Arcane Electric Fan Terminology Explained

Decode Acronyms (Like CCWSE + CCWLE) for Easy Replacement of Old Fan Motors

It's time to replace an old fan motor. You take the motor out of its housing, gather all the nameplate information, and you start looking at replacement options. You notice the listed motor rotations and think to yourself, what does CWSE mean? What does CCWLE mean? Well, have no fear! Dreisilker Electric Motors put together a quick guide to help you better understand motor rotations. 

What does Lead End and Shaft End have to do with CCWLE, CCWSE, CWLE, and CWSE? 

There are two different perspectives in which motor rotation is given. Lead end, or LE, and shaft end, or SE. Shaft end, or SE, perspective is the most commonly used perspective and if the perspective isn't listed - it's fair to assume that the rotation is given in SE perspective. 

You can determine shaft end perspective by simply holding your motor up in front of you and pointing the shaft at you. If the shaft is pointing at you and rotates to the right, your motor is clockwise shaft end, or CWSE. If the shaft rotates to the left, your motor is counterclockwise shaft end, or CCWSE.

To determine lead end perspective, hold your motor up and point the shaft away from you. If the shaft rotates to the right, your motor is clockwise lead end, or CWLE. If the shaft rotates to the left, your motor is CCWLE.

Here's the kicker, since lead end and shaft end perspectives are opposite of each other, a CCWLE motor is also CWSE and a motor that's CCWSE is also CWLE. 

Here's the lead end perspective:	Here's the shaft end perspective:

To understand more about lead end versus shaft end, check out our guide here:  What's the lead end and shaft end of a motor?

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CCWLE, CCWSE, CWLE, CWSE for Double Shafted Motors 

Finally, if you're looking through the catalog and notice the motor rotation given as DS, it means that motor is a double shaft motor. Double shaft motors have one rotator exciting both ends, they're both CW and CCW. 

How does Clockwise and Counter Clockwise Rotation impact my blade or blower wheel choice? 

It is critical that you choose the correct rotation of your fan blade or blower wheel when making replacements in your HVAC system. Choosing the incorrect rotation will impact the airflow of your system and can lead to premature failure of your motors.  

To learn more about condenser fan blade replacement, check out our guide here:  How to select the correct condenser fan blade.

To understand how manufacturers label a blower wheel's rotation, check out our guide here:  How to select the correct rotation for your single inlet blower wheel

Electric Motor Rotation Terminology 

CW is clockwise

CCW is counterclockwise

LE is lead end

SE is shaft end

CWSE is clockwise shaft end

CCWSE is counterclockwise shaft end

CWLE is clockwise lead end

CCWLE is counterclockwise lead end

DS is double shaft

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