Canopy fans

sedor

New member
I am having a canopy built tomorrow for my 72 running 2 250W halides. I don't use a chiller and don't plan on it. Thus far i've gotten away with keeping pretty stables temps by using a fan over the sump and over the surface of the water. I am going to have a large hole drilled in each side of the canopy for fans. Can anyone suggest a set of fans to purchase (locally hopefully) and maybe give me some pointers on what size to buy, how to wire them (I am assuming the most affordable route is going to be computer fans), and other heat issues that may arise with the addition of a canopy over a tank that has always been an open top.
 
i would go with 2 in the back and 2 on top assuming canopy is totally closed,this would keep the sides uncut.imo would also provide better ventilation. if you have a computer store local that would be a good place to look (best buy) they may even be able to run different fans for you in the geek squad dept. so you know what the sound like.
 
Only problem with fans in the top is my halides will get in the way. The back is going to be somewhat open and right up against a wall, so I think the sides are the best places for the fans...
 
OK, your best bet is to have one on the left side pulling in into the canopy and then the one on the right pulling air out of the canopy. Ie one sucking and one blowing ;)

If the canopy will be near a wall, have the fan nearest the wall sucking into the canopy because if its blowing it will soon make a dirty mark on your wall!!!

If you want silent fans go with Silenx:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=2010090573 50002081&name=SILENX

Go with the biggest ones you can fit in there, with the biggest CFM value. They will give you most airflow for the least amount of noise. The Silenx are so quiet and are perfect for this kind of thing, especially if the canopy is in the living room etc. Read the reviews on that site and they will give you a good idea. You can order them online to and you will get them pretty quickly.

They will all be 12V but you can go online and order a 12V powersupply from here:
http://www.mpja.com/prodinfo.asp?number=17563+PD

17563.jpg


Just cut the plug off, and connect one wire to each wire coming out of the fans. If they spin the wrong way, just turn the fan around.

Hope this helps,

VR
 
If you have one lying around, alot of old cell phone chargers will function as the 120V AC to 12V DC transformer you'll need (read the label). Same deal, just cut off the terminal plug and connect one wire to red, one to black.
 
Thank you for the replies, I know what i'm doing now :) Anyone have any additional heat issues even with the fans in a canopy?
 
OK, your best bet is to have one on the left side pulling in into the canopy and then the one on the right pulling air out of the canopy. Ie one sucking and one blowing ;)

If the canopy will be near a wall, have the fan nearest the wall sucking into the canopy because if its blowing it will soon make a dirty mark on your wall!!!

If you want silent fans go with Silenx:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=2010090573 50002081&name=SILENX

Go with the biggest ones you can fit in there, with the biggest CFM value. They will give you most airflow for the least amount of noise. The Silenx are so quiet and are perfect for this kind of thing, especially if the canopy is in the living room etc. Read the reviews on that site and they will give you a good idea. You can order them online to and you will get them pretty quickly.

They will all be 12V but you can go online and order a 12V powersupply from here:
http://www.mpja.com/prodinfo.asp?number=17563+PD

Just cut the plug off, and connect one wire to each wire coming out of the fans. If they spin the wrong way, just turn the fan around.

VR

I was a big fan (pun intended) of Silenx fans at one time. I've used about a dozen of them for various computer projects. I have had several die on me. I won't buy them anymore. I now prefer the scythe fans (make sure to get the "Scythe S-Flex". You can find them at modderesmarket.com (I think newegg.com sells them also just make sure it says "s-flex"): http://www.moddersmart.com/en/air-cooling/cooling-fans/120mm.html The "noctua" fan is also worth a close look, but I don't have any personal experience with those.

As Vancouver Reefr suggested, go with a large fan. Larger fan blades move more air with slower RPMs. I suggest 120mm fans. If you go with a Scythe S-Flex fan, the 1600 RPM model will move the most air, but the 1200 RPM will still move a lot of air with a little less noise. You will have to decide how much noise is acceptable for you, but if you go with Scythe, Noctua, or Silenx you will be in better shape than most other fans as far as noise goes while still moving a lot of air.
 
Also, you can buy a power supply from 12v power supply from wal-mart. They sell one with a switch on the plug-in where you can set it for the voltage you desire. If 12volt is too loud you can drop it down to 9 volt or lower which will slow down the fan and make it quieter.

You might be surprised, you probably already have a power supply laying around somewhere from an old gadget you no longer use.
 
Can you wire multiple fans onto one power supply? Or do you have to have separate plugs for each?
 
Awesome, I was starting to worry about my controller and losing all those precious outlets.
 
If you get some 120v fans from Radio shack you can just wire them into the MH power so they come on when the lights do and not have to use an extra outlet at all.

$24.99
pRS1C-2265142w345.jpg
 
I'm afraid I wouldn't have the slightest clue how to wire them into my halides, and probably wouldn't be comfortable cutting the cords either.
 
OK, your best bet is to have one on the left side pulling in into the canopy and then the one on the right pulling air out of the canopy. Ie one sucking and one blowing ;)

having a fan blowing outward is a sure-fire way to kill it in no time. the hot moist salt air going thru it will corrode & kill the fan in no time

best way is to have a fan or 2 blowing cool air inward & cut a few holes in the top to let the hot air that naturally rises to the top of the inside an easy escape path. you can also add some pieces larger that the openings in the top & suspend them to block light creep, but still plenty of path for the air to escape. something along the lines of this crude drawing...the grey would be the MH (clickable thumb btw):

untitled12.jpg


Can you wire multiple fans onto one power supply? Or do you have to have separate plugs for each?

i have personally run (6) 120mm pc fans on one of these power supplies just fine. it has a 4-pin molex plug that plugs right into the fan & then you can daisey-chain them from there
http://www.coolerguys.com/840556029977.html
 
i have 4 fans in my canopy, 2 pull/2 push method and they have ben fine for the last year. i have them on the same timer as the MH so they all come on at the same time. i only wish i had gotten a quieter fan.
 
I'm afraid I wouldn't have the slightest clue how to wire them into my halides, and probably wouldn't be comfortable cutting the cords either.

It's only 120v so you're gonna have 3 wires on you cord. One black (hot) one white (neutral) and one green (ground). The fans only have two wires, usually red/black. You would just wire black to black and red to the white and you're done. You could solder and use heat shrink tubing to seal or just use wire nuts.
 
i have 4 fans in my canopy, 2 pull/2 push method and they have ben fine for the last year. i have them on the same timer as the MH so they all come on at the same time. i only wish i had gotten a quieter fan.
Yeah, that shouldn't be a problem. The water evaporating from the tank does not contain salt. You will not be puling salt through the fan unless you have it positioned within about 4 inchesof the water and even then you would have to have a fair amount of microbubbles popping on the surface to have any salt spray.
It's only 120v so you're gonna have 3 wires on you cord. One black (hot) one white (neutral) and one green (ground). The fans only have two wires, usually red/black. You would just wire black to black and red to the white and you're done. You could solder and use heat shrink tubing to seal or just use wire nuts.
I was a little concerned about doing this the first time. As Jared J says its no big deal really.

As far as just wiring the fans to a 12v DC converter plug... if I remember correctly the Silenx fans have wires that are clear. So its' difficult to know which one is + and which one is -. Just match the wires, even if you didn't match the wires correctly the first time its no big deal. It's DC power so the fan probably would just not operate with the wires backwards. You are not going to catch anything on fire. It will either work or it won't. In this case, just switch the wires till it works and you are good to go.
 
With DC fans it does not matter which way round you connect the wires. All that will happen is it will spin in the other direction. No big deal, either swap the wires round or turn the fan case around. No biggie.
 
I would have both fans pushing air into the hood. The hot air will find its way out. You will cool the area much more with two fans inward.
 
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