Motors & Electrical

When small rooftop units came up short on airflow, the fix was surprisingly simple: swap in the next-size-up motor. The same fan with a higher-horsepower motor runs at a slightly higher RPM due to less slip, producing enough additional airflow to satisfy the balancer.

When an inline vane axial return fan wouldn't produce airflow, the boss climbed a ladder and held cardboard over a hole the contractors had cut — and got blown off the ladder. The fan was rotating backwards, a common 3-phase motor wiring issue fixed simply by swapping two of the leads.