Adding/Changing LED on fans.
- Thread starter nlr
- Start date
Soldato
- Joined
- 18 Mar 2008
- Posts
- 12,751
Never owned an LED fan, so I might be wrong, but why not have a look and see how the LED's are attached to the fan, remove them, and then try to add the new ones in the same way?
It can be done, although if your soldering skills are non-existant, it may be wise either to not bother as it is very fiddly, or go ahead and practise on a different fan first.
LED's can only go one way around. There is a flat on one side to tell you which wire is the cathode (- / negative ).
LED's can only go one way around. There is a flat on one side to tell you which wire is the cathode (- / negative ).
What about this?
12 Orange LEDs on a black Tri-cool fan. I drilled some holes and wired up 4 circuits of 3 LEDs each.
Here's a red fan I rewired to become a white fan, it's not using holes or anything, just tape to hold them. I don't like the fan very much so it was just a test.
Rewiring a fan is easy.
Red LEDs (1.8-2.0v) have a different voltage requirement than blue LEDs (3.2-3.8v) (if they are blue, I'm assuming) so you may find that they will be overbright and possibly even pop. You may need to add in a resistor. How the existing circuit works depends on how you would do the mod.
If the LEDs are positioned in the corners and wired independently of each other it's just a matter of removing them from their hole, cutting off the LED, stripping the wires, positioning the new LED (poss with a 56 ohm resistor on the Anode), hot glueing, wiring up and testing. A multimeter will tell you which way around the existing wiring works and will allow you to complete the job.
If the LEDs are wired up in series then you will need to introduce a resistor before the first LED, or after the last one.
If you need any help with this let me know.
12 Orange LEDs on a black Tri-cool fan. I drilled some holes and wired up 4 circuits of 3 LEDs each.
Here's a red fan I rewired to become a white fan, it's not using holes or anything, just tape to hold them. I don't like the fan very much so it was just a test.
Rewiring a fan is easy.
Red LEDs (1.8-2.0v) have a different voltage requirement than blue LEDs (3.2-3.8v) (if they are blue, I'm assuming) so you may find that they will be overbright and possibly even pop. You may need to add in a resistor. How the existing circuit works depends on how you would do the mod.
If the LEDs are positioned in the corners and wired independently of each other it's just a matter of removing them from their hole, cutting off the LED, stripping the wires, positioning the new LED (poss with a 56 ohm resistor on the Anode), hot glueing, wiring up and testing. A multimeter will tell you which way around the existing wiring works and will allow you to complete the job.
If the LEDs are wired up in series then you will need to introduce a resistor before the first LED, or after the last one.
If you need any help with this let me know.
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Tealc knows what he's talking about.
I taught him everything he knows
Or is that the other way round???
Seriously though, have a go. Remember everyone who knows how to do something at one point didn't have a clue themselves. In other words the only way to learn is to do it.
I taught him everything he knows
Or is that the other way round???
Seriously though, have a go. Remember everyone who knows how to do something at one point didn't have a clue themselves. In other words the only way to learn is to do it.
The orange mod above has wiring which is separate from the fan's wiring and I have a switch now installed between the molex that it connects with and the +ve wire.
All you need do is find the first LED in the circuit and wire a switch in somewhere on the +ve line. This spot is sometimes marked on the fan PCB.
An independent fan wiring loom is advantgeous because too often the LED v
brightness is affected by fan speed and it's easier to wire in a switch of your choosing.
A switch can also be wired in the -ve wire, all it needs to do is break the circuit.
All you need do is find the first LED in the circuit and wire a switch in somewhere on the +ve line. This spot is sometimes marked on the fan PCB.
An independent fan wiring loom is advantgeous because too often the LED v
brightness is affected by fan speed and it's easier to wire in a switch of your choosing.
A switch can also be wired in the -ve wire, all it needs to do is break the circuit.
What about this?
12 Orange LEDs on a black Tri-cool fan. I drilled some holes and wired up 4 circuits of 3 LEDs each.
thats nice man.
What about this?
12 Orange LEDs on a black Tri-cool fan. I drilled some holes and wired up 4 circuits of 3 LEDs each.
thats nice man.
Can I buy one?
I've been thinking about writing a quick tutorial on this.
I've got a Xilence Redwing 120mm which I have already pre-drilled waiting for such a time where I can be bothered to actually get on and mount some LEDs in it. I had planned to make it today but had to work on my car instead and that took all day.
For this one I am going to mount 4 per side, for a total of 16 LEDs. Orange again (Thanks for the Orange bug goes to G-Dubs)
I will be running 4 LEDs in series 4 times around the circumference of the fan.
If you can be patient I will get this done over the next couple of days and will also put some of the theory in the tutorial so you can adapt for your own needs.
I've got a Xilence Redwing 120mm which I have already pre-drilled waiting for such a time where I can be bothered to actually get on and mount some LEDs in it. I had planned to make it today but had to work on my car instead and that took all day.
For this one I am going to mount 4 per side, for a total of 16 LEDs. Orange again (Thanks for the Orange bug goes to G-Dubs)
I will be running 4 LEDs in series 4 times around the circumference of the fan.
If you can be patient I will get this done over the next couple of days and will also put some of the theory in the tutorial so you can adapt for your own needs.
Thanks mate and I don't know if you still use your msn which is on your profile but I added you anyways.