Dimmer switch on fan

ValleGrown

ValleGrown

Well-Known Member
Hey all wondering how I need to wire a dimmer switch to my ac to dc power unit. My fan control only has three wires two black one green. Green is the ground and the two blacks well we will get to those so



I'm gonna be plugging into the wall so how would I wire it
 
M

mrmadcow

Well-Known Member
need alot more info- what voltage is the fan?ac or dc?
dc power unit?? a better discription will help
a dimmer switch wont help you anyway,they are for lights only. a motor speed controller is what you need
 
ValleGrown

ValleGrown

Well-Known Member
Ok the power supply is as follows


Input 120vac 14w
Output 12v dc 4 amps


And its a fan control dimmer switch




Fan is as follows

Dc 12v 4.8 am
 
Medi 1

Medi 1

Well-Known Member
no, you cant use a dimmer on fans. needs to be a correect speed control or called a rheostat. others will kill the life of the motor in fans.


so is this a pc fan or a real fan. why does it have bnoth ac and dc....oh sorry thats the dimmer. cant run an ac fan on dc current.
 
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Labajada

Member
Radio Shack has AC to DC adapters with an amp switch on them, has 4 or 5 settings on it. Highest is 12 amps, $19.99. perfect if you are using a computer fan. I spliced mine to my power cord for my lights which is on a timer (of course).
 
Medi 1

Medi 1

Well-Known Member
ok but what type of fan runs on dc....the wall is ac so what fan is this....why need a converted voltage cycle....norml fans just plug to the wall
 
ValleGrown

ValleGrown

Well-Known Member
Thank you for the ac dc power conversion I'm taking this damn speed control for FANS back to lowes. I know dimmer switches are for lights my question to you Elduece why would you even post... You think I am seriously that retarded.... "cmon"


Yea it's a pc fan
 
Medi 1

Medi 1

Well-Known Member
ok now im on the same page, done many iof these. all i use is a cell phone charger of the right volts. less volts makes it move less air being blades move slower. i had one i could adjust voltages to adjust fan speed.
ya im sure lowes is like my home depot and they dont know shit. id hit a used store and grab a 3 buk cell chatger or similar type charger or power supply for it and save money. for the wires theres not enough volts or amps to harm it if wired wrong...it just wont work. or mnay go in reverse depending on styles. withg the cell charger there will only be 2 wires.
 
ValleGrown

ValleGrown

Well-Known Member
Right ive got it to work. Lol it's just way fucking powerful 66db powerful lol it puts out a whopping 252 cfm at 120mm x 39mm it's ridiculous. Thereason I want the power control/dimmer switch/ rheostat so I can turn the fucker down lol
 
Medi 1

Medi 1

Well-Known Member
to be honest ive not seen them at any shops but a grow shop. i aksed here at homo depot and he didnt even know what i was talking about, they will all try n sell oyu a dimmer and claim its the same. then down the road when it kills the fans we think tis the fan that was shit not the switch so they dont get a return. i have some real oens here and i pay 35 bucks for them. they are called speedsters and are meant for this.

heres a link to what im talking about. this is also my shop....
http://www.pnwgardensupply.com/search.php?search_query=speedster
 
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mrmadcow

Well-Known Member
sorry about the delay in responding,got home late last night.
DC fans can be speed controlled by controlling the voltage going to the fan, not the amperage. you can buy a power supply that regulates the voltage from radio shack or any electronic supply house. a rheostat will do the same. the cheap way is to find a transformer that puts out less than 12 volts dc (say 9 vdc) & see if that slows it down enough.
medi1 shows a link to a fan controller but that is for a AC fan & wont work for your app.(nice price though)
 
Medi 1

Medi 1

Well-Known Member
ya i think i had already said he could use a cell charger or whatever volt fan was in a power supply. i was going somehwere still with this,.as like what sized room is this going to run or is it just to help intake air. if a room then i doubt its enough and was going to suggest a real fan. thsoe cfm ratings arentg so truwe on pc fans as they do the rating a diff way than we do in the inile or the type fans we use. makes a diff in the distabnce from fan the measurement is taken and is why there is variances in cfm from fan to fan...besides design. as soon as you put a bit of resitance to the pc fan they die out on cfm. the real ones dont as much and move thase air futher and faster, or betetr efficiency
 
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