Please report cracked RVP MACH 8 A/C fan blades here

[brobox]

Jim, it was Mike at Coleman that talked me out of upgrading from the 6 bladed fans to the 3 bladed fans last year. He said, noise wasn't the issue....they went the the 3 bladed fans because of cost. He also said there was much misinformation on the internet.

I just installed the 3 bladed fans and Mike was not being truthful about the noise. I believe the internet and this forum is more truthful.

[voltdoc]

Jim, glad you got your alignment fixed with a simple washer!

Mike at Coleman/RVP/Airxcel is the one disseminating the misinformation. It's bad enough Coleman/Airxcel didn't proactively recall the defective blades, but to have a customer rep denying there is even a problem is shameful. Particularly when that inexpensive defective part can - and has - destroyed the entire unit.

The B & C version of the fans *will* eventually fail even on properly installed units. Guaranteed. Guess they are betting your warranty will run out first. More info here on the B & C fans and where to look for cracks

Around fall 2014 a few of us sent an engineer at Coleman/Airxcel our broken and failing B and C version fans which prompted a retooling that resulted in the beefier D fan. The D fans are holding up well. Good thing the engineer didn't consult Mike. More info here on the improvements to the D fans.

The defective fans always fail in the same manner (stress cracks in the hub where the bottom edge of the blade meets the hub). The hubs were too thin and deformed during operation causing flexing that turned into cracks and eventual failure. Clearly that has nothing to do with possible overtigtening of the base plate.

As for that, Entegra (and presumably others) started putting a foam block under the front of the unit to ensure a level install. Seems that is another example of inadequate engineering that the installers have been forced to resolve. I have seen cracked fans and torn or loose motor mounts on units with the foam block.

As for the noise factor, the nature of the sound is radically different between the original six blade fan and the new 3 blade fans. The majority of us find the three blade fans to be much quieter. Redesign of the shroud could reduce the noise even more.

[jbhobbs54]

Lost 2 A/C this last week. Looked in the rear A/C and can see a fan blade missing and jammed in the housing. The front A/C has 3 fan blades attached, but vibrates so hard that you think the unit is coming off the roof. Turned both units off, and am calling Entegra this morning. I'm happy that I'm still under warranty!

[Melmoses]

I have the bad vibration problem with one of mine- brand new installed Thurs. Please let me know what the fix is for your ac. I would rather fix it myself if possible than drive back 196 miles one way to deal with it.

[swk]

Had the second 3 blade "B" fan crack this week. Called Airexcel and they sent me 3 new "D" blades. In addition they sent new rubber isolators that go under the fan motor. About 5 minutes per unit and all good now.

[munzie]

we were out in california it was 100+* our ac started making a horrible noise so I shut it down. Good thing we have a rear one. I went up took off the top, had my son turn it on and wow, the fan motor was jumping all over the place. After close inspection we found the 3 blade fan had large cracks. It was a "C" fan. Also one of the motor mounts was lose and we couldn't under the sheet metal to tighten it. Not sure if they are rubber mounted underneath.I had to make a wedge in between the mount and sheet metal. I thought I 'd better check the rear and sure enough it had cracks starting on the blades. I went crazy trying to find them. No one had any and most places said they were back ordered. We made it back to Washington where one of the local rv parts store ordered them for me took about 2 weeks and $52.00 ea. I now have the up graded "D" fans. The old fan they came with a small clip balancer i'm assuming and the new ones do not. Is there any way to check the balance of these fans before I put them on?
I will be reporting this to RPV
thanks

[Rollin101]

Originally Posted by munzie

we were out in california it was 100+* our ac started making a horrible noise so I shut it down. Good thing we have a rear one. I went up took off the top, had my son turn it on and wow, the fan motor was jumping all over the place. After close inspection we found the 3 blade fan had large cracks. It was a "C" fan. Also one of the motor mounts was lose and we couldn't under the sheet metal to tighten it. Not sure if they are rubber mounted underneath.I had to make a wedge in between the mount and sheet metal. I thought I 'd better check the rear and sure enough it had cracks starting on the blades. I went crazy trying to find them. No one had any and most places said they were back ordered. We made it back to Washington where one of the local rv parts store ordered them for me took about 2 weeks and $52.00 ea. I now have the up graded "D" fans. The old fan they came with a small clip balancer i'm assuming and the new ones do not. Is there any way to check the balance of these fans before I put them on?
I will be reporting this to RPV
thanks

Wow $52 each. Year or so ago you could get all three from RVP for $54.
As far as the mount you can screw it back in from the top. It screws onto a stud.

[voltdoc]

Originally Posted by munzie

we were out in california it was 100+* our ac started making a horrible noise so I shut it down. Good thing we have a rear one. I went up took off the top, had my son turn it on and wow, the fan motor was jumping all over the place. After close inspection we found the 3 blade fan had large cracks. It was a "C" fan. Also one of the motor mounts was lose and we couldn't under the sheet metal to tighten it. Not sure if they are rubber mounted underneath.I had to make a wedge in between the mount and sheet metal. I thought I 'd better check the rear and sure enough it had cracks starting on the blades. I went crazy trying to find them. No one had any and most places said they were back ordered. We made it back to Washington where one of the local rv parts store ordered them for me took about 2 weeks and $52.00 ea. I now have the up graded "D" fans. The old fan they came with a small clip balancer i'm assuming and the new ones do not. Is there any way to check the balance of these fans before I put them on?
I will be reporting this to RPV
thanks

You shouldn't have to pay for those, any B or C fan WILL fail and Coleman knows it.

At Entegra homecoming rally in April I was pleasantly surprised that two Coleman reps were going around to every coach and checking and replacing the fans with D fans on every AC unit free of charge.

For the mounts, there is a screw that comes up from underneath the pan. As long as the screw hasn't fallen out you should be able to tighten it from the top by twisting the rubber part (righty tighty). Somewhere, maybe even in this thread I posted pictures of that assembly, maybe about two years ago?

[munzie]

Originally Posted by voltdoc

You shouldn't have to pay for those, any B or C fan WILL fail and Coleman knows it.

At Entegra homecoming rally in April I was pleasantly surprised that two Coleman reps were going around to every coach and checking and replacing the fans with D fans on every AC unit free of charge.

For the mounts, there is a screw that comes up from underneath the pan. As long as the screw hasn't fallen out you should be able to tighten it from the top by twisting the rubber part (righty tighty). Somewhere, maybe even in this thread I posted pictures of that assembly, maybe about two years ago?

I tried that but the screw under the sheet metal is also turning and I have no way of holding it to tighten.

[munzie]

Originally Posted by voltdoc

If you have inspected your Coleman/RVP/Airxcel MACH 8 3 blade "quiet" fans and found them to have stress cracks developing please report your findings on this thread. Post photos if you can. Also post the part number of your fan which will be 1472x504 where "x" will be either an A, B or C.

See this thread and post #24 for photos of where to look for the cracks.

It seems that only two of us so far (Loisjop and me) have actually reported the problem to RVP. But I also know that Kzemper had a catastrophic failure and I'm strongly suspecting there are others that have had the problem or are about to.

RVP has been very responsive and helpful and has a improved fan design in the works, however, understandably there is some doubt on their part as to the extent of the issue. If everyone with the problem reports it here we can all better grasp the scope. I will make sure the RVP design folks have a link to the thread.

If you want to report the issue to RVP directly as well, call customer service (316-832-4357) and ask for Eric Botts (service) or Phil Robinson (design engineering).

If your fans have well developed cracks you can probably see them without removing the AC unit shroud (and should probably stop using that unit until you get a replacement), but to check for cracks in the early stages you will need to remove the shroud and fan blade (photos here and here). You will need a Torx T-25 screwdriver bit. The cracks will appear where the blade edges meet the bottom of the hub. Small cracks will eventually become large cracks and the blades will come off.

If you have failed fans or large cracks (imminent failure), and can't wait for the new design (1-2 months) you can call RVP, explain that you have the cracks and ask for a replacement of the current part (1472C504) for the interim. Note that the "C" part does not require the extra washer that some of us needed with our fans to keep them tight on the motor shaft.

Thanks,
Rob

two cracked blades with 'C" 2015 coleman mach had to pay $52.00 each

[brobox]

Originally Posted by munzie

two cracked blades with 'C" 2015 coleman mach had to pay $52.00 each

Did you call Coleman before paying $52.00 each, or was that just from a dealer? Coleman has been replacing the bad blades at no charge.

[wrwiii]

WE had the same issues. All 3 failed in one week. There is a class action remedy being prepared. I will try and post when I get the notice from the lawyers.

[Gestalt87]

Had one on forward AC unit. Vibration was pretty severe. Stopped using unit until I could get it checked out. Thought it was ancompressor issue or a motor mount issue. Turned out blade was broken off.

[brobox]

Originally Posted by wrwiii

WE had the same issues. All 3 failed in one week. There is a class action remedy being prepared. I will try and post when I get the notice from the lawyers.

A class action for $53. worth of fan blades? Or was there additional damage caused by the blades breaking?