electric fan questions

[chevyboy1992]

ok guys i have 2 14'' electronic fans.and i am looking into everything i will need to run them.ive been researching and i found an adjustable thermostat controller.am i looking in the right direction? thanks for the help

 

[Tempted]

Yep. Kick them on around 150 and whenever you turn your AC on. Make sure they are on a fused circuit. I would personally use two seperate circuits. Start one fan at 150 and the 2nd at 170/AC on.

 

[Tomcat71]

Make sure you power em with relays also, I simple rocker switch will not handle the amps electric fans pull. and you want em on later than that, fist one should be about 210 or so, and the second one only for running A/C if you have it, if you start em at 150 the t stat will never open. and the engine won't go into closed loop.

 

[chevyboy1992]

ok i have a 160 thermostat but i have been looking at an adjustable controller couldnt i buy two of the controllers and set one to each fan and set one to 160 and the other to 180.im new to electronic fans im just trying to figure out what im looking at to get it all hooked up.i will for sure run seperate relays and fuses to each fan for safety and assurance am i on the right track?

 

[Tempted]

That is too cold for the motor to run. Unless you live on the sun or tow 15,000lbs in the desert then you shouldn't go lower than a 180. As Iron stated, your engine will run open(very rich, retarded timing) if it never reaches operating temp. I personally wouldn't start the fans at 210. If you wait that long then the engine will be saturated by the time the fans start cooling. Also he mentioned something about a rocker switch not holding the load and that isn't entirely correct either. Most toggle switches hold at least 15 amps while most fans pull less than 5 continuous.

 

[chevyboy1992]

ok im just trying to wire my fans up to where i dont have to flip a switch.im prone to forgetting stuff and thats nothing to forget about.is there a way to run both fans off of one controller? could i just set the adjuster to 180 and it kick in automatically?

 

[Tempted]

ok im just trying to wire my fans up to where i dont have to flip a switch.im prone to forgetting stuff and thats nothing to forget about.is there a way to run both fans off of one controller? could i just set the adjuster to 180 and it kick in automatically?

Absolutely. Just check the rated amps of the switch and fans. If the fans are each 4-6 amps continuous then you want a switch that can handle at least 15 amps. Electric motors draw their highest current at start up so a fan rated at 5 amps may pull as much as 10 when they first come on. This is why most electronics use a start up capacitor to get the motor spinning quickly.

 

[chevyboy1992]

ok it only says 80 watts it doesnt say anything about amps.is there a way to figure the number of amps by the number of watts?

 

[Tempted]

ok it only says 80 watts it doesnt say anything about amps.is there a way to figure the number of amps by the number of watts?

Watts = Amps x Volts

So we know:

80w = A x 12v

So 80/12= 6.67 amps

 

[Tomcat71]

you need to install a 195 back in, you are running too cool and a 160 stat is not making you any power. also 210 is fine, some factory fans don't even come on till 230.