Guidance on Building Rack Fan Controller Using Ceiling Fan Switch Mechanism

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Yoban

445 posts

Ultimate Geek

#293979 25-Feb-2022 11:55

Hi there

I have a 4 fan rack for some AV gear, networking/ONT, NAS, home server in a typical 36U rack with 4 fans in the top of which I would like to ustilise to keep a flow of air rising through it.

As you are all aware these fans generate a heck of a lot of noise, so was thinking I could use a ceiling fan controller to run them at a slower speed - this I would splice in to the middle of the power cable that rusn from the PDU to the fan housing.

Something like this: Vivid White | Mech Switch 4-Pos Rot OFF-1-2-3 75VA 250V (clipsal.com)

40CSFM

Thoughts on this idea - would it work?

mdf

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#2874665 25-Feb-2022 11:57

I use one of these: https://www.ebay.com/itm/112174066548

Seems to work well, though I wish the slowest setting was slower.

Mighty Ape

Shop now on Mighty Ape (affiliate link).

Yoban

445 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2874675 25-Feb-2022 12:14

mdf:

I use one of these: https://www.ebay.com/itm/112174066548

Seems to work well, though I wish the slowest setting was slower.

Thanks for that....I see this is designed for 12V fans - I was trying to avoid replacing fans as currently driven by 240v supply....

You make a good point about "wish the slowest setting was slower." as this is something that may need some experimenting and/or using an alternative mechanism that is more variable like a dimmer vs the 3 positions.

neb

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#2874718 25-Feb-2022 13:35

Yoban:
I have a 4 fan rack for some AV gear, networking/ONT, NAS, home server in a typical 36U rack with 4 fans in the top of which I would like to ustilise to keep a flow of air rising through it.

I realise you've already got the gear so it's a bit late now, but for anyone else looking at low-noise cooling look at AC Infinity, they have a large range of low-noise, temperature-controlled, and programmable fans and controllers for exactly this situation. I use one of them, coupled with a T-series controller, to cool the network cupboard.

Yoban

445 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2874820 25-Feb-2022 15:08

neb:
Yoban:

I have a 4 fan rack for some AV gear, networking/ONT, NAS, home server in a typical 36U rack with 4 fans in the top of which I would like to ustilise to keep a flow of air rising through it.

I realise you've already got the gear so it's a bit late now, but for anyone else looking at low-noise cooling look at AC Infinity, they have a large range of low-noise, temperature-controlled, and programmable fans and controllers for exactly this situation. I use one of them, coupled with a T-series controller, to cool the network cupboard.

Thanks for that @neb - have not ruled those out (Equipment Cooling - AV EQUIPMENT RACKS - Rack Fan Systems - AC Infinity) as a solution and just not using the standard fans that came with the rack. they certainly are nice units.

neb

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#2874946 25-Feb-2022 15:58

Yoban:
Thanks for that @neb - have not ruled those out (Equipment Cooling - AV EQUIPMENT RACKS - Rack Fan Systems - AC Infinity) as a solution and just not using the standard fans that came with the rack. they certainly are nice units.

What voltage are the fans? If they're low-voltage, i.e. not 240V, you could possibly get away with just using the AC Infinity controllers on the existing fans. Here's the setup at the Casa, with white faceplates instead of the standard black:

Yoban

445 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2876676 1-Mar-2022 09:46

Now that looks like the go @neb - where did you source from and does it come with a NZ plug on 12v transformer?

From what I can tell (have not pulled the unit out of the top of the rack, the fans would seem to be 240v - unit looks very much like this . DYNAMIX Fan Drop in Tray for SR Series Cabinets. 450 x 316 x 52mm

Picture of DYNAMIX Fan Drop in Tray for SR Series Cabinets. 450 x 316 x 52mm

I have a 150mm grill through the wall to my laundry to let the heat passively escape, but feel this is not that efficient as per photo below.

DonH

230 posts

Master Geek

Lifetime subscriber

#2876700 1-Mar-2022 10:03

The fan switch in the OP appears to be for a fan with 2 windings - it switches in either or both windings to control the speed.

Something like this may be suitable: (picked at random from a Google search)

https://argondistributors.co.nz/product/solid-state-fan-speed-controller/

People hear what they see. - Doris Day

MikeAqua

7769 posts

Uber Geek

#2876815 1-Mar-2022 12:15

Not my area of expertise, but if they are 240V AC fans, why not control them with a little VSD?

If you got one with a variable input, you could measure air temp inside the cabinet and adjust fan speed accordingly.

Mike

neb

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#2877406 1-Mar-2022 21:35

Yoban:
Now that looks like the go @neb - where did you source from and does it come with a NZ plug on 12v transformer?

I got them from Amazon, the ones in the photo actually run off 5-6V but I just used a NZ 6V power supply, the outgoing connectors from the controller are USB plugs. 12V will be even easier to deal with, it's a standard 2.1 or 2.5mm barrel jack connector. So toss the US wall wart and use an equivalent NZ one.