Soooo... my outside condensor fan has started making this LOUD squealing noise... its like the noise you hear sometimes when it starts up... but it doesn't stop, and gets louder and Louder..like grinding metal.. and it only happens in the winter time when it gets below 45 degrees (F) or so... it works perfectly fine in the summer... The fan spins good and come on fine.. its just the noise..... So what i'm trying to figure out is ... is it the Motor.... or the Fan blades... because the motor is spinning the blades just fine...and with my research i found that when bad fan blades get wet they make a squealing noise..so i thought maybe the same applys with the cold...... or is it the motor with some bad barrings or something... any help??...thanks
If it is belt driven, then the belt is not taught enough. Otherwise try separating the motor from the fan and turn on the AC. Only the motor runs. You should be able to figure out what is what.
First of all, your AC condensor outside should only have the fan come on when the AC is on, not when the heat is on, so why would it be coming on when it is below 45F? Usually the fan is mounted on and directly driven by the motor. Fan blades do not usually make a squealing noise when wet. Most likely the bearings have ran dry and at the very least need lubed. That it's been allowed to run like this for a while (presumably), the bearing may have worn enough that the whole motor needs replaced. Many fans today are considered permanently lubed but that is nonsense, they just don't put a lube hole in to save money and make people buy a new motor sooner. They just need pulled out, the through-bolts removed, and disassembled like this until you have access to the bearings or the felt oil reservoir rings to add a few (several, depending on the motor size) drops of oil. Standard 20wt motor oil, or even 5W20, 5W30, 10W30, etc will do in a pinch. If you have a legitimate need to run the A/C in the winter at 45F which I questioned above, then go with one of the thinner oils like 5W20. The only time the blades should/would squeal is if the nut that secures it to the motor shaft is loose and so the blade assembly is wobbling around.
need to remove , and check for lose parts on blade, check bearings to see if any slap in bearings, if so replace, if old and bad blade, should replace motor with it.
