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Hi, some may have read my post regarding the generator stud shearing on my F1 flattie. The result was a £460 bill for a radiator complete rebuild. As a result I am thinking of doing away with the mechanical fan and replacing it with a 16" electric fan. I am wondering if anyone else has done this. Will a 16" electric fan keep the engine cool enough. And is it more efficient to mount the fan in front of or behind the radiator ? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Hi, In my experience, with a 302 that runs slightly hot, a 14" electric fan mounted behind the radiator, (some folks refer to this as "puller") was a great addition and keeps my engine cool. I am running a 4 row radiator. Some things you want to think about. Are you still running 6 volts, or have you converted to 12volts? If still 6 volts, just my opinion, I would stick with the stock fan due to the current these things like to draw. If you are using 12 volts you will probably want to power it through a relay. Are you thinking about using a temperature switch threaded into the block that will sense the coolant temperature or one of those bourdon type of fan switches that is installed through the radiator fins? I tried both but went with the temp switch threaded into the intake manifold and it worked much better. There again, some folks just use a toggle switch and turn it on when they see the temp gauge go up. And there are some who just let it run all the time when the key is on. I like to have it come on automatically so I do not have to think about it.
I would say yes, a 16 inch fan behind the radiator should keep your engine cool, but your electrical and cooling systems has to be in good shape. Most times, you won't need to have the fan on while cruising down the road. Just when you are driving slow, and during stop and go.
Hi, In my experience, with a 302 that runs slightly hot, a 14" electric fan mounted behind the radiator, (some folks refer to this as "puller") was a great addition and keeps my engine cool. I am running a 4 row radiator. Some things you want to think about. Are you still running 6 volts, or have you converted to 12volts? If still 6 volts, just my opinion, I would stick with the stock fan due to the current these things like to draw. If you are using 12 volts you will probably want to power it through a relay. Are you thinking about using a temperature switch threaded into the block that will sense the coolant temperature or one of those bourdon type of fan switches that is installed through the radiator fins? I tried both but went with the temp switch threaded into the intake manifold and it worked much better. There again, some folks just use a toggle switch and turn it on when they see the temp gauge go up. And there are some who just let it run all the time when the key is on. I like to have it come on automatically so I do not have to think about it.
I would say yes, a 16 inch fan behind the radiator should keep your engine cool, but your electrical and cooling systems has to be in good shape. Most times, you won't need to have the fan on while cruising down the road. Just when you are driving slow, and during stop and go.
Thanks for your reply. Yes the truck is 12v and running a Power Gen alternator. I would really have liked to put a fan in front of the radiator, but feel you are right it would probably be more efficient behind. Thre does not seem to be much choice of fans over here, the one I am looking at draws 13.7 amps, which seems a lot ?.
I’m using a Zirgo 3000 com puller in my 52 F1 with rebuilt stock radiator and a 54 Merc Y block,works great. On with the ignition switch, I may put a thermoswitch in later. Had to use electric fan because the Y block didn’t come in a 52 so an engine mounted fan was too low.
Last edited by RiKi5156; May 14, 2018 at 10:17 AM.
Reason: Text
I converted a few older Volvos to run electric fans...they definitely work better as "puller" fans and you definitely want to run a relay through it.
Do you plan on having the fan run all the time, or are you going to install a switch. You can buy T-fittings to go mid-stream in radiator hoses in order to thread a sensor in there. I'm not sure if you can pull off of the stock temp sensor (t may work), but many people liked to go with 2-speed switches feeding the relay. I actually used a 2 speed Porsche thermoswitch (which mounted in the radiator itself) to power an electric fan. Fan only ran it was needed and only as fast as teh temperature dictated.
Here are some sample diagrams of how we would wire it:
I have a very non standard 460 in my 56 F-100. I have a Spal 16" fan mounted to the engine side of the rad(i.e. pulling), with a decent radiator shroud. Fans mounted in front of the rad are far less efficient. Take some time to source or make a decent shroud, it makes the world of difference. Air is lazy, and will take the path of least resistance, and try to avoid going through the rad where it can. I'm not sure I understand your comments about a limited choice of fan 'over here' there is pretty much anything you need at a click of a button.
Thanks for your reply. Yes the truck is 12v and running a Power Gen alternator. I would really have liked to put a fan in front of the radiator, but feel you are right it would probably be more efficient behind. Thre does not seem to be much choice of fans over here, the one I am looking at draws 13.7 amps, which seems a lot ?.
Suffolkman
I never measured the current draw on mine, but I think it's around that. As mentioned in the other posts (which has good information) make sure you run it thru a fuse then a relay. And (this may cause an argument) I would not ground your fan to the radiator. That could cause electrolysis, something that you don't want. (Seen it done that way many times though..) Run the ground wire to a good grounding point on the chassis or body. Have a look at your grounding while you are doing this. It's always good to have the battery grounded to the engine block, then from that point run two more grounds, one from the engine block to the frame, and one from that same point on the engine block to the body. My fan ran poorly until I found the ground had a good voltage drop. After grounding as I mentioned, it really worked well.
I’m using a Zirgo 3000 com puller in my 52 F1 with rebuilt stock radiator and a 54 Merc Y block,works great. On with the ignition switch, I may put a thermoswitch in later. Had to use electric fan because the Y block didn’t come in a 52 so an engine mounted fan was too low.
Thaanks for that. So a puller means you are using it on the engine side of the radiator ?.
I used a Ford Taurus fan I got from the u-pick it yard for $20. It fit inside the original F 3 fan shrod (so) very well and kept the 5.0 EFI engine cool with out a problem. Sitting in traffic or running the highway was not a problem. I have no idea what the power draw was but did not have a problem with the stock alternator. Good luck.
Hi, thanks for the info. Still waiting to get radiator back. But made a discovery today. I thought I would temporarily put back on the alternator and try the belt on etc. I placed the alternator bracket back on to the mount on the aluminium manifold. I realized right away it did not seem a good fit. Sliding on from the top it started ok, but did not slide right down to the half radiused casting to match the same radius on the bracket casting. The runners started to bind on each other. So I carefully with a fine file ground out the slots on the alt casting. After a few test fits, it now rides up & down all the way and still keep a good close fit to the manifold. I think it must have been sitting as high as the alternator bracket would go. I posted weeks ago that the belts seemed very loose. I suspect this belt is the wrong belt, probably and inch or two too long. All this of course would have put more strain on the stud that sheared. Can anybody tell me please the correct length and size of the belt please?. I don't know if it would have altered from original using the Power Gen alternator (with pulley). The belt fitted is a toothed one marked 25-22570. I have carefully rolled around it with a measuring tape and I reckon it measures 57 1/4 inches or very near anyway, it is 5/8" wide.
If you were here in the US the easiest way is to take the belt into your favorite NAPA store and let them measure it and then match it up to one 2" shorter.. I found that they had many different lengths for the same width. I'm sure that you must have something similar near you?
