How Old Is My Pool Pump Motor?

How Old Is My Pool Pump Motor?

In this article, we’ll show you how to identify the age of your pool pump motor using its serial number. Knowing the age of your motor helps you decide if it is worth attempting a repair or replacing it with a new one.

Most of the pool industries’ whole pumps come with a Century motor, and they are also the top replacement motor choice. This guide is specific to Century motors.

Where to find the serial number? 

The serial number is usually at the top corner of the motor’s label, as shown in the picture. Century has also provided a secondary serial tag. The secondary tag is a barcode with a list of numbers under it, confirming one of the below formats.

Century motors have used three serial number formats in the last ten years. We’ll break down the oldest first.

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Pool Pump Serial Number – Old Format

The old century motor format consists of Serial Letter, Serial Number, and the Manufacture Sequence. You can see how these codes can be deciphered in the charts below. Unfortunately, this format was discontinued in the 2010s, but I cannot find the exact year.

Serial LetterYearSerial LetterYearSerial LetterYear
BB1984BL1993BX2002
BC1985BM1994BY2003
BD1986BN1995BZ2004
BE1987BP1996CA2005
BF1988BR1997CB2006
BG1989BS1998CC2007
BH1990BT1999CD2008
BJ1991BU2000CE2009
BK1992BW2001CF2010
Serial Number DesignationMonthSerial Number DesignationMonth
1January7July
2February8August
3March9September
4April10October
5May11November
6June12December

New Format

Century motors use a five-digit code to denote manufactured date. The first three digits indicate the day of the year, and the next two digits note the year. For the longer format in this set, disregard the beginning letter; it’s not necessary to determine the date.

If you are like me and don’t have a calendar with numbered days for the last ten years, use this Calendar-365 tool to understand your serial number date.

Do you have any questions about your Century brand pool pump motor? If so, leave a comment down below. Thank you for reading.

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6 thoughts on “How Old Is My Pool Pump Motor?

  1. Trying to find a replacement for a Century motor. I recently bought a house with a pool, so not sure which number is correct. I have a sticker on one side and the nameplate on the other

    Sticker:
    Serial #: 03951611301030
    P/N: 355339S (MTR PKG SQFL 3/4 HPF 1 A)

    Nameplate:
    Motor #: 168452
    Motor Package #: 355339S
    230/115V
    60 Hz 1PH
    3450 RPM
    Max Amps 7.1/14.2

    Any suggestions on a good replacement?

  2. Hello. Trying to identify how old my pump motor is but it doesn’t fall into the above categories. It is an AO Smith branded motor with a SER of 8L05.

        1. Is your pump motor on a pool and spa pump? Or is it a different style? A.O. Smith makes motors for a wide range of products, and those motor types may have different serial number formats.

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