mechanical to electric fan conversion

[bad86stang]

I plan on converting from my mechanical fan to electric fan on my 1986 Mustang. I am going with a Lincoln Mark VIII fan and got all the information on what I need to do this conversion from this site. Well, I got the controller today and started looking at the instructions, and I might have a problem. I have the battery mounted in the trunk and one of the steps is to connect a wire from the controller to the negative battery terminal. Would it be okay to run a big 1/0 gauge wire from the negative battery terminal (in the trunk) to the engine compartment to connect the wire from the controller to? Has anyone that has a battery relocated to the trunk done the mechanical to electric fan conversion?

 

[HISSIN50]

i would just use a nice ground in the engine compartment (on the frame).

good luck.

 

[Michael Yount]

I have. What controller are you using?

 

[04sleeper]

Why are you using 1/0 gauge for your controller?

 

[bad86stang]

I have. What controller are you using?

I have the FK-35 35A (Delta) controller.

 

[bad86stang]

Why are you using 1/0 gauge for your controller?

The idea of the big 1/0 wire was to minimize the resistance loss so it would be like the battery was still in the engine compartment.

 

[RydeOn]

I belive the reason you are supposed to connect the controller to the battery is because the fan operates (briefly) while the engine is off. 1/0 is a little over kill wont you think?

 

[bad86stang]

i would just use a nice ground in the engine compartment (on the frame).

good luck.

Yeah I as thinking about that. I wasn’t sure it would really be the same as connecting to the negative terminal of the battery. I would have thought if it was okay to just connect the wire from the controller to a good ground, the instructions would have mentioned it. Of course, most people already have the battery in the engine compartment so it would be easy to connect it to the negative terminal.

 

[Mustang5L5]

Wow, making this a bit complex huh?

I just wired my fan to fin all the time with an On/Off switch in the pass compartment. Simple and does the job

 

[Michael Yount]

Talk to Brian Baskin at Delta Current Control - you can contact him by email through their website. Let him coach you on what to do with a battery mounted in the back. THe challenge is that there are often induction voltage spikes/rebounds that occur with battery relocations. You want to isolate those from the controller. Yes, I had to run a separate hot and ground wire (10 gauge on mine) from the battery terminals in the trunk directly to the controller. He also provided a filter that connects across the positive and negative terminals of the controller to damp any voltage spikes. I wouldn't hook the unit up and operate it without Brian's counsel first.

 

[Michael Yount]

5L5 - most of the bigger fans out there draw so much current that people often melt toggles trying to directly control them. Even if there's a relay involved, having one run all the time simply isn't a very elegant design. Part of the benefit of going electric is you only use it when you need it. Having it run all the time puts needless load/wear & tear on the alternator, battery and the fan motor. And it causes non-stop parasitic HP loss through the alternator.

The DC controller is more complex. And efi is more complex than a carb. But it's considered an improvement in a world where we're looking for better emissions control and better fuel mileage.

By varying the current to the fan, you only spin the fan as fast as necessary to keep the car cool. No extra wear and tear on anything. By varying the current, you don't incur the 2X to 3X operating current spikes to get the fan running. Those are VERY hard on the alternator and the fan motor. By having it control to a preset temp, you maintain more consistent operating temperature which the engine likes. The fan operates more quietly and less often. And there's virtually no risk of forgetting to flip a toggle and potentially overheating the motor during a moment of distraction.

As simple as a toggle switch? No. But much more elegant, and the operation of all related systems is improved. One of the best improvements I made on mine.

 

[Mustang5L5]

5L5 - most of the bigger fans out there draw so much current that people often melt toggles trying to directly control them. Even if there's a relay involved, having one run all the time simply isn't a very elegant design.

As simple as a toggle switch? No. But much more elegant, and the operation of all related systems is improved. One of the best improvements I made on mine.

I din't have mine just on the toggle switch, i have a Bosch 75AMP relay running it. The toggle just toggles the ground to turn it off when i don't need it.

Not pretty, but simple and effective. I had a On-OFF-AUto setup on the fan that used a temp switch to turn the fan on and off and the complexity of it turned me off.

With my 3-core radiatior, i don't even need the fan this time of year. I've gone on plenty of 30-45 min drives without ever having to turn the fan on and my temp never passing 190 degrees.

Of course, i might get away with this because i live in chilly new england and don't sit in much traffic. I'm always moving. So i guess its a setup that just works for me and my situation.

 

[bad86stang]

Talk to Brian Baskin at Delta Current Control - you can contact him by email through their website. Let him coach you on what to do with a battery mounted in the back. THe challenge is that there are often induction voltage spikes/rebounds that occur with battery relocations. You want to isolate those from the controller. Yes, I had to run a separate hot and ground wire (10 gauge on mine) from the battery terminals in the trunk directly to the controller. He also provided a filter that connects across the positive and negative terminals of the controller to damp any voltage spikes. I wouldn't hook the unit up and operate it without Brian's counsel first.

Thanks! I willl definetelly get hold of Brian before I start the conversion.