The Basics

The most basic answer to the question, “What does a centrifugal fan do?”, is that it moves gas (air), drawing it into the inlet, turning it 90 degrees, and blowing it through the outlet to exit the fan. It moves a higher static pressure than an axial fan, which moves air and gas straight, in one direction. Without air movement inside buildings – whether a room (like in Chet’s example in the video), a house, or an industrial manufacturing facility – things would get dicey. If you were to be trapped in a small room with no ventilation, only breathing in your own exhaled air, you could only survive for so long. Imagine what would happen in a manufacturing facility where there are many other gases and particles at play! If that is all the information on centrifugal fans you were looking for, feel free to stop reading now. For a little more on how they work, carry on.

Our work at AirPro is not always about designing new fans; we often build replacement parts for all fan brands and send field service support teams to oversee installation and ensure the fans are ready for operation. We recently helped a minerals facility when their fan was damaged during operation. Our application engineers recommended replacement of the fan wheel and inlet cone and then our manufacturing team expedited production to provide the fastest delivery possible.

What is a Balanced Fan? Think “Finishing the Job.”

A balanced fan must stay below specific vibration limits for safe operation while running at full speed. Excessive vibration will decrease the life of your fan and can lead to catastrophic failure.

With a focus on robust construction, we built a process fan on a combustion blower for an industrial heater application. This installation called for a backward curved blower with a direct-drive motor and an outlet damper with an electric actuator and positioner. We designed it with fewer parts to reduce maintenance in the industrial environment.