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Debate: should we replace parts on old Otis units or just patch them up?
Had a building manager in Chicago last month tell me I was wasting time swapping out a whole door operator on a 1995 Otis when I could have just rebuilt the limit switches. I always thought replacing was safer in the long run but he made a point about keeping original parts matched. Now I'm torn between reliability and keeping things running with what they've got. What do you guys do when a 20 year old unit starts acting up, full swap or bandaid fix?
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the_robin17d ago
I was in a 1987 Otis in a Denver high rise last spring, and the original door operator still had the factory date code painted on the circuit board. We found the problem was actually on the main control board, not the door operator at all, so swapping the operator would've been a waste of time and money. It's not always the part you think it is, sometimes the fix is just a loose connection or a corroded ground wire that works its way loose over 20 years. I've seen guys replace whole units only to find the real issue was a bad solder joint on the main board or a cracked resistor. I'd say do a full diagnostic first, check the control board and wiring harness before you assume the operator itself is the problem. That building manager might have been right in that specific case, but it really depends on what's actually failing, not just what you assume is failing.
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nathanj5616d ago
Man oh man, that story reminds me of what happened to my buddy Mike over in Detroit. He spent a whole weekend swapping out a door operator on an old Otis from like '92, chasing this intermittent slowdown issue. Put the brand new unit in, fired it up, and it did the exact same thing on the third cycle. Turns out it was just a crusty ground wire on the main motor controller, a five dollar connector and some sandpaper. He said he could've kicked himself, all that work for nothing just because he didn't dig deeper first. So yeah, that building manager might've had a point in your case, sometimes the old stuff just needs a little love not a full transplant.
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