wiring 12v muffin fans?

[steelheadbluesman]

Thanks, Pop, very nice photos and a good explanation. This is stuff we can use. Between you, tekrsq, and sc3283, I'm getting a lot of VERY useful info, and I can only say that I really appreciate all the sharing! When I needed help I got it! Looking forward to more pics, and I intend to share mine when done. I'm ordering the 4-set today.

[SpringerPop]

I was in their place this last week on my way home from a haircut, and bought another one.

Haven't a clue what I'll do with it, but I'll find some use for it somewhere!

I have now bought four of them. One is pictured above. One I gave to my brother who has a CrossTrack fifth-wheel (he cut that frame in two to form a "square" of fans), one I have "parted out" into individual fans ("spares" maybe?), and now the new one for which to think up a use.

Wife says I have too much spare time........

Pop

[steelheadbluesman]

I might already be afflicted.... Originally I figured to install a single fan, then doubled it to two, but after listening to you guys, I just ordered my first set of 4 fans. No telling how many I might end up with. You know how it is, if one nail is good, five more is even better!

[SpringerPop]

Originally Posted by steelheadbluesman

....five more is even better!

With Gorilla Glue.....

Can't see any reason to NOT over-do it if you're gonna' do it at all!

Pop

[stink]

On the norcold there is a black and white 14 guage wire coming off the curcuit board. these wires power the flapper heater and can be tapped into for your cooling fans. by the way, disconnect the flapper heater and the cooling unit does not work as hard as no heat is built up in refer. Do this only in dry climates as condensate will form on flapper if disconnected in humid conditions.

[clyon51]

Although my frig (Dometic Royale) works decent, I bought the 4 fan unit a few weeks ago and will install it later this summer. I'm looking at a simple 85 - 100 degree thermo switch.

The size of the unit looks like it will take most if not all of the space in the 'chimney'. This certainly would make for perfect cooling (probably overkill) but would be bad if the fans failed. So I'm thinking about removing two of them. On the other hand, I have a server that's been running 24/7 for 6 years, so I know these fans are reliable. I'm so confused

Not having much experience with these 'contact' thermo switches, is it better to mount them as designed, or so the face is exposed to the air? Or doesn't it make any difference?

[Wanderman]

I'm not sure why I missed this thread! I went through this type of install recently when my fridge (Dometic) couldn't keep up with full sun exposure and 100 degree temps. I installed a single fan that draws less the .5 amps just under the roof vent. The difference was immediate and incredible. No issues holding 38 degrees in the refrigerator compartment and -3 in the freezer while on "4" out of 5 on the control panel.

I wrote up the install in an article for the RV newsletter...you can read my stuff here:

WanderMan: Do You Like Your Drinks COLD? - Installing a Fridge Chimney Fan.

Cheap and easy install with great results. I wish they all worked that way!

Rich "The Wanderman"

[SVTotem]

Great input, Rich. Thanks.

[Wanderman]

No worries! I intend on keeping my rig for a long time (it took me long enough to find!) so I make as many improvements and updates as I can. Most of them are applicable to almost any RV. Share the knowledge!

Thanks,

Rich "The Wanderman"

[steelheadbluesman]

Originally Posted by Wanderman

No worries! I intend on keeping my rig for a long time (it took me long enough to find!) so I make as many improvements and updates as I can. Most of them are applicable to almost any RV. Share the knowledge!

Thanks,

Rich "The Wanderman"

Interesting link, thanks for sharing. My fans are in the mail....

[Wanderman]

BTW: You have a massively cute dog!

Rich "The Wanderman"

[steelheadbluesman]

Originally Posted by Wanderman

BTW: You have a massively cute dog!

Rich "The Wanderman"

And she smiles like that every day! She's a happy camper.

[Mr_D]

Originally Posted by SVTotem

That starts tomorrow. The house was plumbed with PB (poly butyline) piping and it is failing. Gotta love American construction methods. Replumbing a 19 year old house is just plain nuts.

Sorry for the rant.

That's too bad!
Our house was built in 1986 and has all copper pipes. Waiting for them to start going bad!

[Mr_D]

Originally Posted by SpringerPop

I used the fans from All Electronics too, and they have been running virtually 24/7 for about three months so far (except the five days it was last on-the-road).

With a 50,000 hour expected life, and a current draw for all-fans-combined at under an amp, I have just left them on when on shore power here in the driveway.

Here's a couple of photos. The first one is looking straight down through my roof (chimney cap removed) without any fans, but you can see the top finned coils clearly. Also shown are the wires I stripped back to pick up the constant +12 volts that I ran to a switch that appears in an inside cabinet above the fridge. Yea, manual control only.



The second, below, also looking straight down trough the chimney opening, shows the bank of fans mounted to a piece of 1" x 2" lumber that spans out to each side to the chimney walls. Not as noticeable is that the aluminum frame is RTV'd to the inside fiberglass wall (bottom of photo). The whole thing sits just above the dimpled tube above the fins, (about 1-3/4" above the fins) and blows upward, drawing air across them from below.



It was a fun project that really WORKS! It's been right at 100* during the days here in Los Angeles recently, and the inside of the box normally runs around 36* at the current thermostat setting. I could turn it down lower, but where it is right now is just fine.

Pop

Are the fans ball bearing? Right now I have 1-120 mm, 44 cfm ball bearing fan and have a second one that I'm going to install but that unit looks like a better solution.