Which fan to use for fridge air movement.

iana · Guru

Which fan to use for fridge air movement.

Aus-Kiwi · Guru

I have inexpensive eBay fans . No issues . Fitted easy and could replace easy if required . Lasted 5 years so far .

Aus-Kiwi · Guru

The top fan is solar operated . Bought from Jaycar .

Whenarewethere · Guru

You can see the fan I am using down this page.

https://thegreynomads.activeboard.com/t65059593/extra-fridge-insulation-wattage-test/

Mamil · Senior Member

I had the same query as you and ended up buying two of the Dometic fans they sell specifically for the purpose. I have no doubt you could buy as good and cheaper elsewhere but as I didn't know what type was best I took the easy route and assumed Dometic would have chosen the right type for the application. At the same time I added a three-way switch and LED to the front panel of the fridge so I could choose to leave the fan to come on automatically depending on the temperature of the condenser coils, switch it off, or switch it on manually, and the light showed me when it was running.

Are We Lost · Guru

I found the Jaycar YX2574 to be a fair compromise between noise level (25dB) and air volume (65CFM). In practice it is audible but not at all intrusive, The YX2522 (Sirocco brand) is IP55 rated for dust and water resistance but at 42dB is noticeably noisy. I would not like two of these.

I set mine up with 2 separate thermostats. When the first fan kicks in it is fairly quiet, but on hot days the second one activates and sounds similar to a fan heater. Soft mounting them helps reduce noise transmission through the body.

You can download their catalogue and easily compare their specs.

iana · Guru

Mamil, just a query as to why you have an "On, off, Auto" switch. I am planning to have them all connected to the fan output on the compressor unit. When the compressor starts, they start. The unit acts as a heat pump, the sooner and quicker the heat is removed, the sooner the fridge cools down. The extra power used would be off set by the increase in efficiency (I hope).
I have been looking at the specs between fans from Altronics, and Jaycar, the db rating for the Jayco Sirocco was slightly less, although I thought it was still noisy. The plus using this fan though would be replacement availability across Aus.
In total I will have three fans running, good job I am deaf.

iana · Guru

Attached is a picture of the compressor setup, The condenser is mounted vertically, the fan attached to it is just recirculating warm air, as the support shelf blocks off most of the air from below. There are 15 20mm holes in the shelf, it is my intension to mount two more fans below the shelf to force the air through these holes.

Later fridges have the condenser mounted flat, with the fan on top, drawing air from below.

-- Edited by iana on Friday 30th of April 2021 06:57:13 PM

Mamil · Senior Member

iana wrote:
Mamil, just a query as to why you have an "On, off, Auto" switch.

Mine was a Dometic three way fridge. The fan feed on them is a constant 12v supply as they don't have a compressor, and the fan is switched on and off by a thermostatic switch mounted on the evaporator tube. So, normal operation is 'auto' and I added the options of having the fans permanently on or off to give myself maximum control over their operation and to be able to, for example, prevent them cycling on and off during the night.

-- Edited by Mamil on Saturday 1st of May 2021 11:44:31 AM

iana · Guru

Ahh I see, different kettle of fish. These fans will only operate when the compressor is running.

-- Edited by iana on Friday 30th of April 2021 06:58:09 PM

Whenarewethere · Guru

The fan I pulled out of my Waeco had a thermostat. The Fan I replaced it with doesn't have a thermostat but it is a more efficient fan 1.2 watts, more volume & higher pressure. Also 120mm instead of 92mm fan. 120 - 140mm are the most efficient & effective size.

The thermostat fan really only spooled up to a higher speed when conditions were pretty hot, a bit late in my opinion.

I felt just get as much air as possible through the condenser as soon as the fridge cycles on, rather than waiting until its hot.

Aus-Kiwi · Guru

3 way or compressor fridge ? In some ways theres no point having fan run at low ambient temps . Imo your wasting battery . Not much but it adds up . 3 way would be better if fan came on sooner ? Just the slow way they work !

Whenarewethere · Guru

Low ambient temperature 12 minutes per hour, so over 24 hours 0.48AH, of which the first half of the on cycle is probably a bit of a waste. So let's say half the time the fan is on it is not needed. So about 0.24AH per 24 hours for my 1.2 watt fan.

Looks like another project.