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Installing cooling fan(s) in the hatch box

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Audio and Electronics' started by zenMachine, Aug 2, 2007.

  1. zenMachine

    zenMachine Just another Onionhead

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    Has anyone installed fans in their hatch box to cool their amps? I'm considering adding one to blow air outward, not sure which side would be best. Would it be good to blow air toward the HV battery or away from it? Any issues with electrical ground noise entering the sound system?

    Any tips or recommendations would be appreciated.
     
    #1 zenMachine, Aug 2, 2007
  2. FireEngineer

    FireEngineer Active Member

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    My sub-woofer amp is located in the storage tray. I cut a hole in the tray on the drivers side and put an 80mm computer case fan blowing into the tray. On the passengers side where the amp resides I cut a hole and put an 80 mm computer case fan, variable speed with a thermostatic control, blowing out of the tray. Everything is wired up to the accessory outlet in the center console and runs whether needed or not. I did the air flow this way since the HV battery exhaust is on the passenger side behind the bumper extension of the rear quarter.

    Wayne
     
    #2 FireEngineer, Aug 2, 2007
  3. zenMachine

    zenMachine Just another Onionhead

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(FireEngineer @ Aug 2 2007, 09:55 PM) [snapback]489755[/snapback]</div>
    Thanks! I'll swing by Fry's to see what they have. This will have to be done soon since the amp is getting pretty hot back there.

    BTW, my Cleansweep unit has a signal wire to turn on the amp, can I tap into that to turn the fan(s) on? Or do you think it's safer to run the fan all the time since it doesn't draw a whole lot of juice anyway?
     
    #3 zenMachine, Aug 3, 2007
  4. oly_57mpg

    oly_57mpg New Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(zenMachine @ Aug 3 2007, 12:16 AM) [snapback]489790[/snapback]</div>
    Yes, the ACC (accessory) wire will have more than enough current at 12v to power some small muffin fans.

    The best location for the fans would be on the drivers side blowing out of the plastic bin and into the body area. Behind the tire tie-down bin on the drivers side of the car are some rubber flaps that act as a one way valve to the wheel well. If you could pipe the air _right_ to the flaps, then you can guarantee that the amp will get fresh cooler air.
     
    #4 oly_57mpg, Aug 3, 2007
  5. zenMachine

    zenMachine Just another Onionhead

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    Yes to the first question, right? This is a very small wire that goes from the Cleansweep to my amp. Every time the CD changer changes disc the signal actually gets cut off and the amp powers off. Kinda annoying a little bit, actually.

    [/QUOTE]
    The best location for the fans would be on the drivers side blowing out of the plastic bin and into the body area. Behind the tire tie-down bin on the drivers side of the car are some rubber flaps that act as a one way valve to the wheel well. If you could pipe the air _right_ to the flaps, then you can guarantee that the amp will get fresh cooler air.
    [/quote]

    Interesting idea. I saw that flap when I was doing my sound dampening, but didn't know what it was for. I'll give this idea some thought. Wonder if doing that will add noise from the wheel well into the cabin, or if water might get kicked in when it rains...
     
    #5 zenMachine, Aug 3, 2007
  6. zenMachine

    zenMachine Just another Onionhead

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    Thanks to the all the tips, I've been able to add some cooling fans. I decided to place them on the rear wall of the plastic hatch box, one on each side since there seems to be more space between the box and the rear wall of the car there as opposed to the sides.

    Now I would like to somehow keep the fans blowing for a while (5-10 min) after shutdown. Is it possible to implement something to do that?
     
    #6 zenMachine, Aug 10, 2007
  7. Presto

    Presto Has his homepage set to PC

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    Check out the TR-7. It has delays for startup and shutdown, with a whole host of other features. I'll get around to getting one of those installed sometime.
     
    #7 Presto, Aug 10, 2007
  8. zenMachine

    zenMachine Just another Onionhead

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Presto @ Aug 10 2007, 02:25 PM) [snapback]493679[/snapback]</div>
    That unit has a lot of cool features!
    The Door Lock Pulse Generator is nice.
    I suppose you could add auto door lock to the Prius this way?
     
    #8 zenMachine, Aug 10, 2007
  9. oly_57mpg

    oly_57mpg New Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Presto @ Aug 10 2007, 03:25 PM) [snapback]493679[/snapback]</div>
    Humm... or if you are cheap like me - just build a little timer from a PIC. You'd need a NPN Transistor, PIC (At lease one with two I/O pins), constant 12V power, and ACC power. The ACC is used as an input trigger to turn on the fans and when ACC is lost the PIC begins a countdown to turn off the other I/O pin (fan).
     
    #9 oly_57mpg, Aug 10, 2007
  10. bigdementia

    bigdementia New Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(zenMachine @ Aug 10 2007, 01:46 PM) [snapback]493637[/snapback]</div>
    Check out this device: http://www.atruereview.com/pcmodspwr/index.php[/url] . I use one of these in my computer and it works great!
     
    #10 bigdementia, Aug 11, 2007
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