fixerupper
Well-known Member
A question for you sparkies out there. I have a 10 HP grain bin fan that has been burning out the breaker every year or two. The picture is the tag on the fan. I don't know if it gives you enough information or not. The fan runs constant for two weeks or maybe a little more after harvest. After that it's run once a month for a few hours for a few months or until the grain is removed from the bin. This fan was new 8 years ago so it has not seen all that much use but it has been doing this since it was new. There is another fan on this bin that does not wreck the breaker. The breaker for the problem fan runs warm, the breaker for the fan that is not the problem runs cool.
The fans are fed by six gauge copper lines, the line to the problem fan runs 60 feet, the line to the non problem fan runs 30 feet from the breaker box. Both fans were on 50 amp breakers but last time when I replaced a breaker for the problem fan I replaced it with a 60 amp. That 60 amp breaker lasted two seasons before it quit instead of one season like the 50 amp breaker did and one side of the bad 60 amp breaker is now darker than the other side. The electrician who did the wiring suggested I need 4 gauge wire running to the problem fan but he did not offer to replace the 6 gauge with 4 gauge even though he is the one who under wired it as he claims. He passed away not long after he told me this so now I am on my own.
So now the question; is a 60 foot run of #6 copper inadequate for this fan or is there something else wrong.
The fans are fed by six gauge copper lines, the line to the problem fan runs 60 feet, the line to the non problem fan runs 30 feet from the breaker box. Both fans were on 50 amp breakers but last time when I replaced a breaker for the problem fan I replaced it with a 60 amp. That 60 amp breaker lasted two seasons before it quit instead of one season like the 50 amp breaker did and one side of the bad 60 amp breaker is now darker than the other side. The electrician who did the wiring suggested I need 4 gauge wire running to the problem fan but he did not offer to replace the 6 gauge with 4 gauge even though he is the one who under wired it as he claims. He passed away not long after he told me this so now I am on my own.
So now the question; is a 60 foot run of #6 copper inadequate for this fan or is there something else wrong.