Rainbow D3C Noise

Will....that noise you hear is coming from the power nozzle motor. What is happening here is the brass bearing inside the motor, on the end the cooling fan is located, the grease they used there years ago when manufactured must have worn away by now. Thereby, causing the bearing noise.

The bearing is replaceable, but I would advise against it. Reason being is the end of the pulley it makes contact with is probably worn out as well...I have tried replacing the bearing in these GS Electric & Ametek PN motors, & it works sometimes, but not always. What I have done that HAS worked is to use some lithium grease. I have cured a Hoover Powermatic PN all-metal motor & 2 GS Electric motors in a Dirt Devil & Tri-Star of this noise.

I use Liquid Wrench White Lithium Grease when I run across this problem. It comes in a 290g aerosol spray bottle with a concentrator tube. Just spray the outside of the bearing & give it a good coating....but be warned the stuff is a little messy. Another product you could also use, which should work equally as well, is Permatex White Lithium Grease #80345. It comes in a tube & you would just apply to the outside of the bearing. In both cases let the motor sit for an hour before reinstalling to let the lithium grease soak in, & be sure to wipe up any excess that isn't on the bearing itself. And if it happens again in the future, just reapply. I have linked below to the Liquid Wrench, & will link in a follow-up to the Permatex.

Good luck with your motor....Rob

CLICK HERE TO GO TO kirbylux77's LINK


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Post# 250746 9/20/2013 at 14:39 (3,863 days old) by TASE (Colorado)
Checkrate/Likes So, for my birthday I bought a Rainbow D3C. I knew it was going to have a noise problem, but I cannot figure out what is wrong. The power nozzle is making the noise. At first I was told it was probably just dried up bearings in the brushroll, but I replaced the with a brand new one and it's still making the noise. So I'm a bit stuck. You could describe the noise as a "high pitched wining" or a a higher pitched screech. Could it be that the belt it came with is not an OEM rainbow belt? Or is the motor going bad? I will upload a video in a few hours if I remember, that way you guys can get a better idea.

Post# 250758 , Reply# 1 9/20/2013 at 17:36 (3,863 days old) by TASE (Colorado)
Checkrate/Likes *Video...*

Post# 250799 , Reply# 2 9/21/2013 at 08:48 (3,863 days old) by kirbylux77 (London, Ontario, Canada)
Checkrate/Likes 1 *Power Nozzle Fan Bearing* Will....that noise you hear is coming from the power nozzle motor. What is happening here is the brass bearing inside the motor, on the end the cooling fan is located, the grease they used there years ago when manufactured must have worn away by now. Thereby, causing the bearing noise. The bearing is replaceable, but I would advise against it. Reason being is the end of the pulley it makes contact with is probably worn out as well...I have tried replacing the bearing in these GS Electric & Ametek PN motors, & it works sometimes, but not always. What I have done that HAS worked is to use some lithium grease. I have cured a Hoover Powermatic PN all-metal motor & 2 GS Electric motors in a Dirt Devil & Tri-Star of this noise. I use Liquid Wrench White Lithium Grease when I run across this problem. It comes in a 290g aerosol spray bottle with a concentrator tube. Just spray the outside of the bearing & give it a good coating....but be warned the stuff is a little messy. Another product you could also use, which should work equally as well, is Permatex White Lithium Grease #80345. It comes in a tube & you would just apply to the outside of the bearing. In both cases let the motor sit for an hour before reinstalling to let the lithium grease soak in, & be sure to wipe up any excess that isn't on the bearing itself. And if it happens again in the future, just reapply. I have linked below to the Liquid Wrench, & will link in a follow-up to the Permatex. Good luck with your motor....Rob CLICK HERE TO GO TO kirbylux77's LINK

Post# 250800 , Reply# 3 9/21/2013 at 08:50 (3,863 days old) by kirbylux77 (London, Ontario, Canada)
Checkrate/Likes 1 *2nd Link* To Permatex White Lithium Grease #80345 CLICK HERE TO GO TO kirbylux77's LINK

Post# 250801 , Reply# 4 9/21/2013 at 09:00 (3,863 days old) by kirbylux77 (London, Ontario, Canada)
Checkrate/Likes 1 While I am at it, Will....here are the replacement carbon brushes for the GS Electric motor your powerhead uses. Please note, however to anyone reading this....if your motor has a manufacture date after the year 2000, these brushes will NOT work. They started to permanently attach the carbon brushes to the motor with a wire that runs down the middle of the spring, rendering the motor "disposable" when the brushes are worn down to nothing. Rob CLICK HERE TO GO TO kirbylux77's LINK

Post# 250816 , Reply# 5 9/21/2013 at 12:38 (3,863 days old) by dysonman1 (the county)
Checkrate/Likes That motor is replaceable, and they are very inexpensive. I think the wholesale cost on a replacement Ametek power nozzle motor for the Rainbow is less than $15.

Post# 250818 , Reply# 6 9/21/2013 at 12:49 (3,863 days old) by TASE (Colorado)
Checkrate/Likes Rob, I got some lithium grease and greased the bearings. My Rainbow works like it's brand new! I'd replace the carbon brushes, but they seem to be good enough for at least another 5 to 10 years. They seem almost brand new.

Post# 250820 , Reply# 7 9/21/2013 at 12:53 (3,863 days old) by TASE (Colorado)
Checkrate/Likes And yes Dysonman1. I'll probably replace the motor next time this happens. I see they are about $20 on eBay which is a lot better than I thought. I was freaking out as I thought I'd have to spend $60 or $70 on one of those motors.

Post# 250851 , Reply# 8 9/21/2013 at 19:56 (3,862 days old) by kirbylux77 (London, Ontario, Canada)
Checkrate/Likes 1 Will....Glad to hear my advice helped you out & you got your Rainbow PN motor working without the bearing noise. It feels good when I know my advice has helped someone out here on the forum. Tom....Yes, you're right. The Rainbow Ametek PN motor is fairly inexpensive, here in Canada it goes for just under $35 thru JohnnyVac. However, the Ametek motors are cheap because they're Chinese-made GARBAGE!! You're lucky to get 5 or 6 years outta one of the new Ametek PN motors before they die or start getting tons of bearing noise. I've got some PN motors dating back to 1977 that still work fine....and they're Ametek & GS Electric motors. And I have a good stash of spare motors, should I need to get a replacement, that I have salvaged from donor vacs over the years. I think I would rather replace the brushes & keep my motors working good, rather than throw money away on disposable junk. The ONLY WAY I will use a new PN motor is if I get a new vac that has one. Rob

Post# 250855 , Reply# 9 9/21/2013 at 21:07 (3,862 days old) by vacuumfreak95 (Aransas Pass, Tx)
Checkrate/Likes *I've got a question.* Would the grease you speak of work on regular vacuum cleaner motor bearings or just power nozzle motor bearings?

Post# 288155 , Reply# 10 7/11/2014 at 00:14 (3,570 days old) by kirbylux77 (London, Ontario, Canada)
Checkrate/Likes *Sean* No, the grease would NOT work on a vacuum cleaner suction motor bearing. The reason being is that the bearings in vacuum suction motors are sealed....you have to take the bearing out of the motor & take the top off the bearing, & apply grease with a bearing grease gun. Either that, or you replace the bearing entirely once you have the motor apart. The reason the grease works in PN motors is it is just a brass bearing that sits on a spindle, so therefore the grease can easily get in & lubricate both the bearing & spindle, & eliminate the friction & bearing noise. Rob