bkdude

Hello. I was wondering how/if you can use a power supply fan as a regular PC fan. I have two dead PSUs and I took the fans out by snipping the black/red wires off. I want to take the fans, solder them to a female 4-pin, and plug into a male 4-pin. I'm rather new to doing this sort of thing. I know soldering will be involved which i've never done before (but am willing to try )

If anyone could give me advice and/or suggestions I will greatly appreciate it.

Here is some info regarding the fans (which i should learn about as I have no real clue as voltages and amperes work. (I'm only 15 :p))

fan 1: 12V, 0.20A
fan 2: 12V, 0.11A

Fan 1 was taken from a PowerRebel 350 Watt PSU that lasted about 9 months before slowly dying eventually refusing to turn on my 2nd computer

Fan 2 was taken from a power supply that came with half a computer i bought at a yard sale. (the previous owner said the PSU needed to be replaced, and i haven't tested it, so i'm guessing it was busted)

MyKobalt

As long as it's a 12v fan, I don't see why it wouldn't work. I've taken fans out of an air purifier and they worked fine in an old computer. It'll be fine for some extra air in your case, but if you're having any kind of overheating issues, I'd go splurge on some Antec fans. They're cheap.

bkdude

Alright. I'll try soldering one to a spare 4-pin female adapter i have by comparing it to another fan i have probobly this weekend. thanks for the reassurance :p

I don't have any overheating issues, i just felt like making use out of some dead PSUs of mine. :)

OutlawTechie

My opinion is that its not worth it. Fans are pretty cheap. Also, get some proper training before you start opening up PSUs - the diodes in them continue to hold a charge after it has been unplugged. The job may go fine, but if your not qualified then how do you know if it went fine? Not worth the risk of burning your house down 3 months later. I don't think TSF should be encouraging people to do stuff like this.

1 g0t 0wn3d

we are not encouraging it, however we will provide the best advice/information so he can decide whether or not he would like to do this

warning it is dangerous

TheShadowFl

Bkdude,,,,,,,Welcome!

If you own a Soldering Iron and know how to use it, you're half way there.

I've been using one since I was about 10. No problemo'.
Just remember NOT to pick it up by the pointy end.

Yes, the fans in most PSU's are great replacements for case fans.
And you might find out, like I did, that they are quieter than most of the case fans you can buy at the stores.
Save those weird little screws that hold the fans into the PSU's.
You'll need them.

I recently scrapped out 14 PSU's that were just stacking up in, and overflowing my junk box. Be sure to clean the fan thoroughly and make sure it spins freely before you try to use it.

All are 12v and the red wire goes to the 12 v lead on the power plugs. That's usually the yellow wire. And the black wire (ground) goes to a black wire on the power plug.
The red wire on most power plugs is the 5v line. The two black wires in the center of the power plugs are both ground...common together at the PSU.

Some of the PSU's that I scrapped out had the clear plastic fans with red LED's in them. I have one in the top front of my case and one in the left side panel. Here's the pic.


Then I found out I had a hot spot in the lower front of my case where I have two 160 gig SATA2 drives. So I pulled the plastic front panel off and cut out the steel frame and put two more of those reclaimed PSU fans (the black ones) in the front of my case, to pull in fresh air. Here's the pic.


Now, my whole case stays as cool as a cucumber.

Go for it!

The Shadow

bkdude

cool!

i'll be certain to remember that when i get to soldering the wires to the female 4-pin. I have noticed that power supply fans are much, much quieter than regular fans, and when i took them out of the PSU I did keep the screws and kept them in a little plastic baggie i use for holding spare screws :)

and to everyone else complaining about me opening up a PSU, i'm not an idiot. I have read about safety tips when opening up PSUs and the first PSU had not been plugged in for over 2 weeks, and the second one hadn't been plugged in for well over a month, so the chances of them holding even the slightest charge is very slim.

Your second idea is great as well. My second computer only has 2 places for fans, and the side panels have no holes for fans either, so I might just cut out a few slots to fit in one of the fans to help circulation. I might even use zipties to mount a fan onto 2 extra CD faceplates sitting in the front of the computer.


I have a lot of homework to do, so i'll probobly bust out the soldering gun this weekend. I've never done it before, but I'm not worried :)

bkdude

Well, I just finished soldering up the two fans, and they turned out alright considering it was my first time soldering. I haven't perfected it yet and I need more practice, but I think for a simple application like PC fans, it shouldn't make too much of a difference how well the solder is, as long as its well insulated with electric tape :)

I'm not that good at tinning the surface of the soldering iron or getting the wire warm enough to melt the solder w/o use of the iron, but overall I think I did OK considering it was my first time. I'll probobly rig my 2nd computer up to use them considering it only has one PC fan as it is, and there arent any suitable spaces for fans :p