I have a Sta-Rite Max-E-Therm 400 gas heater that has developed a very loud blower. It used to be virtually silent and the loudest part was hearing the gas ignite. Now the blower has a loud resonance, like something in the blower is out of balance. Anybody have any experience with these heaters? Am I looking at swapping out the entire blower? My pool is only 2.5 years old and I think with all Sta-Rite equipment, I get at least a 3 year warranty. I called up the PB though and they said that doesn't cover labor. So I'm looking at 1Hr labor minimum of $85, plus a $60 long distance fee. I'm wondering if I can't solve it cheaper on my own, but looking for opinions on whether I should just bite the bullet and call in the big guns.
Loud Blower on Heater
- Thread starter EskimoPie
- Start date
If you can gain access to the blower blades or cage it might be something built up on the blades/squirrel cage. Mud daubers are notorious for building nests in those types of places.
I doubt the mechanics of the pool heater are much different than a furnace, so here's my guesses. A dirty fan as mentioned above. A sagging motor mount.
A friend of mine had a furnace so loud you could hardly carry on a conversation when it started. We (me) dismantled it, blew out the motor, oiled it, soaked and cleaned the fan, and fabricated some new rubber mounts. Almost silent, and about twice the air flow. His mounts were little rubber cylinders, about ½" diameter and ½" tall with some short studs protruding. They had sagged with age to have about ¼" offset, which was enough to put the motor against the sheet metal housing, and oh, what a racket.
Kill the power and open the case and have a look around.
A friend of mine had a furnace so loud you could hardly carry on a conversation when it started. We (me) dismantled it, blew out the motor, oiled it, soaked and cleaned the fan, and fabricated some new rubber mounts. Almost silent, and about twice the air flow. His mounts were little rubber cylinders, about ½" diameter and ½" tall with some short studs protruding. They had sagged with age to have about ¼" offset, which was enough to put the motor against the sheet metal housing, and oh, what a racket.
Kill the power and open the case and have a look around.
Pool Clown
In The Industry
If you have a Pentair filter (can be a Sta-rite) and a filter pump (can also be a Sta-rite), you should call Pentair directly and have them service the heater through a factory warranty station in your area. You may not have to pay labor this way. The three year warranty is only good if you have three Pentair products, two of them MUST be: a) a filter and b) a filter pump. As said before Sta-rite products do qualify.
I do have all Pentair equipment. I'll try giving them a call directly. Otherwise I'll just start taking it apart!