CPU Fan ~ Wind

[Wambli]

I was thinking about mounting a CPU fan on top of all of my tanks... I use plexiglass tops with holes drilled in... I wanted to make sure they had plenty of ventelation. I could glue the CPU fan to the top of the lid will this be to much ventelation? do I want to run it for just a few hours a day... will the wind bother the tree frogs? any thoughts about this?

[SludgeMunkey]

Not a bad idea, except that CPU fans are nonstandard voltages. (Often they are 12 or 24 volts)

Since a wall outlet is in the 110-125 volt range, you would also have to wire up a step down transformer and a GFCI circuit since federal electrical code requires it for any household voltage device used within 36 inches of water. A lot of folks skip the GFCI. Their homeowner's insurance companies love them for it.

This is not a task I would suggest unless you are skilled electrically.


There are quite a few ready to use fans that are already wired for household voltage AND are damp proof. Allied Electric sells some that I swear by.

[Wambli]

Radio shack sells a 120VAC Fan that you can wire to an cord and plug which they also sell. My house's outlets are wired to a gfi... so I think I am safe... and I have done wiring... But you don't think it will drive the frogs crazy? you know what they say about wind... it can drive a man crazy... anyhow... do you think it needs to be on all the time. or just a few hours a day? or just when the lights are on...

[SludgeMunkey]

It may be best to see what your average humidity in the enclosure is without a fan first. I built a few enclosures thinking I needed better humidity control, and then discovered the hard way a fan was overkill.

[John]

Unless you have hot lighting or you're keeping dartfrogs, I doubt you need the fan.