Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)The control has a small adjustment screw on the side that you are supposed to tweak when you install. The screw allows you to set the lowest speed (which should not be so slow that the motor stalls). You can set a slow speed easily enough, but two problems crop up after installation:
1. The taper isn't smooth, meaning that (in may case, with a fireplace fan) there really isn't a "medium" speed. In other words, as you turn the control towards "low" the speed of the fan stays pretty much the same until you reach a certain point at which the speed drops to the previously mentioned lowest setting. Same deal in reverse, i.e., as you turn the dial toward "high," the fan runs slow until it jumps to full speed.
2. If you set the control low enough to be, well...low, then any additional draw put on the same circuit stalls the motor. In my case I turned on a light, so we aren't talking major draw. I tried changing the adjustment (putting more load on the circuit and then setting the "low" adjustment a bit higher), but I couldn't find a happy medium. If I set the adjustment high enough to not be bothered by a minor additional stress on the circuit, the "low" setting was almost the same as the "high" setting.
So, with these limitations, this speed control is effectively an on/off switch, something I could have purchased locally for less than a buck.
Click Here to see more reviews about: KB Electronics Solid State Variable Speed AC Electric Motor Control 2.5 Max amps 115V # K177-1002
Control provides infinite variable speed for shaded pole and PSC motors. Max amps means that the rated motor name plate amperage can not exceed this rating or you will damage the control and motor. Motor must be run with sufficient torque to prevent stalling - A motor not turning will burn up Motor must have fan blade installed on shaft (direct drive) to cool motor. Not to be used with gear motors. Controls that have been installed are not returnable
