Cold and servo motors

[Welder Kenny]

Ok guys I think I know the answer to this question but I'm going to ask anyway. I have a homemade table with a PM 65xp running Mach 3 and sheet cam, I have the table in a warehouse that has no heat and I'm in Northern Michigan where temps in the building get to 0 easy, I run a propane heater but still only gets temp up to maybe 40*. my question is this bad for my servo motors I've heard my zed axis grown a little when it starts the cuts. Hoping for an early spring.

[DieselFumes]

I am not sure how damaging it will be but I could certainly see them not liking it. My table is stepper driven and the motors build heat when the system is powered on so I power it on in the morning and come back 10-15 minutes later once they have warmed up a little to start cutting. Not sure if your servos behave the same way. Come on springtime!!!!

[Larry83301]

I live in Idaho and I have never had any problem with my drives. We don't get quite as cold (in the teens today) and I have no heat in the shop. Been running my table in the cold since 2006 and moved it to 3 different shops here in my area, only time I had a problem was when the screws started making noise and I replaced them with Ball Screws (all three axis) in 2009, no problems now.


Larry

[acourtjester]

I would check the drivers current setting to be the same as the motor needs motor spec sheet. I had a problem with the table I built for my daughter.
Winter in Md in the garage the Z would grown and may even not turn, I had set the amps low to keep the motor cooler under normal conditions, wrong move.

[lockeyone]

If I were doing this I would just make up a program/routine to start slow and speed up just to exercise the machine (warm up) say for 5 to 10 minutes. I have to start my spindle on my router to warm a little before running a program. My shop is at 40, 50 when I am in there.

[Scratch]

I'm too poor to heat my shop, so I don't use my table much in these Wisconsin winters. Hell I barely go outside in the winter... but when I do brave the low temps and use my table (with servo motors) I've never had a problem.

[Welder Kenny]

Thanks everyone, It makes me feel better to know I'm not alone in the cold shop thing..look out plasma table here comes Kenny.

[tcaudle]

Most electronics work better the cooler you keep them. Resistance in wires and components drops with temp and lower resistance means less generated heat. Any heat from a system is from losses (energy not being used to do work) About the only thing I would worry about (and only below freezing temps) is that lubricants get thicker and moving mechanical parts may not move as easy. Cold causes metal to contract but most motion systems have enough tolerance. Now moisture is another issue. You want to keep electronics and controls dry and high humidity causes corrosion and rust If you can stand the cold without arctic level insulation so can your table.