Keith S Warrenton , VA February 09, 2016 Fractured drive gear The compactor failed with the ram down, so the drawer wouldn't open which in turn made the mounting brackets inaccessible. This necessitated sliding a thin oscillating saw blade between the cabinet face frame and the counter top to cut through the brackets. It was then possible to roll the unit out and place it on its side. I removed the five screws holding the bottom pan in place, dropped the pan exposing the gear/chain train. The large gear was cracked from shaft out to the edge. One of the jack screw nuts had also fallen off as had the sprocket that it was holding on the screw. This likely precipitated the gear failure. The "e" clip holding the large gear in place was removed by putting a screwdriver in the back opening and twisting. I opted to change the small gear even though it was undamaged to lessen the likelihood of needing to adjust the gear spacing. It is removed by driving out the roll pin with a punch. The replacement was installed with the new roll pin supplied with the kit. There should be no play with a piece of paper placed where the teeth mesh, and a small amount of play without the paper. I then placed the chain around the sprocket on the large gear and slipped the gear on the shaft, inserting the "e" clip by inserting a screw driver in one of the hooks and pushing it on the shaft. Before the chain could be installed on the jack sprockets, the jacks needed to be synchronized. This must be done with the compactor upright to keep the forces on the jacks uniform. I placed the upright unit across two wooden chairs so I could access the jacks from beneath. I rotated the jack screws until the nylon nuts on the ram touched the nylon stops. I rotated one jack screw using a small wrench on the flats at the ends of the screw. The other jack screw still had the end nut attached so I rotated it with a socket wrench. I then backed off both jack screws exactly one turn. The sprocket must be installed with the chain on. It may be necessary to rotate the jack screw slightly to align it with the sprocket, but never more than half a turn. I greased the needle bearing and slipped the sprocket on the shaft. I cleaned the threads on the end of the shaft and in the nut with a paper towel soaked with alcohol, applied blue lock-tite to the threads in the nut and installed it. It was necessary to jam the sprocket with a piece of wood in order to turn the nut. I brought the nut snug to the spring washer and backed it off 1/8 turn. I replaced the bottom pan and five screws. Mission accomplished! Read More... 41 People found this story helpful Do-It-Yourself Rating: Repair Time Estimate: 1-2 hours Tools: Adjustable Wrench, Nut Drivers, Screwdrivers, Socket Set
Scott A Candler , NC May 18, 2022 Appliance: KitchenAid Trash Compactor KUCC151EWH0 Ram stuck at bottom drive gear brioken Ordered the drive gear kit for our old compactor.. the trolley stops were collapsed, which allowed the ram to go all the way to the bottom, stick, breaking the plastic drive gear. This kit had all the parts needed to repair the common problem in older compactors. There is an excellent video on the website on how to repair this issue, if you aren't familiar with these machines. A few additional points on the repairs, not mentioned - -These machines are heavy, so you may want someone to help you move it. Has wheels on the back, so will roll - but you have to lift up the machine from the front (has feet, not wheel on front). - WEAR WORK GLOVES!! The metal edges on the underside and inside of the machine are RAZOR sharp. This is poor manufacturing practice, but common. Thought I could get by with being careful, but the internals are grease-laden and slick, so after a couple slipped wrenches, I had several nasty cuts from the sharp metal edges (which are everywhere). You'll also want gloves you can toss when done, because they'll likely be grease and grime coated. - If you do the repair in your kitchen, place a large piece of cardboard, pasteboard, or heavy plastic under the machine. All manner of debris will fall out of the compactor; after all, it's a trash compactor. Besides, you don't want to be cleaning up bits of broken plastic, metal, glass, etc from your kitchen floor - or finding them later with your feet or hands. If you have vinyl or hardwood floor, suggest using heavy cardboard under the machine to prevent scratching the floor. You'll be tipping the machine on its back or sides several times, and the edges are very sharp. -Clean anr/or re-grease the trolley augers/screw drives and threaded inserts. They'll be nasty after years of use, possibly with old hardened grease. Use standard automotive or gear drive grease. BE CAREFUL reaching inside the machine to clean and grease the screw drive assembly. Internal edges can be very sharp. Probably best to be up to date on your tetanus shots before attempting this job! ;-) -Removing and replacing the roll pin in the pinion drive gear can be a pain. There is little room to hold a punch and hammer under the bottom drive case enclosure. Also, the pinion (motor) shaft wants to turn while you attempt to drive out the roll pin. Might be easier if you have a helper hold the shaft steady with long channel-lock pliers, or simply attach some locking pliers to the pinion shaft while driving out the roll pin. Be extra careful when installing the new roll pin so as not to accidentally hit the plastic gear with the hammer. If you do, you'll be buying another gear and repeating the process. -Be sure to tighten the drive chain back to spec (see video on the site). Install the C-clip drive-gear retainer (don't forget to transfer any washers, spacers or bushings that may have stuck to the old drive gear sprocket). -Slide the trolley back onto the screwdrives (think they call it clock drive screws). BEFORE you reattach the bottom chain drive cover, turn the drive gear a few turns to get the trolley threaded inserts started back onto the screw drives. -DO NOT forget to check and replace the trolley stops. If they have any age on them, they're probably split, cracked, or about to fail. If they do, you'll be repeating the drive gear set replacement. The repair is not that difficult, aside from the roll pin extrication and installation (they're always a bear). If you're familiar with automotive repairs, this shouldn't be too bad... Just beware of razor sharp edges everywhere, and prepare to spend time cleaning up all the dirty grease. The internals of these machines tend to be filthy, so the grease catches all manner of dirt. Gloves are mandatory. Lots or paper towels or shop rags will be handy, and some spray cleaner/degreaser as well. Read More... 11 People found this story helpful Do-It-Yourself Rating: Repair Time Estimate: 30-60 minutes Tools: Nut Drivers, Pliers, Screwdrivers, Socket Set, Wrench Set
James L Hubert , NC January 11, 2015 Appliance: Maytag Trash Compactor MTUC7000AWS0 Compactor carriage traveled to bottom but would not return to top although motor would run I removed the bottom access plate to look at the drive mechanism and check the chain and gears. I confirmed the bigger drive gear was broken in three pieces. Once I replaced the gear and adjusted the distance between the two gears (which is really close to prevent the gears from losing contact and stripping them) it works great. Read More... 28 People found this story helpful Do-It-Yourself Rating: Repair Time Estimate: 30-60 minutes Tools: Adjustable Wrench, Nut Drivers
Delsi P Snohomish , WA April 24, 2014 Appliance: Model KITCHEN AID TRASH COMPACTOR Ram was stuck in down possition We had initially thought the motor went bad. After reading a bit about trash compactor issues. I found how to check if it was the gears.. Indeed it was! cracked right in half. Typed in model number, ordered part. Part came promptly (although I did not need all parts) Followed simple directions works perfectly!! (Something even a woman can fix! ) I have ordered before from Appliance Parts Pros. More helpful than local repair personnel. Read More... 19 People found this story helpful Do-It-Yourself Rating: Repair Time Estimate: 15-30 minutes Tools: Socket Set, Wrench Set
Rickey A Grass Valley , CA May 01, 2016 My trash compactor's power nts stripped out and would no longer compact I removed the appliance to my work shop and tore it down to trouble shoot I decided at that point to replace every wear part I could so I replaced the drive gear assembly also. Read More... 6 People found this story helpful Do-It-Yourself Rating: Repair Time Estimate: 1-2 hours Tools: Nut Drivers, Pliers, Screwdrivers, Socket Set