It's snowing here, so time to work. We don't have a dishwasher, so I thought I'd build one from some parts. I started with a broken dishwasher. The motor had died, so I decided to use an old WARP9 motor. There really isn't much space where the original motor was, so the WARP9 had to be mounted behind unit.
After working on the controls for a bit, I realized that the WARP9 is DC, and I needed an AC motor. I found one that we had used to run a bunch of lathes and screw machines. It was a pain to move. After removing some dust, I tried a fitting. I couldn't figure out how to mount this thing behind the dishwasher, because it's almost the same size as the unit. So, I removed a stack of drawers to mount it beside the unit. Hmmm. Heavy-duty wiring. After some wiring, I got the motor running with a 200-amp breaker. Did I mention that the motor is VERY heavy? I mounted the motor to the floor. I hadn't realized how loud the motor is.
The difference in wiring sizes sortof scared me, so I upgraded the gauge on the wiring to 2, which should be adequate. I had to modify the control panel on the washer with some less flimsy switches. The new panel is made out of hickory, rather than plastic. For safety, I added some fuses.
Due to the 2" shaft size on the motor, I was forced to use an additional pulley. Apparently the mechanics were old and brittle. I borrowed some pieces from an old machine in the shop, but it seems fitment is a problem. With some rework, the pieces fit. It seemed that the unit was about ready, so I hooked up the water for a test. Maybe the pump was brittle, so I modified a pump that claims to move about 7 gallons per minute, which should be adequate. The washer looks to be maybe 20 gallons or so in size.
The seals must've been shot. I had to replace them, then the rinky-dink latch and the hinges. I'm very proud of the new hinges, which came from the door of an old coal stove. After some work with the angle grinder, my welds looked passable.
Now I have a problem: when this thing runs, the entire house hums. Think like shaking your teeth out. Maybe I could use a rubber pad under the motor.
In the meantime, I decided that the drain was too small. With some work, the drain has been modified to a 2-inch size, which should accomodate any remaining food stuffs. Maybe a disposal under the floor?
A friend is helping me, and he thinks I should use the 2-cylinder ATV motor we have. That would look cool, with the muscle-car intake above the washer, but not in the house. Besides, that motor is about 1,000 cc's, and maybe louder. Hopefully, I can figure out how to adapt the WARP9 motor, which should be more quiet. Who knew electric motors were so shaky?
