Fan for the motor

[Hydros]

Well I got to thinking about using a fan tunnel with multiple fans to pull the heat and copper dust from the motor.

I got a mess of used computer supple fans carboard and tape. Don't laugh, it was just a test to see what will not work.

[Hydros]

I got a box and layed out the fans and used tape to hold them in place. I was thinking if one fan is good, then more might be better.

You can see I wired all the same wires together.

Notice I have one fan turned around, fixed that.

[Hydros]

Here a battery charger is being used for the first test, before I take it and increase the volts.

The flow seemed OK, so I was ready for the 60 volt test.

[Hydros]

Well I started with 24 volts, then 36 then 48. The fans started getting hot and would not work at 60 volts.

The flow was pretty good, but it took too long for them to build up speed. This is where I thought that wiring them up to work both on the up stroke and dump'in, instead of only with the pump spinning.

The air flow was OK but I got to thinking that too many fans caused a restriction.

[Hydros]

After three fan were hot and started to get slower and slower, I decided to try two fresh fans. Seems that too many fans were just slowing air flow and I wanted to see what just two would do.

The air flow was OK but when I tried to use 36 volts, the fan just stopped working. They were toast.

So what was learned?

Test with new fans.

Seems PC fans were just not kicking up enough flow fast enough.  

I'll start looking for another type of fan/s.  

[Just a thought..]

I think you almost have it..... but here are some things I'd consider... because I was working with a computer at work that had fan flow problems.. let me share some of my inpt with you...


Honestly the motors should be on a continous switch for 12VDC.. I'm not sure if you were trying to make it go with the action of hitting the switch??

  The fans are rated for a certain RPM and voltage.. the whole motor was designed with that in mind. So a 12 VDC fan that is rated for say 10'000 RPM and will move 80 CFM.. if you run it out of spec you WILL get a decrease of preformance because the blade pitch is designed for 10'000 RPM at 12VDC and not say 20'000 RPM at 24VDC. At the higher speeds the fans will become less effective..

  Also multiple fans do cuase a restriction in flow as the air going through the next fan will only be flowing the same rate but the extra fans will block the air and prevent smooth movement.

I think the answer  is in a 12 or 24 VDC fan hight RPM and a high CFM flow.. try 120CFM to start. You can get one from Grainger... Oh yeah if you put in a tube type setup make sure it can handle STATIC air pressure ... or it won't work to spec either...

[Guest_Hydros]

Good information, points taken.  

I'm also thinking of using a high speed electric radiator fan. The type that has the plastic ring around the blades, so I'm thinking the distortion will be limited.

The fan needs to cool as well as remove the copper dust. The motor casing will have hole or slots at the block end, so there will be a 100% of airflow.  

I'm thinking of mounting the fan away from the motor and using metal ducting to the motor. It might look space age, or cool...

As a side note: I'd like to mount my tanks up and have the mechanical means to flip the pump horizontal when servicing. I just got to figure out where to mount the fan to exhaust to the outside of the trunk.