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Squirrel cage fan /winter outdoor

E

eebbnflow

Member
Hello , I am looking for info on cage blower type fans , the same fans found in most air handlers .

I’d like to use this type of fan for something outdoors during the winter months next year . It needs to turn on/off each day 24/7 in temps ranging from 0c to -30 during the winter . It would not be rated more than 800cfm .

It will be safe from the elements but I am wondering do these fans work in the extreme cold ? Someone in HVAC might know this , thank you
 
Q

queequeg152

Active member
Veteran
far as i know they work just fine in the cold.

are you thinking that the cold weather will effect the capacitors or something?

if thats what you are saying... remember that outdoor condensing units with PSC fan motors run happily at cold temps(heat pumps).

i WOULD say that you need to make sure you need to protect this thing from condensation... condensation is the enemy of electrogalvanized steel. if possible i would find something that is painted personally. ive seen hvac type blowers made from electrogalvanized steel sheet rot away completely from exposure to condensation(and hydrogen sulfide, tbh the sulfide was the primary issue though).
 
Andyo

Andyo

Active member
Veteran
cold /freezing temps

cold /freezing temps

eebbnflow said:
Hello , I am looking for info on cage blower type fans , the same fans found in most air handlers .

I’d like to use this type of fan for something outdoors during the winter months next year . It needs to turn on/off each day 24/7 in temps ranging from 0c to -30 during the winter . It would not be rated more than 800cfm .

It will be safe from the elements but I am wondering do these fans work in the extreme cold ? Someone in HVAC might know this , thank you
Click to expand...

Mine was fine even when my water pipes froze
Quality ones run super quiet, not sure about minus 30 c
read the min max temp spec.A
 
E

eebbnflow

Member
queequeg152 said:
far as i know they work just fine in the cold.

are you thinking that the cold weather will effect the capacitors or something?

if thats what you are saying... remember that outdoor condensing units with PSC fan motors run happily at cold temps(heat pumps).

i WOULD say that you need to make sure you need to protect this thing from condensation... condensation is the enemy of electrogalvanized steel. if possible i would find something that is painted personally. ive seen hvac type blowers made from electrogalvanized steel sheet rot away completely from exposure to condensation(and hydrogen sulfide, tbh the sulfide was the primary issue though).
Click to expand...
yes exactly , I was unsure if it would turn on off when it is cold below 0c .

Before I made this post I contacted a supplier for an in-line fan that I have and wanted to use , they couldn’t confirm or deny it would work in the cold cause it has never been tested !

I was pretty sure tho that the cage type blowers would work in the cold . I just wanted to confirm with someone before I go ahead with it .

QQ I am gonna work on my heat exchanger this spring for next winter !
 
Q

queequeg152

Active member
Veteran
eebbnflow said:
yes exactly , I was unsure if it would turn on off when it is cold below 0c .

Before I made this post I contacted a supplier for an in-line fan that I have and wanted to use , they couldn’t confirm or deny it would work in the cold cause it has never been tested !

I was pretty sure tho that the cage type blowers would work in the cold . I just wanted to confirm with someone before I go ahead with it .

QQ I am gonna work on my heat exchanger this spring for next winter !
Click to expand...

think about it this way... assume that it will NOT work properly at low temps.

how hard would it be to get it to start up when its exceptionally cold? worse case scenario you will need some trace heating cable to warm the thing up and maby and enclosure to keep the heat in and around the blower while it warms up.

you could do that with a delay on relay set at like 5 minutes that would keep the blower off while the trace heating is energized and brings the blower up to temps.

its also possible that you would need to change the grease in your bearings or add a few drops of lower viscosity oil to the bushings i guess... but i seriously doubt you would need to do anything to the bearings though. they should heat up just fine by themselves.

i would be much more concerned about moisture and condensation my self. outdoor blowers take a real beating in my experience.
 
E

eebbnflow

Member
Never thought of that . Really available under 100$ would you wrap the motor only ?
I see other trace cable for ice melting but I think that is to long . Or I can wrap the whole fan with it .
 
Phaeton

Phaeton

Speed of Dark
Veteran
I drove a small Suzuki car without cold climate preheat packages available. Cold starts as low as -55 at times.
The blower motors, AC (comes on with 'def' setting) compressor, alternator, radiator fans, all these still function after ten years and 200,000 miles of much colder than -30 use.
 
ChaosCatalunya

ChaosCatalunya

5.2 club is now 8.1 club...
Veteran
I think they are the best type of fans made, a mate had one running for 18 years continuously in his mothers loft. Like pumps, you tend to get problems when they stop and start.
 
Q

queequeg152

Active member
Veteran
eebbnflow said:
Never thought of that . Really available under 100$ would you wrap the motor only ?
I see other trace cable for ice melting but I think that is to long . Or I can wrap the whole fan with it .
Click to expand...

the stuff im thinking of is the shit you see wrapped over pipe flanges underneath insulation and lagging.

its basically a 500 foot spool that you cut to what ever length you need.

idk how the shit works tbh. but each foot of length is a certain wattage... it self regulates based on temperature and there is usually a max length. you need some overcurrent protection but thats about it.

i dont know if you can buy small lengths of it, but im sure there is something similar you can get.

maby adhesive silicone pad heaters would be a better option.

i would just wrap it over the capacitor and motor. again though, this is far out there shit... other than a funky cap that wont work at low temps i cant think of any reason why an electric motor would not start up at -30.

even if its a cap problem...just go out and get a better cap.

if its a lubrication problem get low temp grease.

if it still does not start then look at the self regulating trace heating cables or heating pads.
 
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