Problems with Air Shammee Dryer running hot?

[Kimberly Berg]

I have a 5-bay self service carwash and I'm interested in installing an air dryer system (wall-mount). I have been comparing both the Air Shammee and Blast-O brands.

Last month a friend of mine talked with a guy who manages two 4-bay carwashes, and happens to have one of each brand. All units are wall-mounted. The manager says that he does NOT like the Air Shammee, and prefers the Blast-O brand dryer instead.

The manager says the Air-Shammee runs hot. The units use 3 motors, and he has replaced 23-26 motors in 2 years. He says the motors cost $200 each. The manager has been in touch with the manufacturer about the motors burning up so fast, and they don’t know why. The dryers have a fuse, and they're not sure if the problems are with the fuses or bad motors. The manager says the Air Shammee dryers are a “maintenance nightmare.”

Has anyone else experienced such problems? How long should the motors last?
Thanks!

 

[BBE]

We are looking to add self serve dryers to our wash in the next 6 months or so. I checked out 3 or 4 of them at the ica show a while back, the one that really caught my eye was the turbo dry II. It doesn't use the 3 motor chain system, it is one large motor. If you are wall mounting it is MUCH MUCH quieter than the 3 motor system. Also less maintenance as well than a 3 motor system. It's a bit more expensive than the air shammee...but at 200 bucks a pop per motor, I'm sure it would save in the long run.

 

[MEP001]

Can you find out from your friend what brand and model motors the Air Shammee and the Blast-O dryers use?

 

[robblackburn]

I have had 5 air Shamee units installed for about three years now without the first problem. All the motors are fine and they get used by most customers.

 

[bigleo48]

I have 8 units for 4 years now. They use 3 side discharge lamb vac motors. I have yet to replace a motor. I have however replaced 4 or 5 fuse assemblies. Each motor draws about 10 amps, so 30 amps per unit. They do generate some heat as 30 amps would, but the same as a 3 motor vac.

I think that your friend might be restricting airflow too much. We use 2" hoses and have removed the trigger assembly from the guns, along with the unloader assembly.

Big

 

[cmawash]

air shamme deleted the dump valve, for simpler system , air flow with a by pass for gun shut off , units need air for cooling. each motor is about $45. tried just replacing brushes, did not last long so now we just replace 3 motors at one time and throw away the old ones. 2-3 years of heavy use is what we expect.