12v current

[Smokin' Rubber]

I need at least a 12v current to power up a dual computer fan setup but can't remember where to get it in the car. And if you are wondering why I need it, the reason would be that the XBox under my seat generates a lot of heat with no where to go and every once in a while will overheat and these are high flow fans (they push a high volume of air per minute) and would definitely help at least blow some of the hot air away from the XBox

[ragingfish]

A car only generates 12V.

[Smokin' Rubber]

oh I thought it only generated 9v hehe lolwhere would you recommend pulling the power from Raging if the box is below the front passenger seat?

[ragingfish]

Not sure -- what's the amperage draw on the fans?

[Smokin' Rubber]

0.14 amps or at least thats what it looks like

[ragingfish]

If that's the case, you can just pull off of any circuit nearby. I'd say your best bet is to track back to the dash and pull it off the radio...not really any other circuits nearby...Just make sure you tap into the ignition positive and not the battery postiive...

[cdFxer]

How about the outlet in the center console?

[Smokin' Rubber]

Quote, originally posted by ragingfish »Just make sure you tap into the ignition positive and not the battery postiive...what would be the difference? and wouldn't that reduce the power to the radio if I pulled power off that circuit?

[ragingfish]

Quote, originally posted by cdFxer »How about the outlet in the center console?Damn, that's right, forgot all about that!!! Quote, originally posted by Smokin' Rubber »what would be the difference? and wouldn't that reduce the power to the radio if I pulled power off that circuit?Ignition positive allows the fans only to operate when the key is on. battery positive has constant voltage, regardless of key position. Wire them into battery positive, you'd have a dead battery by morning.In terms of "reducing power to the radio," it doesn't work like that. Eventually, if you hook too many things up, they each demand however much power they need to operate, it becomes too much, and the fuse (or breaker) blows.But I'd recommend with cdFxer said -- I forgot about the outlet in the center console. It's right there, go for it. It's switched too, so no worries there.

[Smokin' Rubber]

won't the higher voltage from the central console outlet blow the motors on the fans tho?

[Vibration]

Quote, originally posted by Smokin' Rubber »won't the higher voltage from the central console outlet blow the motors on the fans tho? I'm sure the suggestion to use the power in the center console was to use the cigarette lighter not the 120VAC power, that would be real bad.

[cdFxer]

I meant the 12V outlet in the bottom of the flip up center console storage area.

[Jahntassa]

Yes, wiring in with the 12v outlet inside the armrest console would be the best bet. There's no concern about drawing too much current, because fans don't pull enough to really worry about. That's like saying a drop of water is gonna contaminate the olympic size pool (loose analogy)So..that'll probably be the best bet..

[Smokin' Rubber]

Oh that plug lol yeah I didn't even think of that, nice suggestionas for the fans not trying to draw too much power from the 120v outlet.... hehe well lets just say I've tried that before with interesting results. The house circuit didn't short, however, some of the metal inside the fan motor fused and will no longer move altho I have to say for a few seconds it was blowing as hard as a normal sized fan. Cool experiement if you like seeing cheap electro-mag motors shoot sparks

[JohnC]

If you just want to cool your x-box, set the hvac control to blow to the rear seat aea. There is a duct under each fron seat that can blow cold (or hot) air. May need to place a small deflector to guide the air where you need it. I put a 90 degree elbo made out of dryer duct on my drivers seat to cool it down. Works great.

[HamiltonAudio]

Quote, originally posted by ragingfish »Damn, that's right, forgot all about that!!! Ignition positive allows the fans only to operate when the key is on. battery positive has constant voltage, regardless of key position. Wire them into battery positive, you'd have a dead battery by morning.In terms of "reducing power to the radio," it doesn't work like that. Eventually, if you hook too many things up, they each demand however much power they need to operate, it becomes too much, and the fuse (or breaker) blows.But I'd recommend with cdFxer said -- I forgot about the outlet in the center console. It's right there, go for it. It's switched too, so no worries there.actually, you should really be concerned. in a lot of cases, overloading a single circuit in a car will cause the wire to act as the fuse (burn it up!!!) nevermind the threat of fire, but now where did that wire break, and what else did it kill with it???? Todays vehicles are a million times more sensitive than we think...do you want the fans to simply come on with the key? get under the dash and look at the fuseblock. there'll be open, switched circuits there that you can tap into. Using the correct spade terminal, plug in your circuit, FUSE IT appropriately and run over to the fans. by far the easiest and SAFEST way to do your install.you could get tricky and break the circuit with a switch, or put an activation LED, or....there's lots of options. when you do it, do it SAFELY....bmoney

[cdFxer]

That is really, really bad design work if they allow a wire to burn before the fuse opens. In the 'other' world (IE 110VAC and up) we are not allowed to do this-major code violation! Well, ok tap rules could arguably be an exception, but when the tap rules are applied correctly there is little chance of melting/fire/damage. I personally will not use taps, I insist on an over current protection device on the leg. But Im lucky, I am installing and engineering the stuff.

[Smokin' Rubber]

I ended up using the wiring underneath the armrest I undid the bolts, undid the dual harness from the 12v plug, stripped some of the wires on part of a fan adapter I grabbed from an old computer, hooked the wires into the harness and secured them with some electrical tape, and plugged the fan in. Works perfect and only turns on when the key is on accessory or on and I tested it on a 2.5 hr car ride never over heated once

[Jahntassa]

Quote, originally posted by HamiltonAudio »do you want the fans to simply come on with the key? get under the dash and look at the fuseblock. there'll be open, switched circuits there that you can tap into. Using the correct spade terminal, plug in your circuit, FUSE IT appropriately and run over to the fans. by far the easiest and SAFEST way to do your install.Actually, I believe there are no open holes in the fuseblock. Every hole is taken up by a fuse, and where there is no fuse, there's nothing.

[ragingfish]

Quote, originally posted by Jahntassa »Actually, I believe there are no open holes in the fuseblock. Every hole is taken up by a fuse, and where there is no fuse, there's nothing. Correct. I personally have never owned a car that had extra switched fuse lines...but then again, it may be a non-GM thing to have extra switched lines -- all I ever drove were Pontiacs so I wouldn't know otherwise.

[Jahntassa]

Quote, originally posted by ragingfish »Correct. I personally have never owned a car that had extra switched fuse lines...but then again, it may be a non-GM thing to have extra switched lines -- all I ever drove were Pontiacs so I wouldn't know otherwise.I know some Honda's do...

[AJ_'04 Vibe]

I have a '92 Camaro RS that has 2 or 3 switched terminals ("Acc.") to connect things to. There are even a couple (maybe only 1) of "Batt" terminals to connect directly to the battery.