Fan in keezer wiring question

[CooperBrew]

I have a computer fan that I liberated from an old PC at work. My intention is to install it in my keezer to help balance the temperature. I have already wired up a STC-1000 temp controller (thanks to thread here with wiring) to an outlet that my keezer is plugged into. What are my options for wiring the fan? I think I have three but let me know what you think...

Option 1. Wire the fan to an old cell phone charger and plug it in...let it run.

Option 2. Wire the fan to the charger and plug it into the "heating" side of the outlet I have my keezer plugged into so that it runs intermittently when it gets below my cooling threshold.

Option 3. Wire the fan directly to the "cooling" wires at the STC-1000 so that they turn on when the keezer turns on.

If there are other options I'm open to those as well.

Thanks

 

[prandlesc]

I think you should combine options 1 and 3. You'll need to convert from 110V AC to 12V DC for the computer fan, so you'll need the cell charger as noted in option 1. Next, I'd suggest plugging the charger into the same outlet as the keezer - you'll obviously need an adapter, from one outlet to at least two - maybe an old power strip "liberated" from work or a plug in splitter from the hardware store. That way the fan comes on when the keezer comes on, and it distributes the cold around inside. I bought a 110V computer type fan that I wired into the power circuit in my keezer, so both are on at the same time.

 

[CooperBrew]

Looks like the obvious answer eluded me....lol. That sounds good.

 

[day_trippr]

fwiw, if the point of a keezer fan is to eliminate temperature stratification, you want it to run all the time...

Cheers!

 

[BeastlyBrew]

I bought a 110v case fan and i wired it to a dimmer switch to act as a speed control then i wired that to the hotside of the compressor so its always spinning, i agree with day i think the point is to have it spinning at all times. i chose a dimmer switch so i can turn it off easily and because it spinning at full speed was way too fast so it saves a little money on electricity by adjusting the dimmer switch and it prolongs the life of the fan.

 

[CooperBrew]

Thanks for the responses. I was able to find an old wall plug and wired up the fan last evening. I just plugged it straight into the wall socket so it's on all the time. It has a plastic shield around it that has a 45 degree angle lip on it. I was able to just lift the collar slightly and stick it under.
Here is a pic. I'm still in the process of building the keezer. I have the temp controller wired and functioning but still need to add the shanks, taps etc. Obviously I'll clean up all the wiring and stuff before call the build complete.

Look o.k? It's a small keezer, 7 cu. ft. so I figure the fan placement wasn't real critical.

 

[zachattack]

Looks great to me. You definitely want it running constantly, that's the whole point. Unless you like foamy first pours

 

[CooperBrew]

Looks great to me. You definitely want it running constantly, that's the whole point. Unless you like foamy first pours

Funny you mention that. I'm new to kegging. I just got my first two kegs last week and changed out the lid seal and the two seals on the ball locks. What I failed to notice are the seals on the end of the tubes under the ball lock posts. I had a leaking beer out post and it was slowly bleeding CO2 into my beer line. Whenever I would try to pour it was pure foam. Good news was I had the second keg which sealed fine so I transferred my beer to that one. My pours are good now.
It was a blessing in disguise as I read up a lot more about beer line diameters, lengths, temperatures of the keezer etc, trying to diagnose the problem so I learned a lot.

 

[stillshinen]

So is the fan blowing down or up? I have a 7.2 Kenmore and may fit it with 4-5 kegs. Not sure if there will be space to suck up enough cool air or should i aim it down to blow it around? Any advice is welcome as i haven't installed anything yet.

Stillshinen