Carbon Brush Modification - thoughts.....

[ban-all-sheds]

Well, popping the lid doesn't count as fixing something not broken. But ATM it is supporting a section of worktop, so popping it is not trivial. I will try and remember to look and come back here to report the next time I have an opportunity. AFAICT there's nothing in the fault-finding guide in the manual to do with failure of the moisture sensing and possibly replacing brushes.

And I think if I were designing a TD my first thought would be to use a non-contact method of measuring the exhaust air.

 

[dishman]

That's the really odd thing, neither is there one in my manual. It seems that they want this issue to be repaired by a "qualified repair person".

I even checked the manual for your machine before you mentioned it in the hopes yours mentioned something. But, nothing as you say.

Maybe the armature design in the more modern machines leads to more excessive wear....a poor redesign maybe...who knows....

I would also agree that you that moisture detection on the exhaust seems the most simple way to implement this to reduce moving/wearable parts.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

It seems that they want this issue to be repaired by a "qualified repair person".

Well, that's another issue, and it is bound up with the institutional lying to, and utter contempt for, their customers which mean that they really would have to be the last white goods manufacturer on earth for me to ever buy one of their products again. They are scum.

 

[davelx]

I may have missed it, but one thing no-one has yet pointed out is that you cannot solder onto the carbon part of a carbon brush. Some carbon brushes may have a metal backing plate that you might be able to solder to (not easy though, and might damage the bond between the plate and the brush), but otherwise you would have to solder to the attached braid.

 

[dishman]

Thanks for the confirmation @davelx , I kind of knew that was the case as I could not imagine solder taking to a carbon surface. But, thought someone may have tried it.

I think the best course of action is to just ensure that the carbon brushes can swing freely enough to make a good 90 degree contact along their length. I think the previous ones may have got stuck at an angle for some reason and contributed to very uneven wear.

I could cut slots into a standard carbon brush I suppose to make some "slot on shoes". But I have a feeling a carbon brush is not the most compliant material to cut into, so it will probably end up in a mess.

 

[Echo the husky]

Carbon brushes can be shaped easily as they are quite soft, I've only ever done that when the correct parts are obsolete. There is clearly a problem with the mounting or mechanism if they are wearing like that. I would use the correct brushes and sort the problem with the arm/brush parts not moving as they should.

 

[SimonH2]

An alternative approach would be to make small brush holders to take some other brushes. A simple slot (with longitudinal stops) with the spring pressure holding the brush in place might do.
We have a fairly new Hoover heat pump drier - it probably senses the load on the compressor to determine the humidity of the air going round. Unfortunately it doesn't work well except for quite large loads - my guess is that with part loads there simply isn't the evaporation rate to make it think that the clothes are still damp. Oh, and a lovely design feature where socks or other small items routinely get stuck on the exit grill and then act as your lint filter