Fan Mounting

 

Putting on the Venturi cone while it was still on the shipping pallet seemed like a good idea at the time. My thinking was that this way the unit would be better balanced when I raised it up with the cherry picker. It didn't take long to realize that the flare of the added piece was going to get in the way when I tried to insert it into the 77" rough opening I had built.

There are a lot of things they don't tell first time project builders like myself. It is hard to see that the top set of holes for attaching the wheels were above the wood. The 2x6 I used for the frame should have been a 2x8. 

The fix was to raise up the 2x6 and the re-cut the brace to fit. Another lesson learned was on the wheels. They came 4 in a set. I thought that was nice. They were rated for an 880 pound load. This rating was for all four wheels not each individual wheel.

On a job site with the right equipment and a "crew" placing the fan into a rough opening framed into the side of a building (without the Venturi attached) might not be that big of a deal. For me by myself in my workshop it was a deal and required considerable thinking. The engine hoist did the lifting and I was able to remove the shipping pallet. This left the unit swinging and I had to rig up some 2x4 blocking to hold it steady. You can see the fan frame behind the suspended fan. Would it fit?

Looking pretty good so far. The legs of the engine hoist were in the way so I had to put a floor jack under the front of the frame and put two furniture dollies on the back. This way I could continue to roll the frame  in and mate it up with the fans mounting flange. Just like putting in a window.

Looks like all systems are go. Soon I was able to screw the front flange to the frame and then remount the Venturi on the back side. There is a fan screen that gets attached to the Venturi but I will wait to put that on.

And there you have it. One rather large 72" fan mounted in a frame that can be raised up and rolled into place. Getting this 600 + Bad Boy onto a flatbed trailer for hauling will be another engineering challenge to come.

Next up will be the 4 foot long Connector that will go from the fans 72" opening and taper down to the 48" back side of a standard KidWind tunnel. Stay tuned.