Desa Heater rotor shattering

Rotor

New User
Greetings,

I have a Ready Heater R115DT. It was a great heater until the rotor shattered. Now I am at 8 shattered rotors and have replaced the pump body and back plate also. Some of the rotors only lasted 1 or 2 gallons of fuel. Nobody and nothing I have discovered on the net has explained this. I have the manual and set the clearance properly. I have also used 1000 grit sandpaper to thin the rotor and get free turning. There is no evidence of bearing wear or shaft bending to the best of my measuring ability.

Does anyone know the answer or has anyone else experienced a similar problem? How long do pump rotors normally last?

Thanks!
 
It is either one of two things. 1) Your getting dirt into the air pump and it is binding the vanes/rotor. 2) Your motor shaft is slightly bent. It is making the rotor run with a vibration. I have had two heaters do this in the last 20 years.
 
I spray everything with brake cleaner and assemble with rubber gloves so I can't imagine dirt in there. The shaft is a possibility. What is a good way to check? With the 2 flat sides about all I can see is watching the center of the machined end.

Thank you.
 

Find another way to heat your shop. Those torpedo heaters are all built by the same company, and all of them are junk. Good for about 1 or 2 years at best and then you may as well scrap it and buy a new one.
 
> Good for about 1 or 2 years at best and then you may as well scrap it and buy a new one.

Hmm. Given that DESA quit making new heaters 7 years ago, how is it possible he's still using his?
 
If it is a bushing next to the fan on the shaft, the bushing could be just worn enough to let the shaft squeal (vibrate due to the
shaft micro bouncing around in the bushing) Blower motors on cars do it as they fail. Even a .002 clearance can make the
vibration that fails the rotor. Making a new bushing, or finding a replacement would cure it if that is what is doing it. Jim
 
I think JD seller is on the right track it could be a bent or worn motor shaft causing the problem. It could be wear in the end plate also. If you have a dial indicator
check motor shaft run out and end play.

P.S> I too have heater like yours it was great when it was new, now its a pain in the rear end. Few parts are available for it and they are expensive. I have an older
model that uses a spark plug it sticks to high heaven when it runs but it runs until the filter plugs. The way I fixed that was to use a lawn mower screen mesh filter
 
(quoted from post at 08:33:28 11/18/17) > Good for about 1 or 2 years at best and then you may as well scrap it and buy a new one.

Hmm. Given that DESA quit making new heaters 7 years ago, how is it possible he's still using his?

But how many times has he needed to repair it?

My dad had a Queen Bee heater. Never a problem with it in the 20+ years he owned it. Used it on his sale day to provide a little warmth for the crowd. Still running when it was sold.
 
Other than the rotor it runs like the day I got it. I think it is 13 years old but lightly used. Most of the ones I see look older and heavily used around farms. Even so no one relates to the problem I have. Almost all the problems encountered by others relate to dirty fuel. I ran JP-8 for several years. It was cheaper than diesel but low sulfur #1 diesel is fine and handier to purchase. Kero is over $20/gal around here.
 

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