PC fans for wineador

[dwoodward]

I originally was going to use an Oust fan in my wineador, but found out the battery life is about 30-60 days at best, and I don't want to keep buying batteries. Is there a way to hook up PC fans to work in a humidor? I have dozens of them lying around, (I build PC's as a hobby for friends and family) and I was wondering if anyone knew how to hook them up to some sort of adapter I could maybe just plug into a power strip.

Maybe not possible, but I don't wanna go the Cigar Oasis route. I decided I would probably go with Heartfelt beads and wanted a fan to blow the humidified air up the back wall of the humidor towards the top.

[CigarNut]

It's possible and there are lots of ways to do it. You can get a 110v socket that allows you to power a USB cable and you can get an adapter to connect a USB cable to a PC fan...

[T.G]

Look at the nameplate data on the fans, it should give an operating voltage range, for example 7 - 12VDC, and an amperage, then go find an old wall wart transformer that is within that range, and outputs at least that much amperage. Something from 6-9 volts would work well to keep the fan speed down where it isn't so noisy or blowing like a hurricane.

Cut the connector off the end of the output lead on the wall wart, strip back the wires, connect (solder, crimp, wirenut) the marked wire (one of the two wires will have a ridge or a inked dash running the length of the wire) to the red (+) lead from the fan, and the unmarked wire to the black (-) lead. If you aren't sure which lead is which from the transformer, double check with a meter.

Mount the fan where ever you want, run the cable out under the door seal and plug in.

If you really want to be slick, before you attach the fan leads to the transformer, run the output cord from the wall wart up through the drain hole of the wine fridge, then connect it to the fan leads and re-seal the drain.

You can usually pick up the transformers at thrift stores for a buck or two, assuming you don't already have one lying around with some piece of old electronics that you've been meaning to throw out but haven't.

[thebayratt]

TG nailed it on the wall. I used a variable convertor that you can control how fast they spin. The yellow wire on the fans isnt used. Its for speed control of them in the PC (which you probably already know).

If you don't want to buy a convertor, you can use an old cell or radio charger. They put out low voltages that work for the fans.

[joeobx]

Dam Derrick.....you got room for a fan in yours ?

[Eleven]

I kinda like the idea of a PC fan. But I'm not gonna think about drilling holes in my humidor. Looks like Oust owns me for a while

[dwoodward]

Originally Posted by joeobx

Dam Derrick.....you got room for a fan in yours ?

I'll have lots of room... this thing is massive in real life lol. My tiny cigar collection is going to barely fill 1 tray when I get my drawers ordered and installed lol.

Thanks for the info guys, I should be able to take it from here. (hopefully)

Just a question tho, where is the drain hole at? I wasn't sure if mine had one or not, it's a Thermoelectric.

[colinb913]

I just stripped the wires from the fan, and stripped the wires from a old cell phone charger, attached the wires, little bit of soldering, little bit of tape to clean everything up, and have the fan running 24/7 with no problems.

Edit: Sorry, didn't see you already got your answer. Haha, as for the drain plug, from what I have seen in stores, some have them, some don't.

[trendo]

thinking of putting one on a lamp timer. Just wondering if you guys had heat build up in the humidor from having a running fan in it all day?

[dwoodward]

Originally Posted by trendo

thinking of putting one on a lamp timer. Just wondering if you guys had heat build up in the humidor from having a running fan in it all day?

This should not happen. Although all electrical components create heat as waste, PC fans create very very little, just your ambient room temp going up 1 degree would have a far greater effect on overall temperature in your humidor than a fan going 24/7.

[Silound]

I use one of these in my cooler set to dead low:

http://www.amazon.com/AC-Cooling-120.../dp/B0072RV63E

Best way to do it is to place it about 2 inches off the bottom blowing up into the cooler and set things up to force a circular flow of through the cooler.

[Wharf Rat]

Originally Posted by colinb913

I just stripped the wires from the fan, and stripped the wires from a old cell phone charger, attached the wires, little bit of soldering, little bit of tape to clean everything up, and have the fan running 24/7 with no problems.

... which is what T.G suggested. You need to make sure the power source (wall wart, charger) has the right output voltage and at least enough current, as found on the fan's label.

[Ncpsycho]

Originally Posted by Silound

I use one of these in my cooler set to dead low:

http://www.amazon.com/AC-Cooling-120.../dp/B0072RV63E

Best way to do it is to place it about 2 inches off the bottom blowing up into the cooler and set things up to force a circular flow of through the cooler.

Does the wire come off the fan to feed through the drain hole?

[colinb913]

Originally Posted by Wharf Rat

... which is what T.G suggested. You need to make sure the power source (wall wart, charger) has the right output voltage and at least enough current, as found on the fan's label.

As you can see under my post, I edited it apologizing because I didn't read the entire thread, and didn't realize that the OP had already received an answer.

[dwoodward]

Originally Posted by Ncpsycho

Does the wire come off the fan to feed through the drain hole?

Probably not, but you would need to cut the wire anyway, so it shouldn't matter.

[CigarNut]

As I said before I really like the whole USB thing. The cables are small and fit through the drain hole and it all works out -- just put the whole thing on a timer as it only needs to run a few minutes every few hours.

[Ncpsycho]

Originally Posted by dwoodward

Probably not, but you would need to cut the wire anyway, so it shouldn't matter.

I quoted that post because it was for an all in one fan and power supply... If you dont have to cut it would just be easier

[hikari]

Hey buddy I did this to mine.
I used the drip whole and ran wire though that and sealed it with some caulking

I used a Ac to DC plug and plugged that into a digital timer.

What I found out leaving the fan on all the time just messes with the RF to much. You want a constant RF though the whole box.

So what I found out at least for my box is putting it on for 5min every 15min seemed to do the trick.

Will have some trial and error.

I also mounted min at the bottom on a 45 degree angle facing forward My door has curved glass so managed to move the area around better that way..

and of course if your using beads make sure you have some at the Top, middle and bottom.

On a side note I also have a johnson thermometer ran through that drip whole also turns it wine cooler on and off at a certain temp again trial and error to get the perfect temp/constant RF through the box..

[Ncpsycho]

What digital timer do you use?

[thebayratt]

Originally Posted by Ncpsycho

What digital timer do you use?

Get a good timer from like Lowe's. Get one that has settings on how long you want the fans to run and when you want them to turn on (and off). They run about $10-20.
I have mine set to run about 5 or 7 mins every hour on the hour.