Why You Should NEVER EVER INSTALL ELECTRIC FANS!! 

My hats off to the few and far in between who've decided to not hate here. It takes a REAL man or woman to hold their tongue even if they find this information contrary to their own knowledge. It also takes a REAL man or woman to, if they absolutely must, leave a constructive comment. I never claimed to be a professional technician. I AM, however, doing my best to make great content. The intent of this video was to show the pros and cons of an electric fan setup. Clearly this was aimed at beginners. I hope some of you can relate with me. But, if not, I hope you can leave constructive criticism at most and leave your negative, hateful comments locked tightly in your fingers. Thank you all!

The title should read "Why you should ALWAYS do your homework before buying and installing aftermarket parts"

As an electrician - there's some stuff that needs addressed here: 1. "Hot idle" rating for an alternator isn't a thing. If you select the wrong alternator and pulley setup, you might not be turning it fast enough, you won't get your excitation field and your 140A alternator won't produce much power at all. That's the sort of thing that normally gets fixed with an idle regulator and voltage feedback loop. If the engine computer sees the voltage sag, it opens up the fast idle valve. That's basically the way the big three have been doing it since the late 80s. Sometimes they change the alternator design after testing shows they're using the idle kick too much. Often, they just put a smaller pulley on the alt so it spins faster at low idle. (Looking at you, F150 Tritons...) 2. Early 80's VW's have 30A cooling fans (and 30A rear window defrosters!) Their alternators are usually rated for about 85 amps. It's a simple circuit, passes through a thermal switch in the radiator and through the fuse block. The wire's about 12g. It's not complex or difficult to replicate. You don't need an alternator that's rated for literally twice the peak current draw of the entire vehicle. Even aircraft only go over by about 20%. 3. If you're blowing a 40A fuse with a device that's only supposed to draw 30, then you have either a defective part or a wiring fault, end of story. A weak alternator could have a voltage sag below 12v and then, technically, sort of, almost, you could probably make it so that 30A fan was drawing more current because of the lower voltage... assuming your battery had failed as well. I just about guarantee - that's not what happened. As for benefits - Meh. I mean, the power has to come from somewhere. If you have a mechanical fan with a fluid coupler, you're gonna feel the drag all the time. If it's directly coupled, you have harmonics to deal with, additional rotating mass that will effect your RPM pick-up and, just like the fluid-coupled fan, you'll be producing drag all the time. If you have electric fans with a thermal switch, then you'll have additional drag on the alternator and you'll feel it pretty much the same as with the mechanical fans, but only when they're running, which they won't do (usually) on the freeway so they're at least good for boosting freeway mileage, even if just a little. Electric fans with good motors are usually heavier than directly coupled fans and about the same weight as a fluid-coupled fan. I always install electrics and it has nothing to do with a cool factor or fuel efficiency or even cooling effectiveness. I use electrics because I never, ever, want to have to pull out a mangled cat from my radiator shroud again. YMMV.

How does anyone manage to be so wrong and so contradictory while sounding so confident, all at the same time. This is nonsense.

Larger battery would help a lot. Run separate fuses to each fan. Change to pulley on the alternator so it turns faster. Factory setup is that one fan will engage with AC, both fans engage with temperature. Rather than having the AC fan cycle with the AC clutch it might be better to figure out a way to have the AC fan running full time anytime the AC system is on.

Your blowing fuses has nothing to do with your alternator being weak. 50 amp fuse takes 50 amps to pop the fuse. You pushing more power with a larger alternator is going to have the same result. The wires are melting because the wire gage is not rated for the constant high current . Run a fuse to two 30 amp relays and wire the fans independently with 30 amp fuses with larger gauge wire. Your pos and negative wire should be the same size so you have minimal resistance. Hope this helps you or someone else.

If I may add some constructive criticism. I'm sure these points have already been made in the comment section but I digress. Your comments about the alternator and needing to upgrade I agree with completely. However to say you need an expensive $300+ alternator with a max amperage in the 200s range simply isn't true. It's not about how much amperage the alternator is capable of making total, but what it makes where and when you need it. I can buy an aftermarket let's say DB Electric alternator just as an example so these aren't actual numbers, that makes 200 total amps, but only makes those amps at let's say 5000 RPM. Where as it may only make let's say 65 amps at 800. Now let's take a 140amp DR44 Delphi and again just spit balling numbers here but that alternator even though it makes a lower total, can make 100+ at 800 rpm. An alternator isn't just a thing where the more money you spend the better it's going to work. But I will say great job pointing out the big 3 upgrade. Many people skimp out on this. However this also applies to your fan wiring. I understand the fan controller was paired with the fans however I don't ever recommend using one. More often than not the wiring is too light, and heat can build as a result. You're better off grabbing a couple relays and temp probe. Build your own harness. If anyone actually takes the time to read this comment because I doubt anyone will, an electric fan is an amazing upgrade for anything from your daily driver all the way to your weekend toys. A proper install is key.

Good video. One extra thing: electric motors are defined as a "inductive load". And automobiles operate on Direct Current. Every time the cooling turn off, they send a reverse voltage spike into the electrical system. On most systems (with motors or electromagnetic devices) they place a diode accross the power terminals to release that energy.

When he said star bucks explains everything

Come on man 🤦🏻‍♂️ I watched this because I was curious as to why someone would say stay away from electric fans. Then I realized the guy did it all wrong.

Blowing 60 amp fuses? = Bad installation

When my dad and I rebuilt a 69 c10, we used a dual electric fan setup and radiator from ron Davis. We had a lot of the same issues you're describing here. Through lots of trouble shooting and killing our high-horsepower engine at idle, even with a 280 amp alternator, we found the one thing that really made the biggest difference. A second battery, wired parallel to the original. Positive to positive, and negative to a good ground. If you're going to keep the circuit at 12 volts, this is the way you have to connect them. Effectively, your doubling the "depth" of the battery, giving you a larger duty cycle or more amps stored up for large power draws like the dual fans. I'm no expert on the specifics of how this worked, but all of this is based purely on experience. It really helped to have another battery for the fans to draw current from.

The thermostat in your engine coolant needs to be the same as the settings on your fan when it kicks in. Most newer cars have a thermostat set at 195 to 205° so you’re 185 fan kick-in will interfere with the engine getting up to operating temperature. You should reprogram the fan kick in switch or change thermostats to match one another. That could help keep the fans from running unnecessarily and possibly save your fuses.

I see....Ah, the expensive pitfalls of not having the faintest idea what you're doing.

Ok there is a simple $15 fix that would have stopped all of these problems. Bottom line is when you keep throwing parts at a problem and you don't understand the problem you'll never get it fixed.

The clutch was probably failing on the mechanical fan, so a stock replacement would have most likely done the job. You do live in a high stress environment though so you might have had to go with a higher pitch blade/stronger clutch combo to get the job done. With the electric fan route, a smaller alternator pulley is what you needed.

Great description. In my experience was the same deal. I had a Ford Ranger that somebody had scabbed in a huge electric fan and I ended up by going back old school with the Shroud and the original clutch fan. The AC started to work better and with always pulling air through the coil. I eventually just put a 12in electric fan in front of everything to assist it and not have to buy an alternator and and and and and. It was very cost-effective and it took the temperature down about ten degrees in the summertime

You had a bad fan clutch. If you do install electric fans, be sure to use a heavy duty relay to transfer full fused battery voltage when activated by a temperature sensor that closes the relay ground circuit when needed. Power the relays positive control side by fused ignition switch circuit. You can use a second relay to close the fan relay control circuit when the AC is turned on and high side pressure needs to be reduced. All new vehicles use electric fans, most with 110-130 amp alternators and 5 times as many modules as your old truck. If your blowing or melting fuses, something is wrong, likely a bad connection which generates heat or a wire gauge too small. ...a weak alternator would cause a battery to go dead or discharge until you accelerated again.

Exactly why YOU should not install electric fans in your vehicle. The rest of us would know enough about it to do it right from the start.

I’ve been running an electric fan on my 66 Chevy for years. It’s been really helpful.

Engine Masters did a dyno comparison with different cooling fan setups, if I recall a standard clutch fan reduced hp by about 15% and a fixed fan reduced hp by around 30%. Food for thought for those looking for hp gains.

Bad info here, I did e fan upgrade on my 96 suburban. No upgrades to the alternator. No issues after the initial installation. All that is needed is a quality installation with good grounds and proper wiring. My 07 has 2 e fans stock and and still not running a 240amp alt. For people watching this video e fan is the way to go installed properly not scary or cost expensive.

Lol, "140A alternator still would not keep up, I was blowing fuses....." SMH.....come on man.

Actually, this video should be titled, how I scored a wife way out of my league!!!

Your video is great , Everything is good and your not afraid to try different things , Also the people who actually contributed great information to the actual problem solving really helps others .

the number one reason you should never ever ever listing to anything this guy is talking about . 1 the ac was shit because he needed a fan clutch. 2 its not a school bus you don't need a 30a fan. the 100a alternator should be good to run anything. 3 this is the second video that showed up in my feed filled with misinformation. and i highly doubt that he even wired the fan correctly.

Those fans need two seperate relays, with two separate circuits.. one for each fan. I will be making a video on this shortly

From Sydney Australia.. thank you for your time in putting this together.. we learn from each others mistakes.. you have helped me and i’m sure many others.. Stay cool mate 😎

Using factory fans off of things (I'm using a dual speed escort fan) can be a really good way to get great performing electric fans for a great price.

You need at least 5 alternators to run dual fans all of them at LEAST 250 amps

well i will have to say this only made me want to buy electric fans for my truck even more

This is a great video for people contemplating doing this upgrade. I am wanting to do this for various reasons other than I just like to tinker, as well as other upgrades. Now I know more what to plan for. Thank you

Thanks my man. I’m currently going through the process of taking my electric fans off my F150 and replacing it with the OEM fan and clutch

Holy crap dude, you need to stop talking about cars. This makes 4 or 5 videos in a row where you have given flat out false information.

I think I lost a few brain cells watching this video so much misinformation

I live in Las Vegas. I installed a dual electric fan set on my F150 as a supplement to the clutch fan and wired them to a relay to only come on with the A/C compressor. Worked fine

This is an interesting video for the instances where a vehicle is originally equipped with a belt driven thermostatic clutch fan and the owner wants to convert to an electric fan for the engine radiator and air conditioner condenser. However a lot of cars today come equipped with electric fans on the radiator as part of the manufacturers design. In these cases the system works with out problems.

I laughed so hard when you said you replaced the alt.

Fan clutch went out on my ram 1500 and had the same problem as your vehicle while sitting in traffic etc., so I swapped it out for an electric fan for about $115. Took me about 30 minutes and I experience absolute no issues at all, however I reap all the benefits you mentioned.

I installed a derale electric fan on my 2003 dodge and it works great! I did not have to upgrade to more amp alternator. I've had my system for about 5 years now. I does require a little maintenance over the years but I am happy with my system.

Great video. Im looking at converting my 91 1500 with a 5.7 to dual elec fans. Found a set from FF Dynamics for only $265 that draw 18 amps total with 5,000 cfm. May look into upgrading to a bigger alternator right from the start. Thanks!

The use of Scotch Loks, but not using any relays, tells me everything I need to know.... *_And everything he doesn't!_*

Its fans bro, not a 10k+ watt sound system.

this has had me intrigued for a while. I have been thinking about doing this with my 01 f350 because it is the same way with the a/c system. kicks ass once at highway speeds and then sucks around town.

A few things about electric fans. 1) in very hot weather the high side pressure on an AC system can go ballistic when driving slow in traffic. Damage to the system can happen. Rather than going to a complete electric fan system simply install a single pusher fan that will activate only when the AC compressor is functioning. This will help keep the AC condenser (the part that is in front of the radiator) cool. Works on most applications fairly well. 2) The extra surge while driving in traffic is likely due to the engine staying cooler rather than extra power due to the lack of an engine driven fan. Remember, an automobile engine is actually a heat engine and when the engine becomes terribly hot it looses efficiency (power). 3) A person can install a fan system themselves IF (a big if) they are well versed in DC circuitry (operation of relays, temp sensors, etc.). This video was informative and fairly well balanced (not a rant).

Shoulds just went the junkyard and took the fans off a 2005...probly half the price

Thanks for the laughs! LOL. I'd recommend that when you try to give advice, you should first know what you're doing.

Thanks for your video! I was a GM Man unit 1996. My first car was a used 1960 Corvair In 1995. Then many Cars until my last New car an 1986 EuroSport wagon, and a used 1991 Cavalier. Once i tried a used Honda, my tinkering around with Cars really ended. I still did my own maintenance on my Cars, but veryfew repairs. My first car with an electric fan was a 1983 Buick Century with a 3.0L V6, it did have a fan problem, which after a lot of testing turned out to be a short to ground. Once repaired I added a manual turn on switch, this repaired all my problems. All of the Honda’s had 1 or 2 electric fans. None of these ever caused any problems, and never had any problrpems (7 cars since 1996). All sold with at least 137,000 miles (except 1), and the last 2 over 170,000 miles. I am currently driving a 2009 Honda CR-V with 127,000 miles with 0 repairs (bought new). None of these Honda’s had or have large or heavy gauge wiring. The Civics had one fan the Accord and CRV have 2 fans. None of these had larger alternators, nor was this an option. Strange, eh? Thanks….Jim PS……seeing that GM is owned by China…..do you think it’s ok to buy foreign? I am currently on a Toyota kick (this may change), because of Honda’s change to small engines, turbos and CVTs…..which I will not buy. Toyota is still using non turbo engines and regular transmissions in the cars I like (purchased a new 2017 Toyota RAV4, FWD, 2.5L with 6 speed transmission, has 67,000 miles with no problems). Good luck.

That’s pretty cool! I went through the same thing with one of my trucks, but long story short….I went back to stock configuration and it was better….I just kept a higher temp thermostat to maintain cooler engine..

You lost me when you went to the fan instead of getting the A/C unit checked and/or recharged.

I'll say this just from being a technician. I've done this conversion a few times. And the main thing you have to worry about is cubic feet per minute. If you're not pumping the same or more air than the fan clutch was pumping then it's not going to cool the car down. And also the other things a dual fan setup. Because you want a fan that turns on when you just got the AC running that'll keep your condenser cool but not have your car running so cool that it interferes with engine performance. But then you also want the second fan in case all hell breaks loose and it gets super hot and you need to just cool it down. But and you also need to have it disconnected from the engines other harnesses and wiring. It needs to be on its own independent circuit it does draw a lot of power but most of the vehicles that would need this setup can handle it if it's installed properly. And the other thing is making sure that your controller cut the fans on at the correct temperature. If it's too high you're going to have overheating issues if it's too low it'll interfere with engine performance and the proper way the engine is supposed to be ran

Add a soft-start device for the fans and no more blown fuses (fans tend to draw x3 Amperes when they start from stable position)(same problem as cheap angle grinders) :)

Good video, I've been thinking about doing an electric fan conversion on my 93 toyota pickup, now I see it is probably not worth it. Another thing I like about the stock clutch fan is that if the clutch fails I can take a couple of zip ties and fasten the fan to the clutch body and make it home. Sometimes simple is better.

Blowing fuses!! Someone does not know about electricity.

So much false information. I can’t even begin to explain. Just watch something else lol

I enjoyed the video, and learned a few things. I had residual and industrial training and worked as maintenance trouble shooter 42 years. Lets get down to basics 1. A fuse or breaker is used to protect the wiring in a circuit but in most cases will protect the device that its powering. 2. A fuse or breaker is designed to blow or trip without damaging the casing or mechanism. 3. If you have a 20 amp breaker in yours home and wire in a new rectangle using a number 14 wire you must drop down to a 15 amp breaker to protect the wiring (National Electric Code). 4. When using wie stripper don't nick or cut into the wire or remove some of the wire strains, this will result in a weak point that will heat up or start a fire.

Thank you for the detailed explanation of the system.

I own a 95 SUBURBAN to up here in Ontario Canada, the truck never overheats and still runs great,best beast Ive ever owned love the old girl

A 30 amp system that is blowing 40 Amp fuses points to a problem in the fans themselves. There is no way that a healthy 30 amp system will pull 40 Amps. The system in my Jeep never had those problems and we live in New Orleans, while not as hot as Vegas, it is a humid heat, which reduces the cooling effect of the airflow. It is also a 30 Amp system that rarely pulls over 18 amps. Your fans were defective from the get go. I would worry about whatever problem they have going into complete failure mode and causing a fire.

You should have kept the original fan and installed a small electric fan on the ac condenser, which will only activate when you switch on the AC. Worked well on my chrysler

Thanks for your video .When you were blowing fuses out after ,What was the fix ,thicker wire? or just higher amp fuse? and how much was the whole bill if I might ask and thanks again.I like your stuff

I managed twin 16" fans on a custom steel shroud with an 80 Amp alternator and 2k watt stereo without issues at night with everything on...lights, wipers etc...

Installed a dual electric fan(flex-a-lite) on my 2001 GMC truck, it was the best thing I ever did to the truck! Had absolutely no problems... but to each his own.

I have both electric and the belt fan. Vegas gets hot and the air conditioner cuts out at stop lights so the electric fan really helps. Just make sure you wire up and override to allow you to keep them on. A lot of times the compressor switch will flip them on and off.

I'm a little confused about the fuses blowing. They are basically pieces of wire that heat up and burn open above a certain amount of power applied. Not sure why insufficient power on the alternator would burn up a fuse. I hope they were slo-blows because you need to account for the 100mS or so of inrush current needed to get the fan motors going.

Put each fan to different temperature. Like one on 90 degrees, second 95 degrees. You'll have less stress on idle and under load your engine will pull up the electric power up.

A really informative video. I made the mistake of wasting plenty of time and hundreds of dollars trying to get electric fans to operate dependably and that's a key word because I got them to work, just not where I could trust them. This was on my 67 Mustang with a spirited late model 5.0 V8 engine. I figured that I'd free up some horsepower. I already had an extra cooling, 3 row radiator and a high flow water pump. I bought the name brand fans, too, the same brand mentioned on the video and another brand, also. It didn't matter, I was always chasing an issue with my high performance car in Florida heat with electric cooling fans. The very last thing I wanted to do was to destroy my expensive engine because it had overheated. There was fan motor failure (brand new fan), relay failures, temperature sensor failures (or sensor settings not staying consistent) and then the alternator upgrades then battery upgrades, wiring upgrades, (including installing diodes to protect the alternator from voltage that can be generated from free-wheeling, non-energized fans). Then there was the chronic belt slippage caused by the sudden load spikes that hit the electrical system when the fans kicked in especially when my cammed up, loping engine sat at idle. I finally got tired of the time and money dedicated, along with the issues and returned to a super dependable clutch operated manual fan. I bought the clutch that is short and made for hotrodders, for extra room, because my aluminum radiator takes up more space than a stock copper radiator. Summit or Jeg's can set you up with one for the same price as a standard, longer one, if you need it. The clutch fan may drain a few horsepower, but at least I don't have to worry that the electric cooling fan will find another reason to fail in summer heat and traffic, which is a constant issue if you live in a large Florida city. If you've got an old school, carbureted engine that isn't wired to a programmable on board computer and it has the V-belt alternator drive, don't use an electric cooling fan for your engine. The only way that I found to possible cure the belt slippage would have been to invest more money and time in a serpentine belt drive for the alternator. Then again, that wouldn't be a guarantee of no belt slippage. I'm not saying that electric fans don't work, period, it's just that they can be temperamental, costly and not suitable for a V-belt drive alternator that puts out just over 100 amps without A/C.

Damn, that is a good approach to letting out the info. I hardly care about the video and yet here I am watching the whole video and commenting 😂👍👍👍

Thank you for an informative video Keep up the good work. We love " IT".

Great video. Just want to add.... you can get a smaller alternator pulley. EX: from 2.25" to 1.75" and will rack out about 25% more power. Also the extra and more consistent cool increases life if coolant system. Don't forget Fleetguard coolant bypass filters. 75 filter + 20 1 piece T + 25 hoses. Great time to add a heat sink to further increase coolant

I'd recommend a PWM fan controller. They work a lot better than the simple on/off controls for fans. Helps with in-rush current and is much easier on your alternator. It ramps fan from stop to the necessary speed to cool down the engine which doesn't always required full speed.

Thanks, I appreciate this kind of video. I’m current suffering the consequences of a poor teenagers mind because I decided to take the wrong dirt road which washed out and splashed water and sand up at my cold air intake. This killed my engine but the starts aligned thst night. A guy pulled in not 2 minutes later who just so happened to be a mechanic with an obd scanner to reset my computer and just so happened to have carb cleaner to flush my intake and get the good ole lm7 restarted. Well the plugs wer fawled so I had to fight with it about 15 minutes till it got warm before I could go help him because he was in a 2wd Tahoe and got stuck behind me. So the cam didn’t like being abused with low oil and decided to take a few bites out of the bearings and turn my oil a nice sparkly silver xD. So here I am pulling my first engine and rebuilding my first engine. Going with a btr stage 2 cam and all associated with an engine rebuild. Anyway the guy who helped me had electric fans and the idea was born, so here I am saying my options since I’ll already be in there.

A great "from the heart" video. Much appreciated. Thank you.

I had a 92 Chevy suburban that had the exact same problem and I also installed electric fans. I upgraded my alternator with one from a 3/4 ton Diesel 4x4 with the snow plow package Which was a 160 amp alternator. The key here is eliminating voltage drop. Your melted fuses and your flickering lights were being caused by restrictions in the electrical system not the alternator not being able to keep up. The fuses that you’re using just are not capable of handling a long-term high current draw. It’s because of the connections inside the in-line fuse holder that you’re having problems. I installed fusible links instead and powered the fans with relays and a temperature switch. I used a set of fans from an Oldsmobile 98 Regency that I found at the junkyard. I used two relays, one for each fan so there was some redundancy, and both relays were wired to either activate when the temperature switch reached a certain point (mine was a 190° switch), and when the air-conditioning compressor came on. I also added an additional ground strap between the alternator case itself and the engine block and between the engine block and the frame. And I ran a second charge wire in addition to the original wire directly back to the battery. The fans were also powered directly from the battery through the fusible links to the relays and had their own dedicated ground back to the frame. It wasn’t very costly to wired that way it just took some planning. Hi resistance causes excessive heat buildup and wiring, and no alternator can overcome that. The alternator is like a pump for electrons. I don’t care how big the pump is, if you restricted in late and it’s outlet it’s not going to be able to move the volume that you wanted to move. You are right about an alternator is rated capacity not being at hot idle. At hot idle it is only capable of about 60% of its full capacity. My system ran flawlessly for almost 10 years until one day sitting at a red light the car got totaled. And it went from being a swamp box to being frigid Lee cold even sitting in heavy traffic when it was brutally hot outside.

There is a disclaimer at the very beginning saying not to follow any of his instructions. I figured that was good a spot as any to stop the video

Do you still have the flexalite fans in your suburban? If so, how are they holding up? Also are you still using the mechman alternator? Is it still working? Thanks

I had a 1990 Isuzu 2.6L 4x4 LS SpaceCab in SE Arizona. Lived there for nearly25 years. One of the best things I ever did for that truck was to install an electric fan system in it. I had gone thru several fan clutches and finally decided on the electric system. Bought the truck brand new in Hawaii in late 89, had 15 miles on it. Sold it a year ago with 226K miles and it still had that great electric fan on it (though I moved to Ohio in 2012).

I have been running electric fans in my trucks for 20 years. I've learned a ton in getting them right. I used off the shelf AutoZone stuff on my Dakota and initially for my S10. Eventually for my S10 a combination of a Summit Racing 31x19 aluminum radiator and a set of Summit shrouded fans has worked for years. For full size trucks the normal late model dual fan available from Doorman has been very reliable with my Suburban keeping a 454 cool and running happy; even in Las Vegas. Alternators: I've usually run Powermaster, but know others that are happy with either Mechman or Mean Green. I am currently running a 165amp from O'Reilly's on the Suburban. Each fan has it's own relay and power supply. They are triggered by a switch on the dash that is tied into an ignition hot circuit. That way my wife can drive my trucks without issue. I have not seen the electrical issues you note, unless I try to use fancy controllers. E-fans are my preferred setup no matter what. My water pumps live longer with out a heavy clutch fan dragging them down.

I legitimately appreciate your honestly admitting that you have made mistakes, it is quite refreshing compared to the people who say that everything they buy is great. I am sure that this has probably already been mentioned, but when a fuse MELTS like yours were, that is NOT a problem with the fuse or alternator, and it is probably not caused by an overload. What actually usually causes the plastic housing of a fuse to melt is a poor connection either between the fuse and the fuseholder, or a poor connection inside the fuseholder, such as spread out female terminals that don't grab the fuse tightly, So basically that means you need to get a different fuseholder, and make sure that the one you get is rated for at least 50 amps. On a motor application (such as fans), you need a fuseholder that is rated for more current than what the continuous load is because of the inrush current of the motors starting up since the motors will draw more current starting up than they will once they are running. I hope this helps you or someone else

Very helpful thanks

I have an alternator rated at 240 amps. Just bought a dual fan set-up for my Chevy S10 that's running a 402 Big Block. Could you go over the instructions for installing the fans? I bought them from a salvage yard, so I have no instructions.

I'm amazed all the people that have installed electric fans on you tube they throw the old fan shroud away without thinking there is a reason why the whole raditator is covered not just where the electric blades straw verses funnel

Actually the best upgrade u need at the top of ur mods list would be a good set of electric fans.. Takes a lot of drag off motor allowing the crank to reach higher RPM's quicker and less drag. All around great move.

Damn. Did not Realize that was such a Complex upgrade?! Great Video!

This video has led me down a rabbit hole. After watching the video I saw a few things were not right. After reading the comments I learned a ton about what else could be improved. All this to say I finally realized I do not know as much about electrical systems as I thought I did. Your video whether it was 100% right, 100% wrong but it feel in-between and the pure controversy sparked interest for the truth. I started looking up educational scientific sources explaining voltages, wire diameters, voltage drop over length, heat effect on amps and tons of things that I never knew completely before. The more I learned the more mechanics I meet that were in the same boat as I was originally (just winging it). I found friends cars that have the switched fused 30 amps for the switch to the relay BUT the relay itself power circuit not having a fuse at all! Another was a weak dual radiator fan assembly being fed by an 18 gauge wire from the battery in the truck by the time the voltage drop hit the fans the 12-18V fans were only seeing 6v. All this to say, your video made a huge difference in my mechanical hobby life and I think about your video often when I am fixing stuff. Kaizen my friend!

I installed an electric fan in my rx7, mostly for room. I used a fan and shroud from a 1994 taurus. It has a 40 amp fuse 50 amp relay and 8 gauge wire. The stock 65 amp alternator didn't like it but I made the 140 amp alternator from the same taurus work. Its been in the car for 5 years and haven't had an issue. The relay was the most expensive part of this swap for me.

Just trying to help...you NEED a RELAY for the fan power/fuse blowing problem.

i know this video is from 2018 but do you thinking running a clutch fan and electric fans my 2007 chevy Silverado classic came with electric fans and i want to keep the engine as cool as possible

The air coming out of the dash of just about any vehicle will begin to warm somewhat whenever the vehicle is sitting in traffic. This is more noticeable on older vehicles with an engine driven fan. However this isn’t caused solely by a lack of air flow through the A/C condenser and shouldn’t cause the A/C to quit working all together. The A/C compressor is driven off the engine’s crankshaft and varies in speed with the engine. The compressor capacity is reduced as its speed is reduced. As its capacity is reduced by lower speed, so is the required amount of airflow through the A/C condenser. I’m sure this and pretty much all vehicles are designed to have the A/C to work satisfactory under these conditions as built. When it doesn’t that usually means something is broken, not maintained properly or is being used in a manner beyond its capacity. The proper first step would have been to clean the A/C condenser and radiator. Next would have been to make sure the clutch on the fan is operating properly. The thermal clutch on the center of the fan will eventually wear out. The clutch allows the fan to freewheel when the air is cool and it engages the fan more and more as the temperature rises. The clutch usually fails in a manner which the fan just free wheels constantly. Then have the A/C system checked for proper charge and performance. His mentioning at the end of the flickering indicator should have been his first clue. If the indicator is flickering he should have checked the clutch on his compressor. The clutch is like an electromagnet that makes the compressor spin with the belt when turned on. If it is getting a flickering voltage the clutch wouldn’t be fully engaged causing slipping in the compressor’s engagement to the pulley and greatly reducing the capacity of the A/C system which would be most notable when sitting in traffic when the engine is idling. I understand the intent of the video as it does give some pointers on what to expect when you modify something on your vehicle. That being it is rare that you can just bolt something on without it affecting something else. If you want to upgrade the performance of something you have to look at the big picture because this upgrade may expose a weakness in a related system. I wasn’t trying to be disrespectful, just explaining how I would have approached the original issue.

A 240 amp alternator? Or just do what most people do and change the pulley size on the alternator.

Aside from this video entirely, a lot of people in the comments do not know how alternators work. You can run dual 300 amp alternators on a stock system and the batter will not just "explode" as most of you think. Your vehicles electronic systems will draw the power they need and that is when having a 250 amp alternator is helpful. Alternators are also speed dependent and put out lower amps at lower rpms. My 1984 Dodge W250s stock alternator is 60 amps, at idle with my headlights on and aftermarket radio and a/c on I'm using every last bit of 60 amps and it's hard on the alternator to keep up so I put a 130 amp alternator in it and now I can run everything no problems. It's like the common misconception with wire gauge. (I've even seen electricians get this wrong) You can use a larger gauge wire as long as you start off with the correct size. My aftermarket gauges in my truck recommend 22 gauge wire but I used 16 gauge for durability and longevity since 22 gauge is too thin for my liking even though it would work perfectly well. You can even use zero gauge wire to run a 1 amp accessory light if you wanted, why? because the light is only going to draw as much power as it needs to. Same concept with alternators, the put out only the amps your systems are drawing. But yes if your old vehicle has a 60 amp alternator and you put on an aftermarket fan that can draw 40-50 amps you definitely need to upgrade your alternator, just get one that can put out enough amps for whatever you are planning to do.

I did the same thing with twin screws. I had the suburban serviced and they didn’t put the belt on correctly. When it came off in the middle of nowhere it saved me - those fans kept convection cooling from overheating the thing without the water pump working. Ice cold a/c too, when the belt is in place.

Thanks for clearing this issue

The biggest problem with this setup is how he hooked it into the AC clutch so the fans will be constantly turning on and off every few seconds. When the fans start they will draw more current than the rated 28 running amps, maybe like 50 amps to start. The fuse isn't designed to protect huge intermittent switched loads like that, so that's why it melted. He needs to add time delay that will run the fans for 1-2 minutes after the clutch shuts off so the fans stay running across clutch cycles. This is how it works on modern cars, the fans run constantly at a low speed when the AC is turned on.

I love converting to electric fans. Just did my 15 Ram and works great. Good video and we know sh*t happens and we learn from it.

I have question you said in the beginning that when you got to a traffic your ac starded getting hot with electric fans so what happen how did you fix it

Your absolutely right on all points, I own a 94 Ford Bronco and I live in the California desert where is gets to 110 in the summer and with my stock system my AC and truck would overheat and I was forced not to run my AC, to be honest with you i wouldn't even drive my truck on hot days like that. So i upgraded here is what it cost me. now in my case I didn't want my Bronco to even over heat again so i put in a new radiator. and i'm going to be installing everything when my radiator comes in its been on back order since January, but you are right with needing to upgrade everything else, awesome video man. Flex-a-lite fan-295 $366.00 Frostbite radiator FB224 $411.00 Mechman 320 amp alternator $525.00 Big 3 wiring and connectors and battery terminals. $200.00 Total Cost 1502.00

240 amp ??? Ok hold my beer watch how I smoke this battery lol.

Well, I'm going to be nice and mention how clean that Suburban looks. lol

I must say, you have one clean Suburban right there, very well cared.