Since there's no "hardware infirmary", I'm here...

[Grobot2010]

I just set up my odor control/ventilation with carbon filter, fan, and motor speed controller.

The filter cfm rating is well above the fan cfm rating as required, but I need to keep the noise lower than what the fan at full speed gives off, so I opted for the motor speed controller. Even so, the grow space is small enough that odor and ventilation needs are met.

Started everything up and after about 6 hours of operation the fan stopped spinning when set at half speed via the speed controller. When turn the speed controller up to near full speed or at full speed it begins to turn again, otherwise, I just get a buzz from the motor but no noticeable airflow.

Would you say I have a faulty motor speed controller or is it common to experience that fans cannot handle being run at low/intermediate speeds and it is the fan that is the culprit?

Any input is greatly appreciated, thanks in advance.

 

[firehound]

2 types of motors "magnetic"also known as "brushless" motors and then the brush motor. In the directions of speed controllers there is a paragraph talking about this possible problem slightly incapatable with brush type motors. Or drawing too much power for your circuit. check all possibilites. it might be a bad reostat in the speed controller too. is it new?

 

[cocktail frank]

make sure you have the right speed controller.
some controllers won't work with motors that have capacitors.

 

[touringfunkband]

What is the brand and model of both the speed controller and the fan itself?

 

[rives]

It sounds like you might have a compatibility problem between the fan motor and the speed controller. The "speedster" (or router) type controllers are for motors with brushes in them, and do what you are talking about with many types of fan motors. You might post all of your nameplate data or refer to your fan mfg's web site to see what control is appropriate.

*edit* Damn, you guys are on it!

 

[Grobot2010]

Thank you for the quick replies. Here are some details:

Motor: Typhoon 4" inline duct fan 176 CFM and box says "100% speed controllable" among other things and the specs box says "RPM 2500, VOLTS 115, MAX WATTS 98, MAX AMPS 0.9, DB (NOISE) 45.9, CFM 176". There's no indication on the box or the paperwork inside whether this is brushless or uses capacitors, etc. Mostly it is safety paperwork that says don't use an extension cord or be wet when you turn it on!

Motor speed controller: The Speedster from Control Wizard Products which says on the box "Power Specifications: 120 volt, 15 amp Maximum" and "For use with 120 volt AC equipment or power tools that have a Universal brush type motor or a motor that is compatible with a speed controller." It does say not to use it with 1) aquarium or pond pumps that have their impellers driven by a rotor with a permanent magnet attached to it 2), in wet locations, 3) on motors that already have a variable speed control.

I got these two items at two different locations, so I'm trying to decide where I need to go first for a replacement item. I'm leaning towards the speed controller as the culprit, since the fan works fine at full speed when plugged directly in and when the speed controller is set to full power on the dial as well as when the speed-control bypass switch is toggled to the full speed option.

These kinds of hardware situations are so aggravating! I hope everyone else's grow-rooms/systems are functioning bug free tonight!

 

[rives]

I can't find anything pertinent on the Typhoon fans, but this controller will probably work for you.


fan speed control

 

[Hydrolized]

See if it has a pot under the cover/back panel to adjust for minimum speed. The controller rives posted will have a pot in the top right corner when the panel is off, that can be adjusted to keep the fan spinning when the controller is on the lowest setting.

 

[Grobot2010]

I'm going to return speed controller. The retailer said that for the longest time they had zero problems with this item, but recently they did have another return with a similar problem.

The place where I got the fan was out of stock on the speed controller that they normally have for use with their fans, but they said they'll have some in the next day or two, so I'll get theirs instead and see if I can get store credit at the place where I'm doing the return.

Thanks for all of the input, everyone.

 

[RetroGrow]

I would recommend this:

Panasonic FV 40NLF1

Quietest fan going.

 

[Grobot2010]

And in the final analysis...

It was the speed controller. I got a new one (from a different manufacturer, Growzone) and everything is back up and running. When I re-checked the suspect one and the variable speed portion still doesn't function properly. It doesn't kick in until you dial it up to about 85% or more or use the full on/off mode (it had been working at all of the variable settings for about 6 hours before it went bad).

 

[sweetypie]

Retro where did you get that fan and specs please..

 

[Grobot2010]

The drama continues...

As a final message for this thread I want to inform all of you as to what problems I encountered with faulty speed controllers from two seperate manufacturers:

The original motor speed controller: The Speedster from Control Wizard Products failed and was replaced with a much pricier one from Growzone. That motor speed controller ALSO failed after just a few days work.

I opted to replace it with another Speedster, the cheaper option of the two, and the new one has been working for months now, and I've used all the settings and features relentlessly to control sound and smell in my room.

The Speedster works fine, I simple got stuck with a faulty product in the beginning. I'm glad it's all working now and I would highly recommend it for its price and ease of use.

Good luck everyone.

 

[Vic Hammer]

Variacs, FTW. They are heavy and possibly not cheap but work wonderfully. Oh, they are plug n' play also.

 

[Granger2]

FYI-Harbor Freight has no name "Speedsters," identical except for name, for 20 bucks. -granger

 

[Grobot2010]

RESTART: I thought that I'd share some other hardware re-lated items on this thread if that's alright with the moderators and readership of International Cannagraphic Magazine

I've been running a 400 W Quantum digital/dimmable ballast with Emperor Lighting's HPS bulb since the beginning of April with no performance issues whatsoever. So far so good, although the fan noise is noticeable. If you need a very quiet ballast, don't go with Quantum.

I hope this evaluation proves helpful to somebody out there.

 

[ak-51]

Variacs, FTW. They are heavy and possibly not cheap but work wonderfully. Oh, they are plug n' play also.

This dude knows what's up.

Variacs are the way to go. I have two of them and they run wonderfully. I think they were ~$70 shipped. They are pretty heavy, but as Boris says, the weight is a sign of reliability. The ones I have are adjustable from 0-150 volts. So I could actually overdrive my fans if I wanted to, although I probably never would do that for safety reasons.

I've been running a 400 W Quantum digital/dimmable ballast with Emperor Lighting's HPS bulb since the beginning of April with no performance issues whatsoever. So far so good, although the fan noise is noticeable. If you need a very quiet ballast, don't go with Quantum.

The thing is those little tiny fans have to spin so fast to move even a small amount of air. I'm sure there's other ways to cool them. If your setup permits you could probably stick the whole ballast inside a duct. You would want to put it before your light obviously.

 

[overbudjet]

don't put ballast in ducking it will greatly disrupt air flow(and also be a fire hazard),K.I.S.S. style:just unplug the fan.

 

[Grobot2010]

Yeah, I won't be modifying my ducting like that anytime soon. The fan is only annoying on my Quantum, the other light is a 1000 W HydroStar Pro and it is absolutely silent.

 

[Grobot2010]

One month along and all systems function perfectly. The ballasts are handling switching between output levels, timer changes and random operation. The HydroStar Pro is functioning perfectly and is ideally suited for noise and heat free operation.