Fan in Incubator...really necessary?

[Nate]

So, can you use an old cell phone charger to run the cpu fan? And just run the cord through a hole in the back?

Well that's what I did, originally. but it was severely underpowered.

[ama1997]

If you can buy online here buy from this site. Its where I got my pc fans and stuff from. Alot cheaper than Radio Shack.
http://www.allelectronics.com/index.html

Not sure but I think this is the plug your looking for. If not they will have what you need alot cheaper you just might have to look for it.

http://www.allelectronics.com/cgi-bi...NSFORMER_.html

[Nate]

What do I need to know about milliamps? what if the fan doesn't say anything about amps? is knowing the voltage enough or is amperage really an important part of all this?

[Evan Jamison]

Amps=watts/volts

I use a 120 volt fan from an old aquarium hood, 80CFM, running on 4 years now.

-Evan

[snakelady]

So, I guess some people use fans and some don't....?

[Ginevive]

I haven't used a fan. Last year I had a styro cooler setup; this year, a wine cooler fridge. I have the FWatt going completely from the floor to top of the inside of the incubator (about 2.5 feet high) and I took different readings of the temps and things are evened-out. I use closed pop bottles of water to store heat in areas where there are no tubs. I like to keep with what works and would be leary of changing things now. This is definately something that has to be thought out before eggs arrive!

[PythonWallace]

So, can you use an old cell phone charger to run the cpu fan? And just run the cord through a hole in the back?

If you want to use a lower voltage adapter you can order a matching fan from the links I pm'ed to you last week. I have 2 5v fans running off a 4 volt phone charger for one of my frog hoods.

What do I need to know about milliamps? what if the fan doesn't say anything about amps? is knowing the voltage enough or is amperage really an important part of all this?

All of the 12v computer fans I've looked at use brushless motors rated at 12v @ 1500-1700 mA. If it doesnt say I would go by that and get an adapter that's between 800-1600 mA. For smaller incubators I like to go lower so there's less vibration and "wind" when it's not needed. Even for my bigger incubator I added more fans instead of running a single fan at max power so there's less noise and vibration.

[SatanicIntention]

Nate, it's not difficult. 4" computer fan from Radio Shack and a plain extension cord with the female end cut off. Wire it up, tape it, and plug it in. You're done. You can use zip ties to mount it to the wire shelves in the incubator.

[PythonWallace]

Nate, it's not difficult. 4" computer fan from Radio Shack and a plain extension cord with the female end cut off. Wire it up, tape it, and plug it in. You're done. You can use zip ties to mount it to the wire shelves in the incubator.

As long as it's a 120v fan and not a 12v fan, like mentioned earlier. But I would think that a 120v fan would come pre-wired. There could also be an issue with a 120v fan producing too much heat, but I can't say whether or not that's a real issue since I never use them.

[frogvet]

I tried this and the fan itself kicked out so much heat the incubator was up over 100 degrees. (There weren't any eggs inside, it was just an experiment).

JonV

Would it be possible to run the fan through the same proportional thermostat as the heat tape? By doing so would it potentially turn down both heat sources in the incubator?