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Need hair dryer motor

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If it isn't too much work can anybody explain how I can extract the motor from a hair dryer? I don't need the housing or the heating components just the fan to levitate a ping pong ball through some PVC. All the local thrift stores are running out of hair dryers for me to destroy. I have a motor but no idea how to wire it.

Or where I can buy hair dyer motors? I am not sure what CFM I need but one online store said I need 150 CFM and those blowers are too pricey and too big.

Thanks!
 
Extraction is the easy part, use a hammer; some hairdryer motors are designed to use the heating element in series.
**broken link removed**
 
I hope you are aware that some/most hair dryer motors are low voltage DC ones. Typically 12VDC. They use the heater element as a resistive divider and some diodes for rectification.
 
I have taken out a few hair dryer motors as well. Apparently the motor voltages are vary greatly. Have one that need a bout 40 volts to get it up to normal dryer whine and anther that only needs about 15 volts for the same speed.
The two I have had a separate wire wound resistor that powered the motor independently from the main heating elements. That way they had a cool mode and a hot mode.
 
Thanks everyone for the quick replies! I have been trying to research on my own forever!

@mike2545 yup hammer is what I used!

@kchriste this may work out then, if the motors are DC then I could run them off of a battery when I seperate them from the heating elements?

@tcmtech I am currently using an intact blow dryer in cool mode for my project do you think I should look for dryers without cool mode for more consistent voltage? I am trying to avoid using the whole hair dryer.

Again I am new to this so if I am wrong about anything feel free to correct me.
Thanks everyone!
 
Look at how the motor is connected and whether it uses a bridge rectifier.

You could use a transformer and bridge rectifier rather than a battery if you want to power if off the mains. Don't worry about filter capacitors as the motor doesn't care about ripple.

It might even be a 12VAC motor (I doubt it), if so you'll need a transformer and no bridge rectifier.
 
I pulled a thrift store blow dryer apart yesterday. It was held together by 2 small phillips screws. There is a bridge rectifier formed by 4 diodes soldered to the motor lugs.

There were other parts that could be scrounged. A nice multi position slide switch and GFI on the AC plug top the list.

Even the heating coils look to be in near new condition and could possibly be reused.

The motor is attached to a ducted fan that caught my fancy. No immediate use for it but who knows.

Not bad for $1.

3v0
 
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