Our motors run until their work is done. When we have harmonic trash on the wires that means the motor has extra current and produces extra heat.

Now, harmonics do not merely flow like the fundamental 60Hz power. Harmonics flow only in the outer surface of conductors - “The Skin Effect”.This exacerbates problems with resistance, the reason heat is produced as one source of wasted energy.

This phenomenon is not isolated to motors. Neutral conductors, transformers and circuit breakers continually degrade under the influence of harmonic current.

Neutral conductors can carry more triplen harmonic current(3rd, 9th, 15th harmonics, etc.) than fundamental current, thereby causing very high heating and fire risks.

The ripples in an electric wave form are caused by the way devices use only part of the power, taking a bite out of the surface.

Our devices actually want a clean wave, and use an internal clock to decide when to take a bite out.

When too big a bite is taken out, take out too often, or triplen harmonics are re-circulated, then the wave re-crosses the zero line prematurely, “Zero Crossing Effect”. This disturbed high harmonic signal may cause data faults, computer crashes, and more. The picture of disruptive energy flow can get pretty wild, and varies from time to time and location to location.

There are many devices that go unsuspected of causing problems; light dimmers, fluorescent lighting, motor controls to name a few. The resulting electric signals are a risk in waiting.

Motors and electronics disturb not only other's performance, but their own.