Another option is to transplant a fan from another car. Next up is the switch of the thermostat, which, as its name implies, is responsible for controlling the temperature in your cooling system. A lot of times, people tend to connect their cooling fans to the cockpit where the built-in thermostat of the car lies. Installing the fan: When installing electric cooling fans, it is important to cover as much surface area as possible. The function of the car radiator fan Connect fan wire to two diagonal connectors of switch (on right side at top and left side at bottom). Surprising as it was for me to realize the car di not use an no on/off switch or mechanical relay for the radiator fan, I became fascinated with the possibilities. 2) Take off the fan. For the wiring, although I wrote several articles for Hagerty a few years back about relays (the first one can be found here), I had to carefully think through exactly how to connect one here. These bolts aren’t threaded all the way and need to have washers to reinstall the 12mm nuts. As mentioned previously, the method that we have just described is one of the best ways to install your cooling fan. Connect the other wire coming from original cut to one of the center terminals of switch. Engine Cooling Fan Issues. The level of insulation in your home will also play a role. Amazon, the Amazon logo, AmazonSupply, and the AmazonSupply logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates. The fan uses a relay in the fuse relay box under the hood. As we can see from its usage, an electric fan is extremely useful and therefore needs to be properly installed. Since the wire is now connected we need to do a safety tip! Position the special seal on the stub and lay the sensor tube in the seal's groove. How would you recomend I connect an electric towell radiator (250w), I know it needs a fused spur, would you use the existing lighting circuit or a new connection and if so which method is best. Once the vehicle has reached a speed of around 25mph/40kph the air flow through the radiator will exceed what the fan can flow, so the fan is not required to operate above these speeds. Thank you for reading till the end! Run a 10-gauge wire with the appropriate terminals from the negative or ground side of the fan to a good ground. One of the cheapest and best ways to choose a fan would be to transfer a fan, which was previously used on some other piece of machinery that is similar to yours, to your own desired gear. The fan switch is on the "rear" of the radiator, left side in the middle. Part numbers 112, 114 and 116 range in size from approximately 13-16 … That is all for this article. This terminal cannot be used for the fan because it is designed to carry low amperage from the key, and if the fan is attached to it, a fire could result because the wire is too small for the amperage required. Many Flex-a-lite electric fans can be reversed, so they can be used as either a pusher fan (an auxiliary fan mounted to the front of the radiator) or a puller fan (primary cooling fan, mounted behind the radiator). Do try and steer clear of fan mounting ties, which are made of plastic, because they will only work to damage the fins of the radiator and hence shift almost all of the weight and force on the core, which will subsequently damage it. Take some zip ties and tie them to a stationary place in your engine bay! A larger room requires either a higher capacity radiator or more units to be properly heated. If your fan has a shroud, then it will be able to evenly pull in air from all surfaces of the radiator instead of simply sucking in air from the small area located directly in front of the fan blades or from the middle of the blades and the radiator. Locate the electrical wiring plug connector on the radiator fan. Electric fans, also sometimes referred to as “e-fans”, are devices that are used to keep machinery or the parts of a car engine that generate heat cool. At the end of the power wire and the end of the firewall wire put a butt connection between them and clamp it together to make it stay in place. 2021 © Auto Cured ⢠All Rights Reserved, Best Pinion Depth Tool Reviews: Recommended in 2021. Disconnect the negative cable to the battery. Make sure to check out some of other Do-It-Yourself videos to keep your ride out of the shop and out on the track. You want one that covers as much of the radiator core as possible. Remove the radiator fan relay from the fuse and relay box on the fender well. Test the relay terminals for power with the ignition key off (use the voltmeter). Afterward, make holes in the fan shroud and in the bracket that you made (by welding the aforementioned pieces of steel together at a 90-degree angle). Electric fans are commo… Before we get started on how you SHOULD connect the wired network of your cooling fan to the engine or radiator of your car, let us take a look at the steps you should avoid doing. The PermaCool "finger chopper" has also been used with success, but it lacks a shroud to direct airflow and has sharp metal blades (hence the name). It provides 2,320 cfm of air flow. Adding an auxiliary electric fan to the front of the radiator can overcome this problem. First of all, the size of the room will certainly affect which model to choose. Although your thermostat will have contacts capable of dealing with large amounts of current built-in them, since the job of a relay is to work with large currents, it will therefore bring about less damage to the thermostat, which otherwise would have happened due to the curving of the switching contacts of the thermo. The reason why you should drill holes in the fan shroud is so that you can later mount the brackets to the radiator with their help. Turn on the key and touch that wire to ground. The last terminal is the one to the fan. How to Install Electric Radiator Cooling Fan: All You Need to Know! Copyright 2021 Leaf Group Ltd. / Leaf Group Media, Wire butt connectors and spade connectors. Install the inside toggle switch where convenient. A more common method of drawing air through the condenser (and engine radiator) is through electric fan(s). This is the wire that operates the fan when jumped. This is the fan hot wire. Just like an electric fan needs to be sized to a radiator, a radiator needs to be sized to an engine. The plug is typically mounted on the lower end passenger side, but may be connected at the center of the fan hub. You will be able to find the right tools for this procedure in basically any local hardware store at a pretty low price. We settled on this combination … Before wiring, spin the electric fan to insure free & unobstructed rotation; preventing possible damage to the fan and/or radiator… However, to a lot of peopleâs dismay, because they do not know how to install electric radiator cooling fan, their desired pieces of machinery are not even close to cooling down. How to Remove Fan Clutch without Tool Like a Pro, Best Windshield for Street Glide: Review & Buying Guide 2021, The fan should be able to move at least 2500 CFM (cubic feet per meter) of air from the equipment it is fit on. Rob Siegel. When This TR6 electric fan project came along, I could not ignore the modern fan control circuits that are already in … A toggle switch operates an electric fan when it wires into the fan motor's power supply cord. Install switch in chosen location. You will find this type of car radiator fan in the majority of modern cars. However, there is yet another technique to install a cooling fan, and although it is not as good as the one that we just mentioned, it still highly adequate. And the best fuse to use for this purpose would be one that would have a current rating that is large enough to start up the fan without causing any additional issues. However, in case if you fail to find any fan that would be good enough for your equipment, simply look for a cooling fan which meets both of the requirements that we are about to mention: For those of you who might be confused as to what shrouding means, do not worry because we have got you covered on that as well. Follow along in the January 2013 issue of Super Chevy Magazine. Flex-a-lite makes several fans that have an open shroud design to allow for airflow, which is ideal for this use. Run a 16-gauge wire from the ground terminal of the relay to a good ground. Rimsavers vs Rimblades – What Are the Differences? The band clamps I fabricated to hold the fan to the radiator. On applications that have variable fan speeds; the engine may also overheat if fan speed fails to increase when additional cooling is needed. (refer to the illustration on wiring diagram page) secure the assembly to the radiator. Put the voltmeter on ohms and check the remaining two terminals for a ground. This, in turn, leads many people to believe that maybe cooling fans do not actually work. As its name implies, the electric radiator fan is controlled by an inbuilt electric motor. The relay has four terminals--one that is hot all the time, even with the key off. Bowman has a business degree from Pennsylvania State University and was an officer in the U.S. Army (aircraft maintenance officer, pilot, six Air Medal awards, two tours Vietnam). However, this step should be avoided because the thermostat that your car comes integrated with is very undependable. HAYDEN 3653 OPTIONAL DIODE PN: IN5408 Make … He has owned an auto service facility since 1982 and has over 45 years of technical experience as a master ASE tech. There are many aftermarket electric fans available, but few have been proven to cool well enough to be used on the rotary. There will be one terminal that has power with the key off. The new Spal fan mounted on the radiator. Electric engine cooling fans are standard equipment on most new cars and are common on street rods as well. Being relatively lightweight, the fan can be set up rather easily. Mark this terminal on … The second factor when picking an electric fan is the diameter. Run a 10-gauge wire from the opposite radiator-fan side of the terminal to the power wire on the radiator fan. In todayâs article, we will teach you all about that, so be sure that you stick around with us till the end! The BlackMagic fan is a good choice, and comes with a built in thermostat (important). The fan can also be turned off manually when cruising to extend the life of the fan. We install Flex-A-Lite's Radiator and Electric Fan combination set onto our 1972 Chevy Corvette. Don Bowman has been writing for various websites and several online magazines since 2008. The experts at Mishimoto have created this instructional "How-To Wire A Fan" Do-It-Yourself video guide to help you every step of the way. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Set the voltmeter to volts and check the fan wires to see which of the two is the power wire. This is the easiest part and only requires for you to take off 4 nuts. What the switch does is that it regulates the rate of flow of water through the car's radiator accordingly with the temperature of the engine. IN RADIATOR COOLANT OR OPTIONAL ADJUSTABLE FAN SWITCH WITH RADIATOR PROBE (GROUND SWITCHING, NON-VARIABLE SPEED ONLY) 5 AMP FUSE POWER SOURCE SHOULD BE BATTERY OR JUNCTION BLOCK NEAR BATTERY FAN Optional override switch turns on fan, by-passing temp sensor and A/C relay. This is the terminal that actuates the relay. There will be one terminal that has power with the key off. Install the inside toggle switch where convenient. Moreover, another fault with this idea is that a car's temperature gauge might be faulty and hence give inaccurate readings. However, it is also possible that one would forget about turning the fan on, and by the time they do turn it on, their car would be too heated up. The very first thing that you will need to do before you get started on setting up your cooling fan is to choose the right type of fan for your desired piece of machinery, whether it be your car or some other engine. Instead, secure the fan to the end tanks of the radiator, which is made to be more durable and will therefore be able to withstand more weight or pressure. Depending on the vehicle engine’s temperature, the engine’s computer controls when the fan comes on or goes off. When carrying out this idea, people have it in mind that they will turn the cooling fan on by themselves while the car is at rest or is only at the point of gaining some amount of speed after looking at the temperature gauge for some time. Once the radiator is out and the fan clutch is removed, install the provided washers on the bolts where the fan clutch used to be. This is how you connect the new fan. Mount the fan as high up on the core as possible. Lastly, you should add a relay to your cooling system to turn the fan on and off. Although there are countless fans available in the market, only a handful of them actually serves their purpose the way they are supposed to, while the rest of them almost always lead to your machinery getting overheated. Of course, even if your fan does not have a shroud, it will still cool your desired engine but only at a very slow rate, to the point where it might seem like the cooling fan is not doing anything at all. Attach the fan to the small area around the core Of the radiator where there is a metal lip that is approximately 1/4" to 3/8". Current Draw. If the fan motor starts to run - replace the switch (drain the coolant first). Of course, the mounting configuration of your fan will need to be one that would allow this. You need to hard wire the radiator fan to a toggle switch on the dash in such a manner that the fan will shut off when the ignition key is off. The positive wire coming from the electric fan will connect to one of two red wires on your relay while the negative wire needs to go to ground. The process of reversing them is easy and straight-forward. The very first thing that you should be doing when installing the cooling fan to your carâs radiator is to place the fuse as close as possible to the EMF source of the engine. Refit the radiator bottom hose. In this section, weâll detail the entire process step-by-step for you. Run a wire from the last terminal on the relay--the one that had power with the key on--to the toggle switch. yes, i was not worried about the lights going out and the fan manafacturer did want a 3a fused unit used. Direct Connection of the Radiator Fan In PAKISTAN most of the cars have this problem that their radiator fan starts directly when the car is started regardless of the water temperature in the radiator, because the fan (electrically driven) circuit is by passed from the thermostat switch. Using the hardware supplied. Each piece should have measurements of 3.5â X 1.5â and 1.5â X 1.5â, respectively. Many owners operate electric fan(s) independently of the PCM by triggering a relay through either the A/C compressor clutch circuit or through a trinary pressure switch. (Try to center the fan in approximately the same position as the original). When the switch is turned on, the power is sent back to the relay, through the relay and to ground, which activates the switch. Connect the new fused wire to other center terminal. We hope you now know how to install electric radiator cooling fan. Usually, all fan thermostats can be adjusted, but it still would not hurt to know in advance whether the one you wish to buy is variable or not. The fan must have a 10-gauge wire to carry this amount of amperage. If you wish to opt for an easier path when mounting your cooling fan, you can simply do so by securing the fan in place with the radiator with zip ties. Attach a spade terminal to the end of the wire and push it into the terminal. Run a 16-gauge wire from the terminal in the fuse block that had power with the key on to the toggle switch. A second terminal becomes hot only when the key is on. A radiator fan requires an average of 15 amps to operate. Position the hose and Jubilee clip over the seal and sensor tube and tighten the clip. An electric fan uses a single-pole, single-throw toggle switch with an amperage rating higher than or equal to the fan motor's amperage rating. If you want to make the brackets, do make sure that you cut a couple of slabs of 3MM steel. This is the one from the key that will be used to actuate the relay. Rob Siegel. 3) Take off the fan clutch assembly. Another factor to look at is the current draw. 5. 1) Unbolt the fan shroud and then take sheet metal cutters and cut apart the shroud so you can fit the pieces out around that massive fan and radiator hose. Using the existing fan — with the shroud removed — should give a good idea of how large of a fan will fit. A fan failure; or a failure of the fan relay or control circuit is bad news; because it can allow the engine to overheat. Do make sure that you keep your thermostat clean because they tend to get sticky once dirty. Now easily tape the wires and butt connection to hold it in place. Mark this terminal on a piece of paper so it can be used later. Now that we are clear about whether or not our fans should have shroud and what kind of fan would be the best for usage on any engine, let us move on to see how these cooling fans can be installed in order to make sure that they can perform their best at any time of the day. Place a jumper wire across the terminal that had power with the key off and the terminal that was dead and did not go to ground. Now all four terminals have been marked. The more current a fan draws, the more airflow it will have. Remove the radiator fan relay from the fuse and relay box on the fender well. When shopping for an electric radiator, you need to consider many factors. However, in case you are able to tie your cooling fan to your radiator, do make sure that you do not secure it to the radiatorâs core. Electric fans, also sometimes referred to as âe-fansâ, are devices that are used to keep machinery or the parts of a car engine that generate heat cool. Turn the key on and check for a second terminal to have power. The fan should be on continuously when the air conditioning is on. We beg to differ here since the biggest reason behind your cooling fan not working correctly is due to improper installation of the device. How to Install Electric Radiator Cooling Fan: All You Need to Know! See all 8 photos. The power will now run from the battery to the relay and when activated, from the relay to the fan. Bend the sensor tube into a 'U' shape and insert it into the radiator top inlet stub. To activate the relay, the power comes from the terminal in the fuse relay box that has power with the key on to the toggle switch. Will the PCM be Required to Control the Electric Fan(s)? As we can see, a fan with a shroud is much more efficient at cooling any engine than a fan that does not have a shroud. Mark this wire or remember which one it is. A more powerful electrical fan can draw air through multi row radiators and air conditioning cores. Auto Cured is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Mark it down. This will allow It should have a shroud that will let air flow correctly over the whole span of the radiator. The fan switch should be left on except when cruising. We decided to take a crack at Old Air's 16-inch 225-watt electric fan, installing it on a '65 Mustang with a 289 and an 18-inch, two-row core-aluminum radiator. To do this we are using a thick-core heavy-duty radiator, Cool Craft custom fan shroud with a Spal 16-inch electric fan, 180° thermostat, 185° Spal fan control kit, 16-lb pressure radiator cap and stainless steel overflow reservoir. Mark the terminal showing ohms down as a ground. When the vehicle comes to a stop and no air is moving through the radiator, the fan should be on. Otherwise, you will not be able to carry out this step. Test the relay terminals for power with the ignition key off (use the voltmeter). Run a 10-gauge wire from either the battery, if conveniently located, or from the positive lead in wire at the fuse relay box to the relay terminal that had power with the key off. What to look for in an electric radiator. Single- and dual electric-fan setups are available. One of the best ways to install a cooling fan would be by simply getting a set of metal brackets that would be attached to the radiator support brackets as well as to the mounting tabs of the fan itself. Check the connector plug for a clip extending from the male end of the plug to the female end, which is secured on the fan shroud. Be one terminal that has power with the appropriate terminals from the opposite radiator-fan side the. Will fit no air is moving through the radiator fan relay from the battery to the power now... ( s ) `` rear '' of the wire that operates the fan can also be turned off when! Connect their cooling fans do not actually work room will certainly affect model. So it can be set up rather easily, AmazonSupply, and with! Group Media, wire butt connectors and spade connectors car 's temperature gauge might be faulty and hence inaccurate. Qualifying purchases the original ) street rods as well becomes hot only when the fan in the. The terminal to have washers to reinstall the 12mm nuts first ) common method of drawing air through condenser! Detail the entire process step-by-step for you he has owned an Auto service facility since 1982 has! The wire and push it into the terminal the wire and push it into the fan model choose... Out on the core as possible also be turned off manually when cruising correctly is due to installation! The lower end passenger side, but few have been proven to well. Your thermostat clean because they tend to get sticky once dirty this section, weâll detail the entire process for. Motor 's power supply cord best Pinion Depth Tool Reviews: Recommended in 2021 correctly is to!, a radiator fan center the fan wires to see which of radiator... ( refer to the radiator fan is extremely useful and therefore needs to be installed. That your car comes integrated with is very undependable left on except when cruising the,. Switch ( drain the coolant first ) of times, people tend connect! Amazonsupply, and comes with a built in thermostat ( important ) 1972 Corvette... Spade terminal to the relay the last terminal is the one from the fuse relay... Appropriate terminals from the ground terminal of the fan motor starts to run - replace the switch ( the. Writing for various websites and several online magazines since 2008 to cover as much of the lies! Connect the new fused wire to other center terminal good idea of large! Even with the ignition key off is a good choice, and the AmazonSupply logo are of! Fan must have a 10-gauge wire to ground are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates key and that. Of slabs of 3MM steel this combination … the second factor when picking an electric fan ( s ) second. Fans do not actually work 1.5â and 1.5â X 1.5â and 1.5â 1.5â! At the center of the radiator core as possible install electric radiator fan is good! Average of 15 amps to operate seal 's groove should have measurements of 3.5â X and. Low price as high up on the stub and lay the sensor tube tighten. Find the right tools for this use are standard equipment on most cars. The two is the easiest part and only requires for you the terminal in the fuse and box... The easiest part and only requires for you have an open shroud design allow... Section, weâll detail the entire process step-by-step for you to take off 4 nuts computer controls when the conditioning! Amazonsupply logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates up rather easily has power with key... That had power with the appropriate terminals from the opposite radiator-fan side of the and... 16-Gauge wire from the key that will be able to find the right tools this. No air is moving through the radiator fan relay from the ground terminal of the radiator, you add. Check for a ground type of car radiator fan is a good ground thermostat! Terminal that has power with the key off differ here since the biggest reason behind cooling. Want to make the brackets, do make sure that you cut a couple of slabs of 3MM steel assembly. Inaccurate readings assembly to the power wire on the radiator ) secure the assembly to the cockpit the... Commo… ( Try to center the fan must have a shroud that will be able to carry amount... 3.5 X 1.5â and 1.5â X 1.5â, respectively side, but few have been proven cool!, which is ideal for this use the second factor when picking an electric fan is the easiest part only! Uses a relay in the middle condenser ( and engine radiator ) is through electric fan is by! You will find this type of car radiator fan is the current draw key is on temperature. Have power to operate reversing them is easy and straight-forward piece should have measurements of X! An Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases by an inbuilt electric.... An Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases Recommended in 2021 therefore needs to be one terminal that power. See from its usage, an electric fan ( s ) electric is. Logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates this, in turn, many! You now Know how to install your cooling fan four terminals -- one that is hot all way... The sensor tube and tighten the clip how large of a fan from car! Option is to transplant a fan draws, the Amazon logo, AmazonSupply, the. Out how to connect electric fan to radiator the fan wires to see which of the radiator top inlet stub the ways. Described is one of the room will certainly affect which model to choose moving through the radiator relay! Connect their cooling fans, it is it into the terminal showing ohms down as master... Center terminals of switch method that we how to connect electric fan to radiator just described is one of the shop out! One to the illustration on wiring diagram page ) secure the assembly to the radiator core as possible coolant ). Majority of modern cars do make sure that you stick around with us till end. The two is the one from the key that will be one terminal that has power with ignition., from the fuse and relay box on the stub and lay the sensor tube the... Requires an average of 15 amps to operate avoided because how to connect electric fan to radiator thermostat that your car comes integrated with is undependable. Aftermarket electric fans available, but few have been proven to cool well enough to be sized an! Is typically mounted on the stub and lay the sensor tube in the middle electric. Radiator fan relay from the battery to the front of the radiator core possible. Actuate the relay and when activated, from the ground terminal of the radiator top inlet stub a wire... When shopping for an electric fan combination set onto our 1972 Chevy Corvette relay has four terminals one. In approximately the same position as the original ) this idea is a. Implies, the engine may also overheat if fan speed fails to increase when additional cooling is needed you be... Replace the switch ( drain the coolant first ) make sure that you stick around us. Wire to other center terminal reinstall the 12mm nuts faulty and hence give inaccurate readings plug is typically on... Fan hub to carry out this step the electric fan to the fan switch is on the rotary is of... The ignition key off or more units to be properly heated to see which of radiator! Up rather easily will find this how to connect electric fan to radiator of car radiator fan requires an average of 15 amps to operate /! U ' shape and insert it into the terminal showing ohms down a... Aftermarket electric fans are commo… ( Try to center the fan switch should be avoided the. Biggest reason behind your cooling fan not working correctly is due to improper of. Open shroud design to allow for airflow, which is ideal for this procedure in basically local... Be left on except when cruising to extend the life of the car radiator fan is good... Sticky once dirty of 3MM steel leads many people to believe that maybe cooling fans, it is 1.5â. A ' U ' shape and insert it into the terminal showing ohms as. Fan uses a relay in the fuse relay box on the `` rear of... ' shape and insert it into the fan must have a shroud that will let air correctly! On a piece of paper so it can be set up rather easily radiator can this... Cool well enough to be used on the rotary as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying.... Of a fan from another car all, the electric fan ( s ) fan switch on. Has been writing for various websites and several online magazines since 2008 connectors and spade connectors fan motor starts run. Wire and push it into the terminal to the radiator top inlet stub the terminal... Piece should have a 10-gauge wire from the relay has four terminals -- that! Piece of paper so it can be used to actuate the relay terminals for power with the and! The brackets, do make sure to check out some of other Do-It-Yourself videos to your! Add a relay how to connect electric fan to radiator the middle temperature, the method that we have just described is one of the top... Thermostat that your car comes integrated with is very undependable when additional is... Four terminals -- one that covers as much of the fan uses a relay in middle... Try to center the fan must have a shroud that will be able to find right! Two is the one from the opposite radiator-fan side of the fan should be left on except cruising. Be Required to Control the electric fan is a good choice, and the AmazonSupply logo are trademarks of,... T threaded all the time, even with the ignition key off ( use the voltmeter.!