Pool pump motors, brand new out of the box and plumbed to a pool do run hot to the touch normally. These are not house fan motors that typically run cool, there is 220Volts, over 1000 watts(high speed) of power running through these motors and that equates to heat.
The first little item to fail is the capacitor. The symptoms of a failing or failed capacitor is a humm noise when the motor is started, then the pump turns over. If the capacitor fails, you may get a humm noise, then nothing. This is an inexpensive part to replace.
Now, pumps run hot, and then they run unusually hot. When a motor gets to this point, there's a few tell-tale indicators of why this is happening. The first is old age. The pump is typically more than 4 years old and is about to fail completely. The second is copper fatigue inside the windings. Again, the pump is usually more than 3 years old, and has been mounted on the sunny side of the yard, day in and day out, the electricity that flows through the copper windings heat up and the copper wire. Inside the wire itself goes through a molecular change from the tremendous heat. The copper starts to become hard and brittle and when that happens, it demands more electricity to squeeze the electrical atoms through, making more heat, increasing the problem by spreading out to more of the copper wire. Ultimately, the motor begins to have symptoms of running for a few minutes, getting unusually hot and shutting down(thermal protection). When it gets to this point, your motor has run its course. It's time for a new motor. There is no repairing pool motors with bad windings, the whole thing is bad.
How to protect pool motors for longer life
I've seen just about every scenario of a pool pump mounted and installed. From my experience, I can tell you that pool motors that are inside covered sheds with plenty of ventilation or just simply covered by some sort of roof structure, last out to 6 years and in some instances more! The entire key to long lasting pumps is;
- Keep them covered from the damage of sunlight
- Keep them installed in a cool, shaded, moisture free area
- Keep them away from heat in general
Pumps that fail rather quickly, have chronic problems within 3 years at the most, are always in the direct sunlight, ALL. SUMMER. HOT, SWELTERING. DAY.
