Brew fridge fan

[ninja_geeze]

ok so got me a nice brew fridge ,made a ply shelf to replace the thin glass one .
got a 1 foot 40 watt heater now just want a fan to circulate the air .
anyone got any mounting ideas for this.i have done a few tests and all the pc type fans i have tried need to be away from the fridge wall too far to be of any use .
ie if you have them mounted too close to the fridge wall the air flow is to low.
cheers.

 

[gerbs]

If it's an under counter size fridge I wouldn't bother fitting a fan it's not really necessary. If it's a tall fridge then yes fit one and a computer cooling fan is a good choice I just mounted mine in the bottom of the door. My small fridge works fine without a fan

 

[Fil]

just dont epoxy the fan to the fridge wall while a freecycled oc fan should run a few years 24/7/365 it will eventually give up and if epoxied to the fridge wall can be a pita. i ended up gutting fan #1 and using it as a mount for its replacement

@gerbs a fan will boost performance (speed of hex) and efficiency no end in any sized fridge. buy even a diddy top end or commercial fridge and it will use a blower..

 

[ninja_geeze]

If it's an under counter size fridge I wouldn't bother fitting a fan it's not really necessary. If it's a tall fridge then yes fit one and a computer cooling fan is a good choice I just mounted mine in the bottom of the door. My small fridge works fine without a fan

Yes i can see where you are coming from,but all of the more expensive fridges even smaller ones have fans to aid even temperature distribution.
for the price of ..nothing ...(old pc fan) i will fit one .:grin:

 

[ninja_geeze]

just dont epoxy the fan to the fridge wall while a freecycled oc fan should run a few years 24/7/365 it will eventually give up and if epoxied to the fridge wall can be a pita. i ended up gutting fan #1 and using it as a mount for its replacement

@gerbs a fan will boost performance (speed of hex) and efficiency no end in any sized fridge. buy even a diddy top end or commercial fridge and it will use a blower..

I have an old pc fan 120mm silent jobbie.i intend to position it
to the bottom left of the fridge floor next to the tube heater this should help move the air around through the drilled plywood shelf up and around the FV.
fixing wise i have 2 tiny 90 degree brackets with tiny self tappers to screw it to the plastic fridge liner.(i wont use epoxy ) :thumb::thumb:

 

[Fil]

if using a plywood shelf, i would consider mounting in the shelf to blow through and up over the cold radiator thus maximising both heating and cooling by pulling the heated air from the lower area when heating and blowing over /close to the cold source when cooling.. my fridge is a bit small and already employed a blower over the cold radiator so i simply fitted my fan over the heater. Just a thought..

 

[ninja_geeze]

if using a plywood shelf, i would consider mounting in the shelf to blow through and up over the cold radiator thus maximising both heating and cooling by pulling the heated air from the lower area when heating and blowing over /close to the cold source when cooling.. my fridge is a bit small and already employed a blower over the cold radiator so i simply fitted my fan over the heater. Just a thought..

great idea ,just the fan is too large to fit to the shelf
i may look into a smaller fan to do just like you said :thumb:

 

[Gerryjo]

great idea ,just the fan is too large to fit to the shelf
i may look into a smaller fan to do just like you said :thumb:

You could incorporate the fan into the self using a jigsaw..

Gerry

 

[ninja_geeze]

You could incorporate the fan into the self using a jigsaw..

Gerry

i think i may make a cut out in the 9mm ply to take a smaller 80mm fan as you said ,just hope the ply is strong enough as its full of holes (Swiss cheesed it)
it should be ok as a big part of the FV is sat on the compressor hump at the back of the fridge plus ply is bendy and not rigid.:thumb:

 

[shepp]

You don't need a fan, you are just trying to solve a perceived problem that does not even need a solution.
Next people will be fitting circulation pumps inside their fermentation buckets.
;-)

 

[Clint]

Haven't got a fan in my brew fridge and it seems to work just fine...+/- 1°c even in the hottest weather. Now sitting bang on 14°c with my pseudo lager. ..

 

[Gerryjo]

I've an undercounter fridge and getting+/- 0.3 and no fan so can't complain though some do worry about stale air but there is CO2 getting released in it.....

Gerry

 

[marlon]

I use a PC fan in my larder type fridge, two shelf brackets bolted to the fan and the shelf 'tails' hung over the old egg rack in the door. It's 12v dc power supply sits in the top door shelf above the egg rack. It maintains the same temperature throughout the fridge. With it 'hanging' over the edge (of the egg rack) and pointing down, it doesn't get in the way of the FV.

 

[shepp]

Good idea for larder style fridge, especially if you are fermenting two brews at the same time.

 

[WierdFish]

For those of you that use a fan, is it on all the time, or switched on and off with the heater?

 

[marlon]

For those of you that use a fan, is it on all the time, or switched on and off with the heater?

Mine's on all the time........only about 4watts I think

 

[Fil]

24/7/365... well whenever the fridge is in use

 

[Irishwizard]

Simple experiment required.
Turn off all the fans and see what happens - if you dare.
Personally I have no fridge or a fan (other than Gunge)

 

[Gerryjo]

Simple experiment required.
Turn off all the fans and see what happens - if you dare.
Personally I have no fridge or a fan (other than Gunge)

It shall act just like an incubator though there shall be a slight smell due to use over years....

Gerry

 

[Fil]

Simple experiment required.
Turn off all the fans and see what happens - if you dare.
Personally I have no fridge or a fan (other than Gunge)

well after 3-4 years of running my #1 brewfridge pc fan died. the fridge was in the house at the time and its failure became apparent after the fridge was running noticeably longer than usual.. (2nd hand old fridge it knocks n buzzes more than a bit..)
with the fan sorted it was back to short infrequent runs..