Detmar 12v fan power

Hello,

I have a 12v fan that is used to cool nascar brakes.

http://tinyurl.com/cbl37m

It's a Detmar fan that is about 180CFM, 12v 3.5amp motor. I tried to use a small 12v/400ma transformer but the fan burned it out in about 10 minutes. For the 10 minutes it ran it worked great.

So, I purchased a 12v/4a transformer off eBay. When I hook the fan to it all the fan does it pulse on for about a 1/2 sec. every couple of seconds. I test the transformer and it's putting out 12v.

Any ideas on how to hook up this fan without the need of a car battery? These are nice fans and there's a steady supply of them.

Thanks, YGB

ALRIGHT, I WANTED TO KNOW THE ANWSER TO THIS QUESTION AS WELL.
I HAVE THE SAME FANS BUT 4" IN/4"OUT 12VOLT.
I CURRENTLY HAVE NO USE FOR THEM BECOUSE OF WIRING THEM UP BUT,
I GUESS IF YOU HAD A AC TO DC ADAPTER/CONVERTER IT WOULD WORK.
HERE'S A LINK TO WHAT I'M TALKIN ABOUT
http://cgi.ebay.com/New-AC-DC-Converter-Adapter-Charger-110-240V-to-12V_W0QQitemZ390030222709QQihZ026QQcategoryZ31534QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I GUESS YOU WOULD HAVE TO SPLICE INTO THE PLUG THAT GOES INTO THE Cigarette Lighter Socket.
I:E CELL PHONE CHARGER

LIKE I SAID, I DON'T KNOW, BUT IT'S AN OPTION IF YOU ARE DEAD SET ON USING THE 12V FAN,
DO YOUR RESEARCH BEFORE DOING THIS BECOUSE I DON'T KNOW IF THIS WILL WORK OR JUST CAUSE MORE TROUBLE
I WENT OUT AND BOUGHT DIFFERENT FANS$$$$$$

SOMEONE THAT KNOWS ABOUT AC/DC CURRENT WILL BE ABLE TO ANWSER THIS QUESTION MORE THAN ME

scooby snacks said:

ALRIGHT, I WANTED TO KNOW THE ANWSER TO THIS QUESTION AS WELL.
I HAVE THE SAME FANS BUT 4" IN/4"OUT 12VOLT.
I CURRENTLY HAVE NO USE FOR THEM BECOUSE OF WIRING THEM UP BUT,
I GUESS IF YOU HAD A AC TO DC ADAPTER/CONVERTER IT WOULD WORK.
HERE'S A LINK TO WHAT I'M TALKIN ABOUT
http://cgi.ebay.com/New-AC-DC-Converter-Adapter-Charger-110-240V-to-12V_W0QQitemZ390030222709QQihZ026QQcategoryZ31534QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Click to expand...

I thought about that but the output is 12v/500mA. Than's 1/2 an amp. These fans draw 3 amps so it would burn out the adapter just like it did the 12v/400mA transformers I hooked up.

SORRY MAN,

I WAS TRING TO HELP YOU AND I'M THE ONE THATS NEEDS HELP

I GUESS IT OBVIOUS, YOU HAVE MORE KNOWLEDGE THAN ME ABOUT THE SUBJECT

LATER

YouGrowBoy said:

Hello,

I have a 12v fan that is used to cool nascar brakes.

http://tinyurl.com/cbl37m

It's a Detmar fan that is about 180CFM, 12v 3.5amp motor. I tried to use a small 12v/400ma transformer but the fan burned it out in about 10 minutes. For the 10 minutes it ran it worked great.

So, I purchased a 12v/4a transformer off eBay. When I hook the fan to it all the fan does it pulse on for about a 1/2 sec. every couple of seconds. I test the transformer and it's putting out 12v.

Any ideas on how to hook up this fan without the need of a car battery? These are nice fans and there's a steady supply of them.

Thanks, YGB

Click to expand...

I have the exact same fans. Matter of fact I bought two of them.

If they pulse then the adapter you bought is bad. When I tested mine they did the same thing.

Tried a different transformer and it worked great.

You could also use a computer power supply for the 12 vdc

Yeah, try a power supply. It should work.

Here is guide that tells how to convert a computer power supply to a 12 VDC power supply

http://www.wikihow.com/Convert-a-Computer-ATX-Power-Supply-to-a-Lab-Power-Supply

I have a similar problem, well actually it's the opposite. I have two computer fans (12V, 180mA) and the AC/DC converter I have is 12V, 1000mA. If I hook this up will it ruin anything? I want to hook up both fans to the same power supply. I also have a converter that is 5V, 2000mA. Is it safe/ better to use either one? Thanks alot.

Chillums said:

I have a similar problem, well actually it's the opposite. I have two computer fans (12V, 180mA) and the AC/DC converter I have is 12V, 1000mA. If I hook this up will it ruin anything? I want to hook up both fans to the same power supply. I also have a converter that is 5V, 2000mA. Is it safe/ better to use either one? Thanks alot.

Click to expand...

You can run both those fans on that one converter

2 12V 180mA fans equals 12V .360 mA

Your converter is 12v 1000mA which is 1 amp

The 5v 2000mA converter may or may not run the fan, but the fan will turn at a slower speed.

Remember this most PC fans utilize a 3 wire connection Negative (Black) 12 volt (red) and 5volt Yellow.

The Yellow wire is for speed control.

So even when you hook these fans up they never run at full speed and are not designed to run at full speed constantly. Only long enough to cool down the PC Case.

Examine how big your grow area and that will determine how much CFM (Cubic Feet per minute) you need

If you have any more questions feel free to ask

Awesome thanks alot man! That answers my question +rep. My grow box is 4sq ft, each fan pushes 34.5 cfm. So.. do you think I should hook up a controller to the fans (one intake one outake). I will post pics in a few mins once I upload to my comp. Thanks alot man! Peace.

Edit- pics added, please leave any comments or advice all greatly appreciated being my first grow

Chillums said:

Awesome thanks alot man! That answers my question +rep. My grow box is 4sq ft, each fan pushes 34.5 cfm. So.. do you think I should hook up a controller to the fans (one intake one outake). I will post pics in a few mins once I upload to my comp. Thanks alot man! Peace.

Click to expand...

Ok when you say 4 square feet, are you talking about the volume of the box, or the square area of the floor.

Length X Width X Height will give you volume.

Another factor is the lighting, that is why CFM is important. Enough lights can oush your temps well above 90 degrees, which would not be good for the plants.

If you don't have a thermometer then get one, and the I would personally get a a Fan that moves a minimum of 85CFM. Tight now I use a 235 CFM, but have learned that those fans can be noisy, So I lowered my voltage to lower the speed and noise of the fan

Also tempature in your room is important, because you have to have cool air coming in to help keep the temps down and the plants need fresh air also.

I know it sounds like alot, but with a little trial and error you should be ok

K my bad I meant 4 cubic feet. And in there I have 8 26watt cfls and 2 13watt cfls. And I just got a thermometer/humidity meter(refer to pics) being my first grow it is coming together slowly. I think I killed my plants by adding a bottle for co2 and it screwed my water/nute uptake not sure if they'll survive. If not I can always try again. And should I add a fan control? Thanks alot man.

You definitely have very limited height in there. You will have to LST (Low stress training) to make up the difference for the height.

Watch your temps, if they start to climb above 85 the plants will suffer.

If you can try to get another box with more height (Thrift store. I got a portable closet for 15 bucks) Get higher CFM fans (Ebay)

Just my advice. Wouldn't want to see you start a grow then have to start over