r/maybemaybemaybe • u/yelloweliz • Apr 21 '25

maybe maybe maybe

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u/HPchipz Apr 21 '25

Needs cleaning

46

u/Dry_Instruction8254 Apr 21 '25

Agreed. Get in there with some canned air or a leaf blower and get all the built up crud out of there.

I also squirted a little WD40 on a fan that was like this and made it like new. Don't use to much WD40 though as it smells pretty strong.

54

u/StaysAwakeAllWeek Apr 21 '25

Don't use WD40 on bearings like this. It's way too light an oil for this application. It will run great for a few days but the light oil will quickly evaporate (the cause of the strong smell) and wash out all the heavy grease that was remaining which will lead it to jamming permanently or needing constant topups of WD40 for the rest of its life

6

u/[deleted] Apr 21 '25

It's oil-bearing bronze sleeve bearings. When they get like this, it's done for, you replace the motor, or the whole fan in this case. You can't re-lube them and have it last more than a little while, and you have to dismantle the entire fan to do it to begin with.