Vegetable and Fruit Washing Machine Electric Motors

On a vegetable and fruit washing machine the electric motors move water and air and carry the product: the blower making air bubbles, the circulation pump feeding the spray bars, the belt or elevator lifting product out of the tank, the brush shafts on a brush washer, the drum drive on a drum washer and, at the end of the line, the drying fan that removes water. Maker catalogues list 1.5–5.5 kW for blowers, 1.5–11 kW for pumps, 0.37–1.5 kW for belts and 0.75–4 kW in total for brush and drum machines. This page goes through the motor of each section and how it is kept away from the wet zone.

DRG Motor is a manufacturer, supplier and seller of electric motors. We do not sell the washer, the tank, pump bodies, blower units, brushes, gearboxes or inverters. What we supply is the standard IEC-frame three-phase induction motor that turns this equipment; models are on Buy Electric Motors Online.

Types of washer and their motor layout

How delicate and how dirty the product is decides the washing method. Leafy greens and soft fruit are tumbled gently by air bubbles; root crops such as potatoes and carrots are scrubbed by brushes or a drum. Each method brings its own list of motors.

Bubble washer

Air is blown through perforated pipes in the tank floor; rising bubbles roll the product while soil and sand settle. In the first maker’s 3–8 metre series the blower is 2.2–5.5 kW, the mesh belt 0.75–1.5 kW and the water pump 1.5–3 kW. The second maker gives 0.75–1.1 kW for the belt and 1.5–2.2 kW each for water pump and air pump. The three motors work independently and have their own plates.

Brush washer

Product travels over brush rollers turning in the same direction while water is sprayed from above. The brushes usually turn from one motor by chain or belt. In the fourth maker’s brush series machine power is 0.75–2.2 kW for 1–20 t/h; the fifth maker’s small brush machine runs on a 1 kW motor.

Drum washer

A perforated drum turns slowly; product rolls inside, rubbing against itself and the drum, under water sprays. The drum turns on drive rollers or through chain and gearbox. The fifth maker’s drum washer has a 1.1 kW drum drive; the fourth maker’s 2–10 t/h series lists 1.5–4 kW machine power.

Blower, circulation pump, outfeed belt and drying fan

A washer usually sits in a short line: infeed elevator, washer, inspection belt and drying. On the sixth maker’s fruit line the 3,000 kg/h washer is 0.8 kW, the elevator 0.6 kW and the sorting belt 0.37 kW.

Blower

The blower on a bubble washer is usually a side-channel (vortex) type. In some of these units the motor is built into the blower housing and is not changed separately; others use a standard IEC flange motor. Whether the motor can be replaced on its own is read from the blower plate and its maker’s documents.

Circulation and spray pump

The pump draws water from the tank, passes it through a strainer and pushes it to the spray bars. The third maker’s 2,000 kg/h machine has a strong 11 kW pump; 1.5–3 kW is common on small machines. For pump motor choice see the Pump Motors category and our pump motor power calculator.

Outfeed belt and drying (air knife)

A mesh belt or elevator carries product out of the tank and turns with a small geared motor. On some leafy-vegetable machines the belt is driven by a drum motor built into the roller; drum motors are outside our range. For drying after washing, air knives are fed by fans; the seventh maker’s dryers total 7.5–16.6 kW. For fan motors, browse the Fan Motors category.

How many kW is a vegetable washer motor? Catalogue values

A) Ratings published by makers for washers and their auxiliaries:

Depending on model and capacity, this group shows roughly 1.5–5.5 kW for the blower, 1.5–11 kW for the circulation pump, 0.37–1.5 kW for belt and elevator, and 0.75–4 kW on brush and drum machines. Machine totals (such as 1.94 or 12.97 kW) are sums of several motors.

B) Where DRG fits: belts and brushes of 0.37–1.5 kW take a 4-pole DRG in frame 71, 80 or 90; spray and circulation pumps of 1.5–11 kW take a 2-pole DRG between frame 90 and frame 160; a blower built around a standard IEC motor can be matched rating for rating. What we cannot supply: blowers with a built-in motor, belts turned by a drum motor, submersible pumps and the single-phase motors of small washers.

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Worked example: spray pump motor

Take a washer whose spray bars need 20 m³ of water an hour, with nozzles calling for 25 m of total head. The values are assumptions; on your own machine look at the pump plate and nozzle data:

The sum shows that a 2-pole 3 kW motor is enough for this pump. If pump efficiency is lower, or nozzles clog and pressure rises, shaft power goes up, which is why the next rating is chosen. Changing pump speed changes flow and head; fitting a 4-pole motor to a pump designed for 2,900 rpm halves the flow.

Wet zone, motor position and items outside our range

The washer is the wettest machine in a food plant. Put the motor beside or below the tank, behind a splash cover, so that it stays out of the product-contact zone. Pump and blower motors last longer standing above tank level on a dry platform. Hose-down cleaning should keep the jet off the motor, and the terminal box lid and cable gland have to remain watertight. If the motor cannot be kept out of reach of wash water and a stainless housing becomes mandatory, DRG has no such product; contact us before ordering.

Small single-phase machines

Some small restaurant-type washers run on 220 V single-phase. DRG builds no single-phase motors; where the plant has three phases, switching the washer to a three-phase motor is planned along with its switch and panel, as our single-phase versus three-phase comparison describes.

Brake motor and submersible pump

Washers seldom need a brake motor; where one is needed it is outside our range as well. A submersible pump dipped into the tank, with its motor, is not among the products we supply either; we cover the motor of a dry surface pump standing outside the tank.

DRG motors for washing machines

Models that can be chosen for belt, brush, drum, pump and blower drives (current at 400 V):

Choices run from a 0.25 kW aluminium body (aluminium ends at 11 kW) to the biggest 355 kW cast iron unit, though a washer rarely climbs past our mid-size frames; every motor is three-phase, IEC-sized and IP55-sealed against splash. On a washer, the pump motor is the one most often replaced, so start with its plate: kW, rpm, voltage and link, shaft and key, and whether it sits on feet (B3), a flange (B5/B14) or both (B35) inside a pump lantern. Belt and brush motors add the gearbox or pulley detail. We go through those figures with you and the washer manual; until the dimensions are seen, no motor is promised to fit.

B5 dimensions for pump and gearbox connection

B5 values of the small frames flanged to a pump lantern or belt gearbox, mm:

Where the pump shaft passes straight into the motor, D, E and N must match the old motor. Foot dimensions are on the technical drawings page.

Live price table

Prices of the models matching belt, brush and pump ratings on a washer come from the shop:

DRG MOTOR motors are guaranteed against material and manufacturing defects for 2 years from the delivery date (warranty certificate).

Motors in this power range

• DRG-802-4 – 0.75 kW – 1420 rpm – 80 cast iron
• DRG-90S-4 – 1.1 kW – 1445 rpm – 90S cast iron
• DRG-90L-2 – 2.2 kW – 2895 rpm – 90L cast iron
• DRG-100L-2 – 3 kW – 2895 rpm – 100L cast iron
• DRG-112M-2 – 4 kW – 2905 rpm – 112M cast iron

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Browse the products, ask for a quote: motors for your washer are on Buy Electric Motors Online. Photograph the pump, blower and belt motor plates one by one and send them by WhatsApp; you can also start on +90 (542) 666 11 11 by telling us the washing type and capacity.

Frequently asked questions

Is the blower motor on a bubble washer replaced separately?

If the blower uses a standard IEC flange motor, yes; if motor and blower share one housing, the unit is replaced. Send us the plate.

What speed should a washer pump motor have?

The same as the pump’s design speed; on most centrifugal pumps that is a 2-pole motor, with the exact value on the pump plate.

What does a vegetable washer motor price depend on?

Rating, pole count and frame; the table above gives the current figure.

Questions: +90 (542) 666 11 11 · info@drgmotor.com · contact.