Yea , it was interesting tho I hope that makes the difference . I always liked using that big stud for a ground, right below the valve cover in front of the motor. I'm not saying that's the best for grounding , it just always worked well for me.



Good Luck with it , I hope that resolves the melt down probs

 

Just happened to see this. Last summer I had the same problem. No fan with the a/c. I looked around and found that Troyer fans and components were Derale. I got 2 new controllers with my Summit Bucks. Well this summer 1st the no fan with the a/c then the fuse holders melted. I had switch back up so I let it go. I used my DC clamp on ampmeter and when both fans were running I was drawing 14-16 amps per fan. Well within the 25 amp fuse. Peak(start-up) was 32 amps but so quick I had to lock on the peak hold feature of the meter. Further inspection showed that the contacts with in the controller were melted. That led to high amp draw which helped melt the fuse holders. I have since gone to 2 Hayden Imperial controllers along with my set up of overide switch and relay and all now seems to be fine. Time will tell. It worked fine the rest of the summer and it was hot and we towed the horse every weekend with the a/c on at very low speeds so the fans really got a good work out. when I took every thing apart in October there was no indication of any overload. I did remove the fuses and go to a manual reset type circuit breaker.

 

Mike, I like to see good examples of diagnostics done very well like you have shown.
Early in this thread I tried to explain in replies 7,9,11,21 etc that it is a must to know what currents are flowing in the circuits in order to be able to spot problem hardware wiring and even the controller.
Apparently you had a controller failure that is always the last suspect because we start out trusting the product until we find out it is a problem.
Your experience is a great example of how to go about solving these issues.
.
Of course we must not try to use any product above it rated capacity without taking resposibility for it's failure.
.
Vendor part failues out of the box and in a short time periods are not new to anything. It happens all the time.
Tires go bad, electronics go bad, fans go bad, anything, but it's not in anyones best interest to jump up and down with condemnation unless there is a CLEAR history of failure of any product and the rules and instructions are followed.
Failure has a funny way of fixing the problem hardware, like sales drop off, defective retuns increase, and it gets known the product is not well designed and reliabile.
This should be a thread where eveyone learns because it has all been bought to light what must be done, how to test, what hardware capacities have to be adhered to etc. now to all.

 

If you look at the Derale site the controller is rated at a 25 amp maximum. If the fan peaks at 32 on startup it will eventually ruin the controller. I just thought of a way to over come this problem. Route the controller to a higher rated relay that will supply the current to run the fans. I will be doing this in the near future. Short term I could probably use the relays I have set up to manually turn on my fans.

JMC

 

Took my fans out too... Burned up two controllers, went through three out of four fans i bought... Plus had problems with a/c not blowing cold in traffic... So 700 dollars later... I went back to stock fan and never looked back! IMO the little gain they do give isn't worth all of the headache and reliability issues that arise with the fans.

 

HI!... Little gain? I wouldn't call 19RWH.P and 3MPG a little gain. Like I've said before I've had my DERALE electric fans for 8 years with no problems. It's all in how you hook them up and what is used to hook them up.

 

Neal. Is your truck a daily driver? How many miles have driven on the Derale fans? Also. Do you just ave them direct wired for manual switch on and off?

 

You need this controller (fk-35 from dccontrol.com) see:
http://www.dccontrol.com/0820.htm

 

I found a place on racing junk.com that makes custom shrouds. Just send them the sizes and get what ever fits. If there's not enuff room for 2 16inch units they make the openings smaller. They have fans and controller setups too. I like the idea of an enclosed aluminum shroud. Air would only flow thru fans. I've been reading where radiator core tabs have started water leaks. Good excuse to buy an all aluminum replacement. obtw it's competetively priced.

 

Thanks, looks like a fine product but a little pricey for me. Two 40 amp relays with pigtail will be about $30.00.

JMC

 

Sure seems to be top notch stuff. I hope I could get one if the one's that come with the fans don't work right.

 

I ordered yesterday, lets see how long it takes for me to get one.

 

HI!... Yes it is a daily driver. I have logged over 200,000 KM with the fans. Yes I have them directly wired to manual switched through 40 amp relays. I don't like thermo switches.

 

Let us know how it works out. How Much $$$ did you pay? I am holding off on the relays for now......

JMC

 

You can get just the controller for $99, but the kit with the thermocouple and complete wiring is $138 (that includes california tax since I am a resident)and shipping. but with my $29 dollar Lincoln 18 inch fan I am still way cheaper than the troyer kit.