Ash Posted January 16, 2006 Share Posted January 16, 2006 Hey all, I was just taking some pics of my Apisto tank & remembered some people (forgot who) had asked about the fans I installed in the hood of this tank - so here goes... 2 x 12cm 12v fans in home made box hood with variable voltage gismo from Jaycar to shut them up (run at ~7v) Drops temp from mid 30's to ~27deg on this 24"x12"x13" high tank. My dodgy DIY hood, made from 6mm ply. Filter for the 12v fans. 12cm 12v Fan up close - I have this one sucking in & blowing across the water & the one at the other end venting air out of the hood. These suckers push 80CFM at 12v! one of them is twice as powerful as a single more common 80mm fan. And here is the fan speed controller I made... Inside the box is one of these kits from Jaycar. I added the optional heatsink & put a 10K linear potentiometer in place of the last resistor, so I can quickly adjust the voltage to whatever I want. The device is powered by generic 12vdc 1 amp plugpack, though you could get one of these & you won't need the speed controller - but where's the fun in that? Trust me you'll want some sort of voltage/speed control - these fans scream at 12v! I've been meaning to post about this fan setup for a while as I know a few people are interested in a discreet alternative to pedestal fans. Any questions? Make sure you have a clue about electronics before you make a kit like that, even if you just attach fans to a switchable plugpack make sure you have more amps than the fans will draw. The bigger the tank, the more fans you add or more voltage you run - up to your ears/budget/ambient temp. Of course you need to have no lids within your hood so if you have jumping/splashing fish it could pose a problem - it's up to you to figure out if it's practical in your situation, but asthetically it beats the hell out of having hoods open & a fan pointed at them. Cheers Ash ps: I have the fans on the same timer as the lights Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ged Posted January 16, 2006 Share Posted January 16, 2006 An excellent idea. Thanks for posting the photos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bit Racer Posted January 17, 2006 Share Posted January 17, 2006 Nice idea. Just a thought, could you use an old pc power supply to drive those fans as an alternative to the jay car kit ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ant Posted January 17, 2006 Share Posted January 17, 2006 I think it was me that asked about the fans, great idea . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ash Posted January 17, 2006 Author Share Posted January 17, 2006 Nice idea. Just a thought, could you use an old pc power supply to drive those fans as an alternative to the jay car kit ? ← Yep, an older AT style with the power switch you mean? Could do the fan trick with +12v & +5v to get +7v too, they are just oversize computer fans. That little kit + a pot lets you have really fine adjustment though so personal preferance - could still use it with a PSU anyway instead of the little powerpack. Could use old 80mm fans from dead power supplies if you wanted, they don't pump as much air for a given amount of noise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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