Imagine you have an amazing day launching your drone and having an epic flight. So you take out your drone and are ready to take off it. Unfortunately, one or some propellers not spinning weirdly. I also have faced this issue a couple of times and thankfully was able to fix the issue. Then I thought why not write an article on thedronestop about that.
I went through many articles and forums and collect information about the issue and here I put a clear vision of why drone propellers not spinning and how to fix it. Hopefully, this would help you to bring your drone back to the air.
Why drone propeller not spinning?
In most cases, the drone propeller won’t spin because of misalignment between the motor gear or the loss of one of them. Tangled motors, gyro initialization issues, or damaged wires also can be a reason why drone propellers not spinning.
As I mentioned before there are many reasons causing this issue and because of the different behaviors of drones, it would be hard to understand why the drone propeller not spinning. So it’s better to climb down from most causing reasons to less causing reasons. Hopefully, we would catch the right issue and perfect fix.
Reason 1: Motor gear and propeller gear are misaligned.
This was the reason why my drone propeller was not spinning. If you crashed the drone recently this might be the reason why the propeller not spinning. When your drone crashed into something and the propeller stuck, unable to spin, the motor or the gear would pop down and spin freely. So motor gear and propeller gear are misaligned.
Even though you up the joystick, the propeller wouldn’t spin because the motor gear is not connected with the propeller gear anymore and it is spinning freely.
Solution: Check whether some gears are misaligned.
So what you should do is uncover the drone and look for the gear section of the malfunctioning propeller. You would notice the motor gear and propeller gear are misaligned.
If you turn on the drone now and up the joystick a little bit you would see the propeller is spinning freely. So the only thing you need to do is align the motor gear with the propeller.
Reason 2: Your motor gear or propeller gear is missing.
As I mentioned before if your drone crashed before it would be the reason why the propeller not spinning. If your propeller is stuck while the crash the motor gear won’t be able to spin. So the motor gear would move down or pop out from the motor. So the motor would keep spinning without spinning the propeller.
Solution.
Uncover the drone safely and check the gear section of the malfunctioning propeller. If you notice one of the gear is missing, check inside the drone for that popped gear. If you found it, install it gently and align it with other gears. If you lost a piece of gear you would have to buy new gear. Usually, they are cheap.
Reason 3: The drone and remote controller aren’t not linked properly.
If your drone propellers not spinning and keep blinking LEDs weirdly, your drone and controller are not linked properly or disconnected from each other. So if you notice this kind of behavior from the drone, you just need to relink the drone and controller to fix the issue.
Solution: Check whether the drone is linked to the remote controller.
If you have a DJI drone, turn on the controller and connect it to the mobile device. Launch the DJI app and enter “RC settings”. Then scroll all the way down and hit “Linking RC”. Then the controller would start to beep and you need to press the linking button on the drone within one minute.
If you have a different drone, you can find out how to link the drone to the controller by googling or checking the user manual.
Reason 4: Insufficient battery power.
A sufficient battery charge is important for the proper performance and behaviors of the drone. If your drone has a low battery level, the drone would keep flashing LEDs without spinning propellers. So you need to charge the battery to a sufficient level to fly and receive radio signals from the controller.
Solution.
Not only the drone but having a sufficient battery level in the controller is also important. If your controller has a low battery level, it won’t be able to send radio signals to the drone. No signals mean no response. So drone propellers won’t spin. So make sure to charge the drone and controller batteries to a sufficient level.
Reason 5: Tangled motor.
Take the drone to your hand and try to spin it manually your hand. If it’s hard to spin, the propeller of that motor might get tangled. If you have flown inside or outside, the propeller may have sucked up debris and wouldn’t be able to spin. That’s why cleaning and maintaining motors need some attention.
Solution.
Uncover the drone and check the visible obstruction between the motor and the propeller. Most of the time you would see hair or grass wrapped around the motor gear. Carefully remove the debris from the motor without forcing too much. If there is more hair or grass wrapped around, you need to cut them first and remove them.
Reason 6: Gyro initialization glitches.
Gyro initialization won’t be available for some drones. Gyro initialization controls the spinning speed (rps) of each propeller and keeps the drone stable. If the gyro initialization failed or has some glitches, propellers would spin at different speeds or not even spin. If you notice propellers are spinning slower than others or some propellers not spinning, you can fix the issue by re-initializing the gyro.
Solution: Gyro re-initialization.
Gyro initialization must be done on a flat surface and would take only a few seconds. You can initialize the gyro by using a remote controller or the mobile app. Also, you may have to check the manufacturer’s user manual to initialize the gyro properly.
Reason 7: Shorted or damaged wires.
This would be another reason why drone propellers won’t spin. If the power supply wire is torn or shorted, the motor won’t get the power to spin the propeller. Check internal and external wires whether something is going wrong.
Solution: Replace damaged wires.
If you encounter ripped or shorted wires, replace them with a new one. If you aren’t comfortable with repairing, it’s better to get some help from professionals or contact the manufacturer.
Reason 8: Motor damage.
Long hours of flights, often crash and aggressive flights would cause motor damage.
Solution: Inspect motors.
Measure whether the motor is getting sufficient current and voltage. If you don’t notice any wire damage but the motor is not spinning the motor might get damaged. As I mentioned before, aren’t comfortable with repairing, it’s better to get some help from professionals or contact the manufacturer.
Reason 9: Circuit damage.
If you have come all the way down to this section and the above fixes didn’t help with your issue, your circuit might have been damaged. If you have crashed into the water or you just bought a new one, there is a chance that the drone circuit is damaged or faulty.
Solution.
Fixing a damaged circuit is not an easy thing and trying to mess with it would make the issue worse. It requires professional knowledge, So I think it’s mandatory to send it to professionals or contact the manufacturer rather than risk the warranty.
