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Motor Maintenance Mojo

March 1, 2021

Seven tips for keeping things running smoothly.

If you having a hard time keeping up with your motor maintenance obligations, and motors are failing, then give the following tips a try:

Change gearboxes to synthetic gear oil. This can significantly reduce the load on the motor, thus reducing heat. Heat kills motors.
Install automatic insulation resistance testers where practical. These provide early alerts to impending failure and help keep insulation dry.
Install vibration sensors on or near bearing caps. Alert on an increase from baseline (e.g., 15% increase).
Install vibration sensors on pedestal and base. Excess vibration here indicates an urgent problem (often easy to fix).
Take motor lubrication seriously. Color-code the lubricant containers by type and apply color-code stickers to each motor. Train lubrication techs so they understand how to choose the correct lubricants, methods, and equipment.
Schedule ultrasonic analysis of bearings quarterly. When this analysis is done with the right instrument by someone trained in bearing problem detection, you can get several months of advance warning of impending bearing failure.
Check all motors for adequate ventilation and voltage balance.

About the Author

Mark Lamendola

Mark is an expert in maintenance management, having racked up an impressive track record during his time working in the field. He also has extensive knowledge of, and practical expertise with, the National Electrical Code (NEC). Through his consulting business, he provides articles and training materials on electrical topics, specializing in making difficult subjects easy to understand and focusing on the practical aspects of electrical work.

Prior to starting his own business, Mark served as the Technical Editor on EC&M for six years, worked three years in nuclear maintenance, six years as a contract project engineer/project manager, three years as a systems engineer, and three years in plant maintenance management.

Mark earned an AAS degree from Rock Valley College, a BSEET from Columbia Pacific University, and an MBA from Lake Erie College. He’s also completed several related certifications over the years and even was formerly licensed as a Master Electrician. He is a Senior Member of the IEEE and past Chairman of the Kansas City Chapters of both the IEEE and the IEEE Computer Society. Mark also served as the program director for, a board member of, and webmaster of, the Midwest Chapter of the 7x24 Exchange. He has also held memberships with the following organizations: NETA, NFPA, International Association of Webmasters, and Institute of Certified Professional Managers.