Kitchenaid Blender - Stopped working - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / repair

author: finocencio
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 15, 2018, 05:38:55 pm
content: Hi,I´m a new user at this fórum and I´d like to know specs about a componente of control board Kitchenaid Blender.The blender is 110v but accidentally was turned on in 220v and component MDV1 blowed up. It´s a varistor wich spec I couldn´t find.In another forum I´ve found the diagram but no have a spec about this component.If somebody could help me, I´ll thankful.Regards.

author: Armadillo
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 15, 2018, 06:54:12 pm
content: The Varistor is from Maida;Replacement part can try:https://www.ebay.com/itm/20-pcs-D6944ZOV181RA09-MAIDA-14mm-ZINC-OXIDE-VARISTOR-180VAC-ROHS/121440886940?epid=1827580957&hash=item1c4670e09c:g:vs8AAOSw-jhUG9s2

author: finocencio
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 16, 2018, 12:26:08 pm
content: Thanks for your help !!!Best Regards

author: Bashstreet
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: January 17, 2018, 07:28:42 pm
content: Yes i believe Armadillo is right looks like input varistor should be easy to replace.

author: helius
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 17, 2018, 08:01:43 pm
content: Someone else made a thread about an identical unit a couple years ago.https://www.eevblog.com/forum/repair/kitchenaid-blender-repair/msg986855/

author: Armadillo
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 17, 2018, 08:53:39 pm
content: Quote from: Bashstreet on January 17, 2018, 07:28:42 pmYou know I merely answered his specific question on the specification of the varistor.I suppose he checked the rest of the circuit.He said in another forum he found the circuit!Quote from: finocencio on January 15, 2018, 05:38:55 pm

author: james_s
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 17, 2018, 11:50:21 pm
content: A couple years ago I fixed a Kitchenaid mixer, at least I think that was the brand. The fancy control board had failed so I spent some time reverse engineering it then realized I could buy a new board for $25 so I did that instead, spent my limited time on more interesting projects. Have a look and see if a new board is available.

author: oldway
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 18, 2018, 09:34:05 am
content: It's a bit off topic, I apologize for this, but it's about another Kitchenaid product, the Kitchenaid food processor.I would like to show how a good idea in theory becomes a very bad one in practice.Here is how a (excellent) Kitchenaid kitchen robot ends up recycling because of a US $ 10 replacement part .... !!!!To avoid overloading the motor, the Kitchenaid engineers had the idea of replacing the metal gear-worm with a plastic one.The idea was that in case of overload, the plastic pinion would be destroyed and protect the motor .... interesting idea in theory, but catastrophic in practice.Since the cost of labor is so high in Europe and the repair is not that easy, most of the owners of this device do not repair the faulty device and send it to recycling.https://fr.ifixit.com/Guide/KitchenAid+Classic+Mixer+K45SSWH+Worm+Gear+Replacement/31411https://www.amazon.fr/Kitchenaid-4162897-KitchenAid-4162897-Remplacement-Gear-worm/dp/B014W9G3NCThis plastic gear-worm causes a lot of unnecessary breakdowns and makes the device unreliable ..... a very bad idea indeed .....

author: Armadillo
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 18, 2018, 10:13:41 am
content: Would the change be more on Hygienic Concern, example micro pits/cavities of metal worm gear?

author: cowana
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: January 18, 2018, 10:22:28 am
content: Also due to noise - plastic gears are usually significantly quieter than metal ones.

author: PrecisionAnalytic
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: January 18, 2018, 11:04:55 am
content: Quote from: Armadillo on January 18, 2018, 10:13:41 amThere seems to be the business model of making anything that was once metal, with plastic to save on expenses. I want to say the practice started in Great Britain in the 60's or earlierI have a Kitchenaid professional 600 that I picked up for around $100 and had to tighten some bolts which adjusted the gears (metal) thankfully was all and works great. I did clean up and lubricate with food grade oil as was leaking with like you noted... potentially metal in the lube.

author: oldway
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 18, 2018, 11:13:49 am
content: No, it's just a weak element in the transmission intended to protect the motor against heavy overload.The first models had a metal gear and were almost indestructible .....Hygiene concern: It seems to be nylon reinforced with fiberglass...not particularly healthy product.Noise: a well lubricated metalic gear-worm is not noisy....In every case, the universal motor used in this food processor is far more noisy.I know very wel this device because I already repaired some of them....It is a pity to see people who decide not to repair them and to get rid of them by recycling....EDIT: explanation found on Internet:The nylon gear is meant to function like a fuse in an electrical system: an overload (super stiff dough) will chew up the relatively inexpensive nylon worm gear instead of burning up the pricier motor

author: Armadillo
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 19, 2018, 06:43:58 am
content: Quote from: oldway on January 18, 2018, 11:13:49 amI wonder what are those intravenous apparatus are made of, things like syringe, blood pump etc.?

author: helius
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 19, 2018, 07:29:41 am
content: IV pumps are peristaltic type. Only Tygon tubing is in contact with sterile fluids.

author: oldway
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 19, 2018, 08:02:41 am
content: The problem is rather the ingestion of particles from the destruction of the gear .... Ingest nylon particles with fiberglass does not seem very good for health ....I think grease should be replaced too.

author: Paul Moir
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: January 19, 2018, 08:20:11 am
content: Forgive me if it's obvious, but how does the nylon gear end up inside your food? Is the gearbox open?I wouldn't be surprised if it was. Coming from industrial sanitary design, I find kitchenware appliances design shocking.

author: PrecisionAnalytic
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 09, 2018, 05:32:53 pm
content: Quote from: oldway on January 19, 2018, 08:02:41 amI'm thinking when I get around to, I can use a thicker "grease" versus the oil I used. Wondering if a refined coconut oil will work? Any suggestions for optimization?

author: james_s
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 09, 2018, 06:43:25 pm
content: I would use whatever lubricant the manufacture specifies, I tend to assume they knew what they were doing in that regard.I don't know about coconut oil, but vegetable oils tend to go rancid and also get sticky/gummy with time.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 09, 2018, 11:38:11 pm
content: Quote from: PrecisionAnalytic on January 18, 2018, 11:04:55 amI'm sure that cost-reduction occurred everywhere at a similar time, since the manufacturing and materials engineering progressed similarly.Regardless, in the case of KitchenAid, they damned well didn't do it to save money. If they wanted to do that, there are far more frivolous expenses in a KitchenAid (like the die-cast zinc top case, which is massive despite not being load-bearing except at the very front; it'd be easy to replace most of that with a cheap plastic molding). I wouldn't even be surprised if the nylon-over-steel gear they use ismoreexpensive than a solid sintered steel one would cost.Quote from: oldway on January 19, 2018, 08:02:41 amThe grease is so thick, there's normally no path for the grease to exit into the food. But he mentioned the grease has leaked oil, so the grease definitely needs replacing.Quote from: Paul Moir on January 19, 2018, 08:20:11 amThe gearbox is not open and is packed with heavy grease, which normally stays put. But with advanced age, the grease breaks down to oil, and this oil can find its way out.I know exactly what you mean about kitchen appliances having terrible sanitary design — all sorts of gaps and ribbing and holes for stuff to get into, with no way to clean. It's something I pay attention to when buying. (And one of the things I like about my KitchenAid blender: very few gaps. Membrane over the buttons.) If you have time to watch the video below, I'd be curious as to your impressions of the KitchenAid mixer's design in this regard.Quote from: PrecisionAnalytic on March 09, 2018, 05:32:53 pmThere are tons of KitchenAid repair videos on YouTube, since those things are built to last. Watch some: the grease is spectacularly thick (like heavy vaseline). The oil that leaks from very old KitchenAid mixers is the grease decomposing. No, you can't use coconut oil. It's far too thin. The heat from friction alone would cause it to turn completely liquid and make a gigantic mess — not to mention provide no lubrication to speak of.I want to say that I remember reading the original is actually a food-safe Shell grease, but only sold in 55-gallon drums. But luckily, there are parts vendors that break that down into small containers for individual repairs. It's trivial to find on Amazon, etc: just search for "kitchenaid mixer grease".https://www.amazon.com/Kitchenaid-W4176597-Original-Equipment-Manufacturer/dp/B00OSC174EHere's a good repair video for a "regular" kitchenaid mixer:ifixit has a repair guide for the professional 600:https://www.ifixit.com/Device/KitchenAid_Professional_600I would assume it uses the same grease.

author: PrecisionAnalytic
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 29, 2018, 08:30:03 pm
content: Quote from: james_s on March 09, 2018, 06:43:25 pmRight, good call. Not sure what I thinking at the time.Thanks for the link tooki.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 30, 2018, 07:12:09 pm
content: The grease you are looking for is Shell Cassida, sold in 20kg drums or 210l drums, though there are also plenty of places that package it in 400g grease gun compatible tubes which are a lot easier to get. Try almost any bearing supplier, they tend to have the grease on hand to go with the stainless steel bearing ranges. Remove all the old grease, wiping it off of every part, and wash the metal parts and housing with some degreaser and a brush to get it all away, and then use the food grade grease to repack the gearbox, around half grease and half air works well.A little of that grease goes a long long way, still have half a drum of it, even though I use it as a general purpose white grease a lot. Water resistant and tends to stick very well to parts.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 31, 2018, 12:53:51 pm
content: KitchenAid grease isn’t white, it’s brown, so it’s almost certainly different from what you’re suggesting. But as I’ve already shown, it’s easy to order the right stuff.(And I’m not sure that “a little goes a long way” is the right advice. The KitchenAid gearboxes tend to be liberally greased at the factory, and that’s how I’d do it if repairing it.)

author: Marco
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 31, 2018, 02:41:39 pm
content: Quote from: oldway on January 18, 2018, 11:13:49 amIt's just weak competition. If they had real competition the plastic gear would be rightly seen as poor quality and they'd spend the few man weeks on protecting it electronically, which has been the correct solution for decades.