part in an oven turned to 100 degrees. This temp doesn't effect the plastic
parts and speeds the drying. Now I have to figure a way of getting my wheel
in the oven. :)
My good friend Gene, who used to own an AC/Refrigeration repair business,
sent me this piece of advice after I had already WD40'ed the motor. (I hope
I missed the windings.)
"Do not put WD40 on the windings! You may ruin it if you do. While WD40
displaces water, it also carries a certain amount of chemicals that when
left on copper will corrode the wires and cause issues.
Motor windings work correctly because they are tightly wound wires that
create a magnetic field when electricity is paced through them. When you
separate those windings (corrosion can do that) or have any kind of build u=
p
on the wires, it can cause them to burn up. And no matter what they say,
WD40 still has a certain amount of water in it.
There are better conductive lubricants for electrical, like molybdenum, but
usually the rule of thumb is to never get chemicals or water on motor
windings, and if you do let them dry completely before trying to use them
again."
I have taken the housing off and have kept a fan running on the motor for a
day or so. I will put it all back together on Friday and let you know the
results. I may end up having to replace the motor but I am keeping the
faith.
--
Randall in Atlanta
Philip Poburka on sat 26 sep 09
Hi Arnold,
Oh yeah...sounds right to me.
If a Car is entirely submerged, so Water floods into the Crank Case and so
on, Transmission even, Differential...
Oil being lighter than Water, so, the Oil can become displaced...float
off...if it's an older Car, you just drain it out and flush well with plain
Water, getting any Silt out, maybe pull the Pan...Hose out everything in th=
e
interior...maybe make sure the Speedometer is drained out alright, lube
it...check the BrakeFluid...dry the inside of the Distributor, fresh Oil in
the Crank Case and Tranny and Differential, and, start 'er up, you are
good-to-go...no worse for wear...residual Water will evaporate off
soon-enough with use...
Modern Cars, all that Electronics, eeeeeeeeesh...you could probably save th=
e
Engine proper alright, Trans and Differential...but the rest would be a
nightmare.
Ugh...
Phil
L
----- Original Message -----
From: "Arnold Howard"
To:
Sent: Tuesday, September 22, 2009 6:10 AM
Subject: Re: Flooded wheel
> From: "Philip Poburka"
>> Traditional Electric Motors usually survive 'Floods'
>> wonderfully, so long as
>> any silt or debris is afterward flushed out, Bearings
>> re-Oiled or re-Greased
> -----------
> 14 years ago my wife, son, and I were caught in a flood at
> night. Our Toyota van floated down the street in the surging
> water. We could feel the wheels lifting off the pavement.
>
> All the Toyota dealers in town said the van would never run
> again. However, my brother-in-law came over two weeks after
> the flood, and started the engine. We drove the van for
> another six months.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Arnold Howard
> Paragon Industries, L.P., Mesquite, Texas USA
> ahoward@paragonweb.com / www.paragonweb.com
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