<p>No, stepper motors do not require maintenance. They are a brushless kind of motor, so they do not have brushes that need to be replaced.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-01-13T06:41:18.010Z
2016-01-13T06:41:18.010Z
Tom van der Zanden
<p>The stepper motor itself does not.  You may want to inspect the motors for debris or dust.</p>

<p>Depending on your configuration you may want to check on parts of your printer that connect to your stepper motor such as shaft couplings, pulleys, lead screws/threaded rods and belts.  The stepper motor wires should occasionally be inspected for wear and strain.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-01-13T10:33:13.563Z
Checking wires for damage could prevent something worse, but is there really any advantage to checking other parts periodically? I think that such a check is only needed when you notice a deterioration in print quality.
Tom van der Zanden
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-01-13T13:25:09.420Z
Never hurts to preemptively catch issues. Some of those are easy to check. Others require reviving the bed. I wouldn't bother with those since it would require a calibration again.
kareem
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-01-14T05:12:53.007Z
Especially with high speed/vibration printers, it's important to inspect screws and nuts periodically, just to ensure they don't shake themselves loose.
Chase Cromwell
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-01-13T09:10:09.697Z
2016-01-13T09:10:09.697Z
tamarintech
<p>I've had my printer for almost a year now.</p>

<p>Is there something I should be doing to maintain the motors?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-04-14T16:17:34.780Z
Generally speaking you should never open a stepper motor that you intend to use again - in some of them, the magnets used will be weakened if the motor is disassembled without the use of an iron "keeper".  Further, there's a risk of getting contaminants into the small gap between the rotor and stator.  In theory, there are ways to carefully do a bearing replacement, but it's unlikely to be worth the trouble on a stepper of the sort used in desktop 3d printers.
Chris Stratton
<electronics><maintenance><mechanics><stepper>
Do stepper motors require any maintenance?
kareem
# Do stepper motors require any maintenance?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2016-01-13)

I've had my printer for almost a year now.

Is there something I should be doing to maintain the motors?

**Tags:** electronics, maintenance, mechanics, stepper
> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Generally speaking you should never open a stepper motor that you intend to use again - in some of them, the magnets used will be weakened if the motor is disassembled without the use of an iron "keeper".  Further, there's a risk of getting contaminants into the small gap between the rotor and stator.  In theory, there are ways to carefully do a bearing replacement, but it's unlikely to be worth the trouble on a stepper of the sort used in desktop 3d printers.  

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## 2 answers

### Answer by username_3 on 2016-01-13. Score: 15 | Accepted answer

The stepper motor itself does not. You may want to inspect the motors for debris or dust.

Depending on your configuration you may want to check on parts of your printer that connect to your stepper motor such as shaft couplings, pulleys, lead screws/threaded rods and belts. The stepper motor wires should occasionally be inspected for wear and strain.

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: Checking wires for damage could prevent something worse, but is there really any advantage to checking other parts periodically? I think that such a check is only needed when you notice a deterioration in print quality.  
> **username_0**: Never hurts to preemptively catch issues. Some of those are easy to check. Others require reviving the bed. I wouldn't bother with those since it would require a calibration again.  
> **username_4**: Especially with high speed/vibration printers, it's important to inspect screws and nuts periodically, just to ensure they don't shake themselves loose.  

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### Answer by username_2 on 2016-01-13. Score: 10

No, stepper motors do not require maintenance. They are a brushless kind of motor, so they do not have brushes that need to be replaced.


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