Modding a fan controller for use within shelving

A wild guess is red is the 12v lead :)

Could test it by holding bare white wiren in one hand and touching the red one with the tip of your nose. . . or a Volt Ohm Meter (VOM) works well ;)
 
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I type too slow :(

light bulb with light either way. It doesn't know + from -

12v DC motor will spin backwards if hooked up backwards so would work. Multimeter is best way to test.
 
Well, turns out I do have some of the correct molex sockets! Found them in the cupboard :D
I took a chance and tried to get the controller working... The red was the positive :D

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The blue LED's are actually same brightness. BLISS!
 
light bulb with light either way. It doesn't know + from -

12v DC motor will spin backwards if hooked up backwards so would work. Multimeter is best way to test.

Doh. I remember using a small DC lamp for something in the past. It must have been continuity rather than polarity. I gave a few suggestions while watching the F1 and didn't really think about it.


Nice to see the panel all lit up and working though.

Was a tad concerned that the power supply might give too high a voltage at low loads but it seems to look ok.

And those fan filters do look nasty. If it were me I might look into the possibility of removing the front panel of the filter and just leave the mesh behind, assuming it is rigid enough to stand against the pressure created by the fan. Actually upon thinking about it the filter could go inside the enclosure so the LED goodness isn't spoiled out back. You'll only need one for each intake.
 
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Doh. I remember using a small DC lamp for something in the past. It must have been continuity rather than polarity. I gave a few suggestions while watching the F1 and didn't really think about it.


Nice to see the panel all lit up and working though.

Was a tad concerned that the power supply might give too high a voltage at low loads but it seems to look ok.
I was wondering where you were at when you posted. Now I understand.
F1 is good reason to be having problems multitasking.:D
 
Yeah especially after today's race. Thought I'd never see the day when Valencia would be a good race.
 
The filters inside! Now that is an idea! If all my measurements were correct, I should have enough room within the shelves to go further than the 2.5cm thickness of the fans.

I got the fans yesterday and managed to grab five minutes to get them all going...
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They are TOTALLY silent, I'm really tempted to replace all the fans in my computer now. I can't believe how quiet they are on full power.
And the blue LED's would look amazing as well!
 
That is true Doyll! I'm going to see how they are when put on the inside of the shelving first. Talking of the shelf, it's done!! :D The other half is going to be picking it up after she finishes work today! So I can finally get started on getting the shelf finished and all put together.

I'm going to be painting the shelf a matt black, so it's just an extension of all my equipment rather than a shelf on the wall that has to match the furnishing's. As well as the LED's being put into the fans, I've got an LED strip light that I'm going to attach to the back of the shelf, so out the front of the shelves there will be shining blue light. I'm hoping the light will be subtle rather than overbearing and too much. We'll see how it goes, I'm going to experiment with light a little and see what I think is best.

I'm like a child on christmas day... It's only a shelf for god sake!
 
Those filters will restrict 50% of the airflow. Maybe take a pair of your wife's old nylons and stretch and staple them on inside for filter. Take an old toothbrush, heat it just back of the bristles and bend it 90* and use it to brush dust out as needed ;)

Edit: would you believe 40%? how about 30%?
 
Regarding the LED strip you can attach it to the fan controller and adjust it's light output if it's too much. Just slap a fan connector on the end of the strip.
 
The LED strip is actually quite long, about a metre long with 36 LED's and has it's own little PSU and mains plug. Will the 12v PSU I'm using actually power that amount of LED's?
 
Yes it'll power it no problem. Your 5 Amp PSU will provide full power to around 750 LEDs wired in the way most LED strips are wired up, that's around 10 metres even with the high density 60/Metres stuff.

The fan controller can also cope easily with the 0.24 Amps that your LED strip will probably draw and is by far the easiest way to reduce the light output of a LED strip, unless the strip you have has it's own PWM controller box.
 
Well well well... another mod knocking on my door! I can't wait until the office is all painted and ready to be occupied! I can start putting everything in place :D

Here is the shelf in the flesh :D

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Excuse the mess, currently redecorating the house/new water supply/cantral heating. Living in a building site at the moment.

Also, the red carpets aren't staying ;)
 
haha, honestly they are HORRIBLE :D I don't think the last owner ever cleaned them, and they had a really smelly dog... I can't wait to get rid of them ;)
 
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