DIY Electric Fan Conversion and Controller

[aardvarcus]

Thank you all for the encouragement. I just inserted my results from three tanks with the electric fan into my last post above.

Darcane,
Thank you for the compliments on workmanship, as you may have guessed this is not my first electrical project and I have already learned my lesson to do it right or I will have to do it over. The Bussman boxes really are really nice to use; they even have other components (like diodes) that fit the pinouts depending on what you need to design.

[Hog F150]

My friend went through 2 or 3 cheap controllers until he found one that worked great, and that is a Painless adjustable electric fan control kit. The fans he is using are Hayden Rapid Cool 14", which are attached directly to the radiator with zip ties. I'll try to get some pictures of his setup this weekend, if anyone is interested.

[wdb]

Awesome work! Do you mind me asking what your total investment was? Components, not time. Time is free, right?

[deejaaa]

Originally Posted by darcane

Nice write-up.

I was pleasantly surprised to see that this was well thought out and executed with a professional level of workmanship. A lot of these type of conversions are done quick and dirty and suffer from long-term reliability issues. .....
I like that Bussman fuse/relay box. I may have to use that for a few projects I have in mind.

X2!

Originally Posted by wdb

Awesome work! Do you mind me asking what your total investment was? Components, not time. Time is free, right?

it is, unless you're getting paid for it. lol.

[aardvarcus]

WDB,

Per your request, I looked back at my receipts and put together an estimated project cost. Many of the items I used I already had on hand (fuses, wire, weatherpacks, terminals, etcetera) but for the purposes of estimating what the project actually cost I estimated what I would have spent on them if I didn’t already have them. Note that I prioritized reliability and functionality over cost, obviously you can go buy aftermarket fan and controller for less than what I spent. (Overheated engines cost even more.)

Then since a few of the items I used were a bit superfluous, I went back and calculated how much a functionally identical system would cost without any extras but still purchasing all the needed components. Note that the project could be done for even less than that with some creative repurposing, going to junkyards, etcetera.

My Build
Camry Fan $105
Temperature Switch $12
Radiator Hose Adapter $7
RTMR Panel $20
RTMR Terminals $5
5 Relays $18
Fuses $5
Fuse Taps $5
Personalized Switches $42
Wire $20
Heatshrink $5
Weatherpacks $20
Other Assorted $5
Spare Radiator Fan Shroud $33
Spare Radiator Hose $9
13/16 Drill Bit $9
M22 x 1.5 Tap $8
Total $328

Budget Build
Camry Fan $105
Temperature Switch $12
Radiator Hose Adapter $7
RTMR Panel $20
RTMR Terminals $5
4 Relays $15
Fuses $2
Basic Switches $5
Wire $10
Heatshrink $5
Other Assorted $8
Find Someone to Tap $5
Total $199