ElectraVan 600: motor & controller fan updates

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asavage
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ElectraVan 600: motor & controller fan updates

#1

Post by asavage »

[quote=""Michael A. Radtke" <wa7zpu@5BY9.NET>, June 23, 2011 "]My van had a centrifugal fan, like a car heater blower fan, that was
ducted to the motor and the EV1 controller. Is that the fan?

If so, one possibility is a bilge fan for boats. Car heater fans
immediately come to mind, but nowadays those are custom made to fit into
some complex ductwork and aren't free standing like the bilge fans.

I changed out my fan a couple of years ago and went with two fans. I
reworked the cover for the controller and installed a flat fan in it
similar to what is used in a computer power supply. I chose an axial
fan because it moves a lot of air against low back pressure. The
controller seems to have a good air path.

For the motor, I used a similar modern fan, except of centrifugal
design. It has a form factor similar to the usual flat fan, but the air
comes out the edge. I made a very short sheet metal duct/bracket and
mounted the fan directly to the motor. I chose a centrifugal fan
because it is better than an axial fan where the back pressure is high.

You can't cool the controller or the motor too much, so I chose the
largest fans that would fit. Still, each fan draws only 1-2 amps which
is much less than the original fan that drew about 10 amps. The
airflow, the best that I can tell is higher than with the original
setup. Instead of hearing the fan motor as I used to, I now just hear
air.

Mike -- Phoenix AZ[/quote]

(click on any image for larger)
Image

controller.jpg: Looking across the whole controller. The exhaust fan is
on the left, air intake on the right. My reversing switch in the middle.



Image

controllerfan.jpg: Closeup of the controller fan.




Image

controllervent.jpg: Closeup of the controller air intake.



Image

mfan4.jpg: Motor fan and baffle. The baffle box clamps on the motor the
same way as the blower hose used to. The fan is mounted on the baffle
box and is supported by it.



Image

revswitch.jpg: Closeup of my home built reversing switch.
Regards,
Al S.

1982 Maxima diesel wagon, 2nd & 4th owner, 165k miles, rusty & burgundy/grey. Purchased 1996, SOLD 16Feb10
1983 Maxima diesel wagon, 199k miles, rusty, light yellow/light brown. SOLD 14Jul07
1981 720 SD22 (scrapped 04Sep07)
1983 Sentra CD17, 255k, bought 06Jul08, gave it away 22Jun10.
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