Some of the major difficulties encountered by the testing and balancing personnel are a direct result of the System Designer's inadequate understanding of how equipment performs when installed. This inadequacy stems from the fact that many System Designers are not afforded the opportunity to participate in the testing and balancing of systems which they design, and consequently are unaware of the results of their design decisions.

Some of the basic design pitfalls encountered, which become glaringly apparent in the fieldare: (1) excessive duct leakage; (2) inadequate installation details for supply terminals;(3) improperly specified dampers; (4) poorly designed fan installation; and (5) inadequatehydronic instrumentation. The Designer who has had the privilege of first hand experience insystem testing and balancing is aware of these problem areas. For those that have not hadthis "hands-on" experience, the following advice on each of the problem areas are discussedand, hopefully, this will provide the knowledge to help designers avoid these pitfalls intheir future designs.