Elevator Mechanic Practice Exam

When changing a 1:1 car rated at 600 FPM and 2000 lb capacity to a 2:1, what are the new ratings?

1. 300 FPM, 3000 lbs

2. 300 FPM, 4000 lbs

3. 400 FPM, 4000 lbs

4. 600 FPM, 2000 lbs

The correct answer is: 300 FPM, 4000 lbs

When converting an elevator system from a 1:1 ratio to a 2:1 ratio, there are important factors to consider regarding speed and capacity. In the case of a 1:1 system, the elevator car moves at the same speed as the hoisting mechanism, in this instance rated at 600 feet per minute (FPM). When switching to a 2:1 system, the speed of the elevator car is effectively halved. Therefore, the new speed rating becomes 300 FPM. For the capacity, the change from 1:1 to 2:1 allows for a greater load due to the mechanical advantage of having two lengths of rope (or cable) instead of one. This means that the car can handle double the rated capacity while maintaining the same operational efficiency and safety. Thus, the new capacity rating doubles from 2000 pounds to 4000 pounds. Taking both adjustments into account, the new ratings for the elevator will be 300 FPM for speed and 4000 pounds for capacity. This makes the provided choice both logically accurate based on the elevator mechanics principles.