My car is a 48 Pontiac with 350/700. I have a Cooling Components fan and shroud combo, puller type. I am about to mount the A/C condensor to the radiator and want to do this prior to putting my front cap back on the car while things are easier to get to. I have been advised by several that it would be a good idea to install a small ( prob 10 ") , "Pusher" fan for the condensor itself that can be turned on and off with a toggle switch for slow traffic and/or idling. My question is what is your advice on this and if agreed is there an economical fan available that you know of that would work well in this application? Plans are for putting the cap back on next Friday and would really like to get this done between now and then. Thanks in advance for your help! 48 Poncho
If you have an adequate fan now, it should be OK. However, any extra air flow would be a plus. Factory AC very rarely used any additional fans.
i, too would use the existing cooling fan. Either toggle switch or with the a/c clutch automatically so you can't forget to turn it on.
Thanks guys. The car already has an electric fan and shroud for normal driving. What I am asking about is adding a second fan just for the condensor itself to add some extra flow at idle and slow traffic. Thanks...48 Poncho
I use the a stock style flex fan in my 46 chevy and on the condensor is a 12" electric just for that purpose of comfort whilst sitting in traffic. I have it wired to the Mode switch so that when the compressor is commanded to come on in A/C mode, it is on and it doesn't go off till I shut the key off or turn the fan switch off or mode switch. Blows cold all the time, just the way my wife likes it.
Thanks everyone. Seems like the way to go. I am looking at a fan in Summit, 10" 750 CFM, reversible type, about $55.00. Does that sound reasonable or is 750 too low even with another fan pulling air through radiator? Thanks....48 Poncho
Trinary, new word for me, but then I've not done much A/C work. I didn't know if it was a spelling error or what, so looked it up, read about it, and have now had my daily dose of "you learn something new every day". Thanks!!
If you have a good electric shrouded fan [CCI?] and the radiator is in good shape, then mounting an additional pusher fan on the front will only hamper air flow. At least that has been my experience.
Yes it'll work best if you have a fan that you can run all the time when the AC is on, seperate from the regular fan.
The Summit fan is 54.95 plus shipping and is reversible so will pull or push either one. 10" diameter should cover the condensor enough to make a differnce. It has 10 straight blades, small shroud and puts out 750 CFM. That along with my shrouded Cooling Components fan should be enough to move some air I hope. They had some cheaper ones but they looked shoddy. Speedway had one by Mr Roadster for 49.95 but it was 11" and would be a little larger than the condensor. So unless anyone has a better suggestion I will probably go with that and order tomorrow. Really appreciate all the replies. Nice to know you got a place to go for answers. 48 Poncho
Google up the Fan Man. He has a huge selection, good prices, and lots of information and dimensions on his site.
Now I am really confused. I called Summit's Tech line this AM to see which fan they suggested for the condensor. The Tech (Lawrence) seemed very knowlegeable and was more than helpful. According to him, if I put a pusher fan on the condensor that generated less CFM than the Cooling Components Fan/Shroud Puller I have mounted on the radiator then there would actually be a restriction to air flow and it would be like putting a piece of cardboard over the radiator. My engine is about 290 HP. He said I should check with Cooloing Components to see what CFM is on my combo. He also said for that engine/trans combo I needed between 2500-2600 CFM to adequately cool the car. I called Walker Radiator and one of their Tech Guys (Harry) said the same thing. He said if I put the extra fan on the condensor it would actually restrict flow and I could be facing overheating issues. He said the Cooling Components fan I have generates 2500 CFM and should be plenty to cool the car. He also suggested using the trinary switch set-up. Now I am leaning to go without the extra fan for now. Get it running to see if it overheats and take it from there. Just thought I would pass on what I learned this morning. 48 Poncho
I have a flex fan and shroud on my '53 Chevy, and when I added A/C it couldn't quite keep up so I did exactly what you are thinking (smallish electric pusher fan mounted to the front of the condensor). The fan does NOT restrict cooling in any way - the car cools exactly the same as it did before with the fan off, and with the fan on it does better at holding temperature at idle in hot weather with the A/C on. I mounted my extra fan as far down and off center as I could so that the only part of the radiator it sits in front of is the part that matters the least. When the car is running and the electric fan is turned off the flex fan draws enough air to make the blades turn slowly, but when I turn that sucker on there is a noticeable difference in how much air is going in. The puller fan has no problem drawing air through, past, and around that little fan. As long as the two fans aren't sealed to the radiator, and as long as your pusher fan is not installed directly in front of your puller I can't imagine how it could reduce cooling at all. My grilled blocks air flow a lot more than the little extra fan does. Those guys are overthinking the situation.
The puller only covers the top 2/3 of the radiator. My original plan was to mount the condensor as low as possible on the front of the radiator and to mount the little fan at the bottom of the condensor. That way it would not be in front of the puller so much but it would be in front of the bottom of the radiator. Would you see any problems with this? Thanks again. I apologize for so many questions but with a limited income on an even farther limited mind I have no other choice. 48 Poncho
just use a trinary with your current fan like i mentioned before.. if it doesnt work out, then get a small electric for the condensor.
That's exactly what I would do as well. The whole beauty of using a trinary switch is that is not only protects the system from both low and high pressures, but is also controls electric fan operation. Any time I put in a new A/C system, I try to use a trinary switch. With your current fan, you should be fine. Even at idle on a hot day.
Just for the record, if you decide you need an extra fan try Skip White in TN he has a good range of well priced stuff including fans.
No matter who's a/c you are running, call Vintage Air's tech line and ask for Mark Hungerford (tech manager). Tell him up front that you have a question about electric fans and need a few minutes of his time. They will help you with 35 years of hot rod air conditioning and cooling experience. 800-862-6658
That is exactly what I did and it has been working great for two or three years. It was 100 degrees yesterday on the way home - no problems at all. I have the small fan on a manual toggle switch AND a trinary switch - the trinary only kicks the fan on on days like yesterday, and even then only for relatively short periods of time. You'll be fine with your intended setup.
^^^^Same setup only I am using the factory radiator that came in my 46 chevy. The condenser is mounted at a slight angle to clear the hood latch plate and grill. With about 120k miles on the car, I hope it is working ok.
OK Guys! I sincerely appreciate everyone's input on this. I also apologize for being late in responding but I work a hundred miles from home 3 days at a time and have no internet access when I'm away. I did get the condensor mounted to the radiator and will install that tomorrow as well as the puke tank. If I can get enough people together Friday I will be putting the front cap back on and then will go from there. Its been almost 5 years now since the 48 has seen the road and I am stoked being this close. If there is ever anything I can do for any of you please do not hesitate to ask. 48 Poncho
Just so it is clear You do NOT need the extra fan, it will do more harm than good. You DO need a trinary switch You do NOT need a toggle switch to turn the fan on, use the trinary. Do not wire the fan to the ac clutch, use the trinary. We use a lot of CCI fans and never have problems cooling, especially a 290 horse crate engine. Donny
I have a '37 Ply coupe that had a "mickey-mouse" air conditioning set-up in it. I gutted most of the old system and now, after rewiring the entire car, am ready for A/C again. I've done a lot of research with companies, etc. As a result, I just "realized" that the person who put the A/C in mounted the condenser in front of the radiator in the "wrong" direction (tubes vertical vs horizontal), I've talked to a number of A/C people as well as A/C vendors and get different answers as to how big a problem this is; answers ranging from "catastrophic" to "no-big deal". The problem is that because the way this car was built, there is no way in hell I can reinstall the condenser properly. Anybody have thoughts or experience with condenser mounting issues?? Thanks. Si
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