Thank the Tool's Inventor

I love reading about the history of people who have made contributions to our industry. You might even say they have made major contributions to society. Think about a world without air conditioning, and then thank Willis Carrier. But contributions to society can be less grand than being known as the father of modern air conditioning. What about creating a tool which is used word wide every day? I would say that deserves recognition as well. It certainly does deserve my gratitude when I use the tool. We often use and take for granted tools and devices that someone before us created to make their life easier. They end up making life easier for a lot of us. They have made my word a better place.  Have you ever tried doing a job and NOT had the right tool? It is pretty frustrating. So when you use a tool that makes your life a bit easier and helps you accomplish more than you could without it, think about and thank its creator. I read a great article by Dan Holohan in the December 2014 issue of Plumbing & Mechanical magazine in which he traces the history of a very common tool, the Stillson wrench. If you are like me, you may be asking yourself – “What is a Stillson wrench?” I guarantee you have used one, only you might not know the correct name. You may call it a pipe wrench (as I often have.) Now think about how many pieces of pipe you have turned with a Stillson (pipe) wrench. How else would you have done that? It was invented by Daniel Chapman Stillson and patented by him on October 31, 1865. Next time you use one thank Mr. Stillson by calling it by its proper name, the Stillson wrench. He truly did make the world a better place.

If you want to know the back story on this incredibly useful tool, pick up a copy of the December issue of Plumbing & Mechanical magazine or visit their web site pmmag,com and read about the tool’s inventor.    

Motor Frames by the Numbers

Two standards organizations publish motor frame standards: National Electrical Manufacturers  Association (NEMA) and the International Electrotechnical Commission  (IEC). Do you know why a NEMA Frame 56 motor is a 56 motor? I admit, until recently I did not. I just knew that if two motors have the same frame, they will mount in the same place. That does not necessarily mean that they are interchangeable, just that you can physically interchange them. However, I did not know what the 56 stood for in a 56 frame motor. It is really pretty simple. The number in a NEMA Motor frame designation describes the distance from the center of the shaft to the bottom of the mounting base in eighths of an inch. So a 56 frame has a distance from the center of the shaft to the bottom of the base of 56/8, or 7 inches. Of course, there are other dimensions that are set by frame size, but that particular dimension gives the frame its name. Maybe your machines use motors with IEC fame designations. The frame number still describes the distance from the shaft center to the base, but in millimeters. So an IEC 112 Frame motor has a distance from the shaft center to the bottom of the base of 112 millimeters. If you are measuring in centimeters that is 11.2 centimeters. As in the NEMA frame size, the IEC frame size standardizes many dimensions. Both standards have many dimensions that are described but not standardized. This means that manufacturer will report these dimensions, but they will not necessarily be identical from one motor to another. Baldor has a couple of good pdf reference pages which show the dimensions for each type of frame. You can find these at

NEMA  
IEC        

Technically Speaking

Throughout my entire career in HVACR, technology has been changing how we work and what we work on. During this time, people have been continually complaining about the changes wrought by new technology. I can still remember an older technician in the late 70’s (yes I was actually working way back then). He was bragging in the parts house about replacing the primary control on someone’s oil furnace. It had a newer cad-cell type sensor which he did not understand, so he retro engineered the system to use a stack switch. Basically, he charged the customer to downgrade their equipment because he did not understand the controls. Another tech agreed, saying those cad cell things were not trustworthy. Then he added that he did not work on heat pumps – if a customer had a heat pump, they had to call somebody else. Today these guys would not be able to work – there just are not enough systems that meet their limitations. Many folks today don’t feel comfortable with communicating systems, but these systems are here to stay. In unitary product lines, communicating systems are still just the higher end. The thing is, most air conditioning manufacturers are offering them now. Virtually all mini-split, multi-split, and VRF systems use communicating control technology. And in case you haven’t noticed, those systems are here to stay as well. Sure, new technology can be a pain – especially brand new technology. Early adopters often pay a price for being the first with the new stuff. However, bitching about having to learn something new won’t keep the world from changing. You will just be left behind. As I age, I understand the pain of the old techs who just want to do the stuff they with which they are comfortable. I become less flexible both physically and mentally as I age, so I find it necessary to study harder to keep up with current field technology. As I see it, I have a choice – I can complain that the future will be different than the past, or I can work hard to keep up with changes in this field I love.