How to Identify Your Separator Model Before Ordering Parts
Most parts orders that go wrong do not fail because the part was made badly. They fail because the machine was identified from memory, from a listing title, or from a photograph that showed the outside of the housing and nothing else.
This guide covers the identification work that belongs before a parts request: what to read off the machine, what to photograph, and what to measure when the label can no longer be read.
Start with the machine label
Most electric separators carry a rating label on the housing or on the motor. With the machine stopped, unplugged and cleaned, read it in good light and record the fields exactly as printed — including the order of characters and any suffix.
Fields worth recording when they are present:
- Manufacturer or brand, spelled exactly as printed.
- Model or type designation, with any suffix or revision letter.
- Serial or production number, if one is stamped.
- Rated voltage, frequency and current or power.
- Rated capacity, if stated on the label.
- Gross or net weight, if stated.
If the label is partly illegible, photograph it rather than transcribing it by guesswork. A sharp photograph of a faded label is more useful to a supplier than a confident wrong number.
Photograph these three views
- The label, straight on, filling the frame, with light coming from the side rather than directly at it. Side light lifts faded stamping.
- The complete machine, so the housing shape, outlet arrangement and control positions are visible.
- The part itself, removed and cleaned, with any marking on it visible.
Add a fourth photograph if the part carries a number: a close-up of the marking, in focus. Cast or stamped numbers on bowl components are often the fastest way to confirm an assembly.
Read the casting marks on bowl components
Load-bearing bowl parts frequently carry a cast or stamped identifier on a machined face or near the rim. These marks are not a substitute for the model label, but they tie a specific component to a specific assembly.
Photograph the mark before cleaning if there is any risk of it being polished away, and record where on the part it sits.
When the label is missing or unreadable
Work through these in order and record each finding:
1. Compare the housing and outlet layout with photographs of the catalogue machines. Shape and outlet position narrow the family quickly.
2. Measure the bowl. Record the bowl outside diameter and overall height after cleaning, and note how the discs and spacers are arranged. These are the numbers a supplier needs to match an assembly.
3. Measure the fittings. Record the outlet thread or spigot diameter, and the motor shaft or coupling arrangement if the part mounts to the drive.
4. Record the supply. State the voltage and frequency the machine actually runs on, and photograph the plug.
5. Note anything replaced before. If a motor, switch or bowl part was changed by a previous owner, say so — a machine can be running with a mismatched component.
Send the measurements with the photographs, and state that the label is unreadable. A supplier can work from that; they cannot work from "it looks like the one on your website".
What not to rely on
- A listing title. Titles are written for search, and the same machine can appear under different wording.
- A single photograph of the outside. Housings are shared across models.
- A remembered capacity figure. Capacity is often the least reliable remembered number, and it does not identify the bowl assembly.
- A similar-looking part already on the shelf. Fittings that look alike are frequently not interchangeable.
Put the identification on file
Record the label details, the photographs and the measurements once, and keep them with the machine. Every later parts request, service note and comparison then starts from the same evidence instead of being rebuilt each time.
The replacement-part record checklist shows how to keep that file, the parts inquiry checklist lists what a supplier needs in the request itself, and the symptom-to-part map helps narrow down which component is worth inspecting once the model is confirmed.
For a machine you are about to buy rather than one already on site, the used-machine inspection guide covers the checks that belong before payment.
Related maintenance resources
Use the ANDUUK replacement parts catalog to match seals, discs, outlets, motor components and cleaning tools to the correct machine assembly.
Browse replacement parts · Read the cleaning and reassembly checklist · Read separator FAQs