Installed manual fan switch ? about battery life

[mjparme]

I installed a manual fan switch today (which was far easier than I thought) and I was curious how juice do you think it takes from the battery to run them.

Basically how long could I run the fans on high at the track with my car turned off between runs without having to worry about my car not starting.

[firebird1]

well, i have left mine on for close to 5 hours, cant remember high or low,so you dont have to worry about your battery dying.

[mjparme]

Ok, thanks for the info. I was pretty sure the fans don't take much juice. Just trying to make sure since it would be embarrassing to be at the track and my car not start when I want to go make a run [img]smile.gif[/img]

[ September 15, 2003: Message edited by: mjparme ]</p>

[TurboKillaZ]

well don't have them on when your car is not started :D

[ReodDai]

btw, most tracks have something to jump start your car at the end of the staging lanes, since most dragsters ect. have to be jump started.

[mrbako]

IMO...running the fans w/o the engine running is pointless...the point is to cool the water mixture running through the block..if it's not flowing, you're only cooling a portion, and it will heat right back up within moments of starting the car.

[mjparme]

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr> IMO...running the fans w/o the engine running is pointless...the point is to cool the water mixture running through the block..if it's not flowing, you're only cooling a portion, <hr></blockquote>

I had actually been wondering about this myself and wasn't sure if is was beneficial or not. However, what led me to believe that it is beneficial is when I go to the track and watch drag racing I see cars sitting in the pits with their hoods up and the fans running when the car isn't running.

What you say defintely makes sense but then again if you are blowing air through the engine compartment heat is going to be removed through convection. I am leaning toward it being beneficial.

Then of course run the fans when you are sitting in the staging lanes waiting for your run.

[mrbako]

the cooling fans on our car aren't going to do crap for cooling the block enough...unless you've got a very high powered fan, i don't think it will make a difference...you'll also see import guys putting bags of ice on their heads and blocks....

the smaller the engine generally, the more it's effected by heat...v8's don't really need to worry about hotlapping as much as we do...they can prob get away w/ just turning on their fans.

[mjparme]

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>the cooling fans on our car aren't going to do crap for cooling the block enough...unless you've got a very high powered fan, i don't think it will make a difference. <hr></blockquote>

The people I see doing it aren't ricer people at the track. I don't pay attention to them. I pay attention to what the "old-timers" are doing. The big boys, the guya that get an old car, buy a crate engine and build themselves a fast drag racing car.

I talked to one of them on a local forum we have here in Omaha about the drag strip south of us and he does run his fans without his car running but what I failed to realize is that he has an electric water pump and no thermostat. So when his fan is running the electric water pump is running too which is moving the coolant through the engine.

So you are right there probably isn't much benefit to it. I figure there may not be much benefit but there may be some and it doesn't hurt anything to run them so I will probably run them anyway. Plus it will cool down the coolant that is in the radiator which will go into the engine when I start the car so I guess that may be something.