Nova Extreme SLR T-5 Fixture too loud

ambaratur

Premium Member
Hi all.

I just purchased a 36" Nova Extreme SLR T-5 Fixture from foster smith. The fixture itself seems to be good but the little 50mm fan they use is extremely loud.

I mean this thing sounds like a vacuum cleaner and can be heard 2 rooms away from the tank. Very much unacceptable.

I plan to replace it with a more quiet one and was curious if anyone else had done this before?

Thanks in advance!

Don
 
I have the 48" fixture and have the same problem. I turned it on and my wife also mentioned that it sounded like a vacuum cleaner. I also do not like the fact that it has a separate plug for the fan. The Sundial and the Extreme Pro are much quieter. Unfortunately, JRR Tolkien must have designed the Sundial (One plug to rule them all). This requires you to use the integrated timers to control the lights and fans. The Extreme Pro seems to have gotten things right. Separate plugs for daylights/actinics and no separate plug for the quieter fan.
 
Well, I just took matters into my own hands. It was so loud that it was unacceptable.

I purchased a variable voltage power adapter from radio shack. Dialed it down to 7.5 volts and it is much better.

Going to monitor the heat and see how it adapts.
 
I wish my 24" fixture had a fan. Yup, no fan. I have been thinking of some DIY fan options. Maybe a 60mm on the top or maybe (2) 40mm on the side.

What kind of temps do you guys see within your fixtures? I am seeing temps of ~130F with no fan. That's the ambient temp inside. I really want to bring that down.
 
Well it has been running at 7.5 volts for an hour so far and the fixture is not much warmer than before.

I will keep an eye on it for a while, but that may have solved my problem.

I can't believe they would design this fixture with such a loud fan - I can't imagine anyone would be happy with it.

I guess that is what I get for buying a less expensive unit.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14581101#post14581101 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by todd141
I just ordered a computer PC fan and swapped it out. Completely silent now.

Great to hear. What type of connector was on the inside of the fixture?
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14581101#post14581101 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by todd141
I just ordered a computer PC fan and swapped it out. Completely silent now.

Looks like I'm going to need to do the same- what type of fan did you order and from where?

Thanks!
 
I ordered a few 50 mm fans from newegg and I will be installing them next weekend. I will post pictures when I take the hood apart so everyone can see what type of connector is used.
 
Just FYI- I replaced the fan in mine with one from Radio Shack and it was a 40mm fan in my unit, not 50mm. The fan I bought (part #273-240) pushes 7.7 cfm, while the original pushed 10.5 (if I remember correctly from the website I tracked down with that info). The fixture seems subjectively somewhat hotter, but I can still (barely) hold my hand on the top center of the fixture indefinitely without burning myself. Not sure what the internal temps are like, but my tank temp has crept up about 2 deg F (not sure if any of that is due to warmer weather or not).

And it is *quiet* compared to the old fan. You can still hear it whirring, but it is quieter than my Octo 300F skimmer, so I don't mind at all.

There are lots of other 40mm fans available online (goggle '40mm fan'), but I didn't want to mess with shipping unless I couldn't locate one locally. I'll see how things go, but for now I am happy with the results. As always YMMV.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14595011#post14595011 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Elorian
Looks like I'm going to need to do the same- what type of fan did you order and from where?

Thanks!

I'll check the size tonight, but I just ordered a couple of cheap ones and they were silent. I just spliced the wires in - no connectors.
 
Yea it seems 40mm is right - I found a website that listed it as a 50mm and unfortunately trusted the wrong website. Will be ordering 40 mm fans now.

I may even mod the hood to take a couple extra of the quiet fans. It would cool it and keep the noise down. I will report back if it works or not.
 
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