Hello, I am trying to run a car radiator fan motor from a 110vac power supply. What is the cheapest & easiest way this can be done ?

 

If you have some old 12 volt car battery charger you could try that.

 

How many amps does the fan draw?

 

radiator fan normally draw 15 to 20 Amps

 

You are gonna find it much easier to buy a few dollar AC motor then to attempt this.

BUT If you really want to do this.. (and by the way, my radiator fan draws under 1 amp a 20 amp draw fan would kill your battery if it ran with the engine off for more than a few minutes, so I would double check the specs)

But the easiest way would be If you have a 120vAC to 12vDC converter that could handle that amperage.

A car battery charger would be a good way to get that.

High performance High CFM radiator fans draw around 5A, typically.

 

radiator fan normally draw 15 to 20 Amps

Oh in that case the battery charger will not be able deliver the current. I did not know they needed so much current.

 

Oh in that case the battery charger will not be able deliver the current. I did not know they needed so much current.

Depends on the battery charger.

But yes if you're looking to run it long term, I'd just go get a window fan for $15-$25

It'll be the easiest.

Otherwise I suppose you could build a power supply if you're looking for a project. Basically-transformer-rectifier (type will depend on your transformer or whether you want it in one piece of to fabricate it yourself and how much current required)-filter caps. You shouldn't need super clean DC to run a fan.

But all that said, I'd just go get a window fan.

 

radiator fan normally draw 15 to 20 Amps

Some fans draw quite a bit more than that - up to 40 amps (see Lincoln).

Anyway, if all you need is 15 amps, hack an ATX computer power supply. I used a 450 watt supply that I got on ebay for less than $20. (including shipping) to run a 12v fan on an aux generator. The 12v rating on that power supply is 20 amps. If you need more, get a larger power supply.

 

Wow, that is huge draw. Is that for a single fan motor or a multi fan setup? And is the 40A the startup spike or the running draw?

Heres what I found:

FLEXALITE TRIMLINE STRAIGHT BLADE FAN, BLACK -- 14 in. fan diameter, 14-3/ 4 in. x 14-1/ 4 in. x 3-1/2 in. overall dimensions, 10 blades, 1585 cfm, 9.5 amp draw, 2220 fan rpm at 13.5 V DC, 21 degrees fan blade angle; Reversible type;

and the dual fan setup:

FLEXALITE LOW PROFILE ELECTRIC COOLING FAN, BLACK -- 26-1/4 x 15-1/2 x 2-5/8 in. overall dimensions, 2500 CFM air flow, 14-22 amp draw

These were found via: http://www.autopartsdeal.com/Parts_List/electric_cooling_fan/lincoln/town_car/

I found an 18a fan for a Mustang:

1979-1993 Ford Mustang Flexalite Radiator Fan

FLEXALITE BLACK MAGIC X-TREME FAN, BLACK -- 15 in. fan diameter, 17-1/ 2 in. x 21-1/ 2 in. x 4-3/16 in. overall dimensions, 8 blades, 3300 cfm, 18.0 amp draw; Puller type; With built in control box with adjustable thermostat, A/C relay and manual switch connection; The strongest 15 in. fan available that provides constant cooling regardless of engine RPM

So I guess anything is possible. But I think the amount you would pay to convert the 120vAC to 12vDC at those current levels would more than cover the cost of an AC motor.

 

Thank you all for your help. I was hoping to find a converter simular to a phone charger, only bigger. For now someone loaned me a converter that is used on a rv. It's working fine, but certainly a little overkill.