Why Does One Side of a Belt Fall When Hung Unevenly?

[sgstudent]

I thought about this when hanging my belt on to the towel holder. If i put too much of the belt on one side, that side would fall down. Why does this happen? Shouldn't the towel hanger just put up an equal force to the total weight of the belt keeping it up?

I understand a little when we say that the towel hanger acts as a pulley so the direction of the force can be changed but i still don't get why an upwards force isn't present to hold the belt up actually.

Thanks for the help :)

 

[SteamKing]

It's not that the hanger isn't exerting enough force on the belt to hold it up. A physicist would rely on his powers of observation to formulate a theory.

Ask yourself, why does the belt fall if the amount of weight isn't balanced between the two sides? What happens where the belt is resting on the holder? Is there anything on the holder which can resist the motion of the belt if, for whatever reason, the belt starts moving? Can the belt be placed on the holder in another way such that it will not slip off?

 

[sgstudent]

It's not that the hanger isn't exerting enough force on the belt to hold it up. A physicist would rely on his powers of observation to formulate a theory.

Ask yourself, why does the belt fall if the amount of weight isn't balanced between the two sides? What happens where the belt is resting on the holder? Is there anything on the holder which can resist the motion of the belt if, for whatever reason, the belt starts moving? Can the belt be placed on the holder in another way such that it will not slip off?

Hi thanks for the reply :)

Using the tension and forces we learned, it would be because one side of the rope has more weight than the other so it would have a net downwards force while the other side would have a tension that would pull the lesser weight up. But while these 2 processes occur, does the holder exert an upwards force too?

Thanks for the help

 

[SteamKing]

Indubitably. Draw a free body diagram of the belt and the holder.

Look, your holder is not magic. The belt and the holder both probably have slick surfaces. The belt falls off the holder, if it is not evenly hung, because the unbalanced weight causes the belt to slide.

 

[PJC01]

Hello there,

Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this topic. I can provide some insights into the forces acting on a hanging string.

Firstly, you are correct in understanding that the towel hanger acts as a pulley, which means that the direction of the force can be changed. In this case, the force of gravity is acting on the belt, pulling it downwards. However, when the belt is hung on the towel hanger, the force of gravity is redirected in a horizontal direction, pulling the belt towards the towel hanger.

Now, let's consider the forces acting on the towel hanger itself. The hanger is attached to the wall with screws or adhesive, which means that it is held in place by a force called tension. This tension force acts in an upward direction, keeping the towel hanger in place. When the belt is hung on the towel hanger, it adds weight to the hanger, causing the tension force to increase to balance out the added weight.

However, if you put too much of the belt on one side, the weight of the belt will become unevenly distributed. This means that the tension force on one side of the towel hanger will be greater than the other side, causing the hanger to tilt and eventually fall.

In summary, the towel hanger does provide an equal force to the total weight of the belt, but it also needs to balance out the tension force holding it in place. When the weight of the belt is not evenly distributed, it can cause an imbalance in the tension force and lead to the hanger falling down.

I hope this explanation helps clarify the forces at play in this scenario. Keep asking questions and exploring the world around you – that's the essence of being a scientist!

 

[PJC01]

Hello,

Thank you for your question. The forces acting on a hanging string or belt are due to a combination of gravity and tension. When you hang your belt on a towel holder, the weight of the belt pulls down on the string or holder, creating a downward force. This downward force is balanced by the tension in the string or holder, which pulls upwards to keep the belt from falling.

The reason why one side of the belt may fall down if there is too much weight on that side is because the tension in the string or holder is not evenly distributed. When you hang the belt, the tension is spread evenly throughout the string or holder. But if you add more weight to one side, the tension on that side will increase while the tension on the other side decreases. This can cause the string or holder to become unbalanced and the heavier side to fall down.

In terms of the towel hanger acting as a pulley, this is correct. When you hang the belt on the towel hanger, the direction of the tension force changes as the string or holder wraps around the hanger. However, this does not change the overall tension force acting on the string or holder.

I hope this helps to clarify the forces acting on a hanging string or belt. If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to ask. Thank you for your interest in science!